Open Heavens, March 18th 2008

BIBLE IN A YEAR: Nah 1-3

ALL FOR GOOD

MEMORIZE: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28)

READ: Exodus, Romans 8:27-30

A purpose of events taking place in your life is not as crucial as your location with God. In other words, your standing before God gives meaning to situations and circumstances around you, as well as redefines them. A negative event that happens to a believer who is wrongly placed before God can be seen as negative. But if that same believer is rightly placed before God, that event eventually turns into a positive one. Today's reading spells out the qualities we must possess if all events - negative and positive must achieve only positive outcomes in our lives. The first is your love for God. If you have genuine and extreme love for God, that love can neutralize the negative qualities in events, and bring up the positives.

Similarly, you must be called by God to fulfill a heavenly mandate. Today, many Christians have called themselves into ministry. Others have been called by God, but are out to fulfill their personal mandates. This is why negative situations fail to deliver their positive contents. Are you out to satisfy personal desires or God's? God cannot be fooled. Even when you make people believe you are there for God, your motives, utterances, expectations and strategies give you away. God wants everything that happens this year to deliver good to you.

Recently, in Lagos, there was a tragic accident. The brakes of a heavy goods vehicle failed as it descended a hill. It lost control, rammed into a series of shops by the roadside and made a clean sweep of them, those inside the shops and those at the bus stop. At least 40 people were reported dead in that instant