Good-life Daily Devotional

DISUNITY IS A HINDRANCE TO PRAYERS  Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi Mark 11:25-26 "And when  ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your  trespasses.But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses."            The aforementioned scripture shows how important the lord considers the importance of families living in unity and harmony.Forgiveness is a sine qua non for a healthy spiritual growth. Offerings are no substitute for forgiveness, it is for this reason that Jesus prayed for the forgiveness of those who crucified him (luke23:34) , it is as a result of that prayer that humanity now enjoys God’s grace.Stephen also prayed for the forgiveness of those behind his death ,the scriptures says in Acts 7:60 "And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to  their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep." This prayer was

 THE BLESSING OF BEING HATED By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi Luke 6:22 "Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake. "     The word 'blessed'  is the Greek word 'makarios' which means to be supremely blest; fortunate, well off, happy . It is ironic how a seemingly adverse condition can become of so much benefit to a child of God. With men it is impossible but with God all things are possible.         It is because of the inherent blessing in being hated that Jesus said in Matthew 5:43 "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy  neighbour, and hate thine enemy.  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that  hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;"       Believers in Jesus Christ tend to thrive best when under persecution, oppression i

By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi Mark 11:23 "For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith"        Jesus was standing on the mount of olives near Jerusalem when He made this profound statement ( Mark 11:1).  When He spoke of a mountain, it was literally, He was referring to the mountain of olives. He was letting the disciples  know the power inherent in a person's tongue. The human tongue determines the course of a person's destiny, we are where we are now because of words spoken in the past and our future will to a large extent be determined by what we are saying and what is being said in our behalf today.          Words determine the mood in homes and it also determines the level of peace in a home, that's why we are enjoined to fill our mouths with words of

THE LAW OF  OF CHRIST HAS TAKEN OVER THE LAWS OF MOSES. By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi Matthew 5:17 "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to  fulfill."        The word fulfill is the Greek word 'pleroo' , to make replete, level up (a hollow), to diffuse, satisfy, execute ,finish (a period or task), verify. Jesus came to diffuse the tension between man and God due to our inability to keep the laws of Moses. These were very strict moral codes that were handed to Moses. They included the ten commandments given to him on mount Sinai which was later expanded to over a hundred laws by Moses.         These laws were not meant to be kept because non could keep the law not even Moses, the law was designed to hold us accountable to God and to show the need for a saviour.  For, example in Leviticus 21:5 NLT “The priests must not shave their heads or trim their beards or cut their bodies." Any preacher  who has ever had a h

HOW TO SUSTAIN YOUR ZEAL FOR THE LORD Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi. Hebrews 12:3 AMP "Just think of Him Who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds."        Going by a self-centered perspective , all it would have taken to remedy the confusion caused by sin and evil on earth was to annihilate Satan and humanity and start the process of creation afresh but then God would have no justifiable reason to speak of the virtue of tolerance, patience and self-control. These are virtues of the spirit given that the earth was not created perfect but with room for improvements.  When God created man and the earth, the scriptures says He looked and saw that it was good,  the scriptures did not say perfect. Perfection is that state of conclusion as in death , it leaves no room for improvement

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi John 6:60,66 "Many therefore of his disciples, when they  had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?..From that  time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.  "       The first time a person  comes to the lord  is usually for the purpose of a need to be met, this is why miracles take place in the church. God wants our needs met and beyond that He is seeking for true worshipers who will become disciples and instruments in meeting the needs of others.         Discipleship requires standing for the truth at all times, this requires a high level of discipline and willingness to take on responsibilities.  It is this aspect of following Christ that most persons are least interested in because it requires selflessness . The average parishioner  struggles with selfishness which is behind over ninety percent of the crisis we face on a daily bases. Research shows that those committed to converting souls to christ an

 SHOULD CHRISTIANS CELEBRATE  HOLIDAYS By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi Galatians 4:9-10 AMP "Now, however, that you have come to be acquainted with and understand and know [the true] God, or rather to be understood and known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly and worthless elementary things [of all religions before Christ came], whose slaves you once more want to become? You observe [particular] days and months and seasons and years!"        The debates on whether Christians should celebrate holidays even personal birthdays is that which has engendered a sense of confusion and guilt in many a believer in Christ. We shall approach this from both scriptural and logical perspectives in other to give a balanced understanding of the subject matter.            Firstly,  our salvation is all encompassing , nothing missing and nothing broken, the scriptures say in Hebrews 7:25 AMP "Therefore He is able also to save to the uttermost (completely, perfectly, f

 Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi " Ecclesiastes 8:11 Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil."             The spate of abuse and heartbreaks among God’s people is the result of the misconception of the conditions  under which the love of God is appropriated. This is particularly common among married folks in the church. As part of their marital vows, they are made to commit to a life together till death . This has exposed many persons to very dangerous situations in the hands of abusive spouses . Many lives have been lost as a consequence of  this gross misconception of the gospel.          This is contrary to what the scriptures teaches with respect to the commitments we make to each other. Spouses are to live together as long as their living together isn't a threat to their individual safety. When a person in a marriage situation decides to abandon scriptural principles concernin

OUR COMMITMENT TO TRUE LOVE Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi John 15:13 "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down  his life for his friends."    There is remarkable difference between what the world refers to as love and what the word of God says  love is.  Ironically, what is considered as love for self, community, group by the world is behind the chaos in the world today. More people perish as a result of this kind of love daily than any other reason globally.        The origin of wars are traceable to a  person trying to demonstrate affection for someone else .In judges 15 , Samson declared war against the Philistines because his father in-law refused to allow him have sex with his Philistine wife  . Most men live their lives with a 'conquest' mentality and are driven by the desire to impress a woman. Adam ate the forbidden fruit not because he was deceived but because he wanted to please Eve,  when he was confronted by God he confessed in Gen.3:12 "

SIGN OF A TRUE DISCIPLE OF CHRIST . Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi John 13: 34 "A new commandment I give unto  you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all  men know that ye are  my disciples, if ye have love one to another."         The sign of a true disciple isn't in our religious garments,  tone of speech,  strict dietary principles and all manner of rules and regulations prescribed by religious folks. The world seem to be getting more and more confused on what constitutes a wholesome  church . After making a commitment to serve the Lord, the next step  is to identify with a Christian group : this is necessary for a healthy spiritual growth.             Through our fellowship with other Christians we experience a warmth that makes the period of trials and temptation more tolerable.  It is the love from the brethren that gives us the assurance needed to face whatever challenge we are faced with.          Preachers a

FRIENDS WITH  SINNERS By Rev Michael Benson Ajayi. Matthew 9:10 -11 "And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came  and sat down with him and his disciples. And when the Pharisees saw  it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your  Master with publicans and sinners?"           The Pharisees were a religious sect with strict moral codes  stemming  from the laws of Moses and it wasn't permitted for a renowned prophet or priest from God to eat with members of the public or sinners. This was a measure that was taken by the priesthood  to avoid being indoctrinated and corrupted.          Jesus approach to this was quite the opposite, He was a people's person and discouraged any form of segregation among His followers, He loves sinners and came to save sinners and not to condemn them . He was the embodiment of love and love does not segregate, therefore, His reply to His critics was succinct and revealed His purpose for

  ALIENS FROM ANOTHER PLANET By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi John 17:14-16" I have given them thy word; and the world  hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take  them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the  world."         The lord tells us clearly that there are two operating systems on the earth, firstly, the kingdom of God headed by Jehovah, administered by His son also known as "The Word of God " and empowered and energized by the Holy Ghost who also serves as the law enforcement agent of the kingdom with the uncountable number of angels.  The scriptures gives us a glimpse of what constitutes the kingdom of God also known as Zion, the city of the most high God in Hebrews 12:Hebrews 12:22-24 AMP "But rather, you have come to Mount Zion, even to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to co

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi Luke 12:13 AMP "Someone from the crowd said to Him, Master, order my brother to divide the inheritance and share it with me. "      The clamor for self-determination is at an all-time high globally and this is motivated by the desire for communities to have control over the exploration and exploitation of their commonwealth.  The  public outcry has been that of resource control with many secessionist movements threatening fire and brimstone until their demands are met.            This was the situation between the two  brothers in Luke 12.13,  they had received an inheritance from their father with one probably haven an unfair advantage over  the  other. It is common for parents to will their properties based on the sentimental value attached to each child. But it is not so with God, the scriptures says we are joint-heirs with Christ.     It was the  selfish disposition by one of the brother’s that informed the request by the other for the sharing

By Rev.Michael Benson Ajayi  2 Chronicles 18:4-5 AMP "And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, Inquire first, I pray you, for the word of the Lord today. So King [Ahab] of Israel gathered together the prophets, 400 men, and said to them, Shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up, for God will deliver it into the king's hand."         Ahab, the king of Israel ,was at war with Samaria and he sought to make an alliance with Jehushaphat the kind of  Judah whom the lord had shown extraordinary favour by given him victory over his enemies.  Jehoshaphat had a tradition of always seeking God’s counsel before embarking on any major project. The scriptures says in Matthew 6:33 AM "But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides." We are to seek God's will as a matter of priori

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi Mark 2:27 AMP "And Jesus said to them, The Sabbath was made on account and for the sake of man, not man for the Sabbath; ".         The law of the Sabbath required that the seventh Day of the week be set aside as a day of rest and communion with God. The scriptures says in  Exodus. 23:12 " Six  days thou shalt do thy work, and on the seventh day thou shalt rest: that thine ox and thine ass may rest, and the son of thy  handmaid, and the stranger, may be refreshed". The disciples were accused of violating the law of the sabbath because they harvested food on the Sabbath.         The purport and intent of the Sabbath was for refreshment and this would have been defeated if the disciples had perished in hunger. This informed Jesus' response to His critics when He said the sabbath was made for man and not the other way round.             This parable underscores the importance of regulating the pressures of life while seeking to fulf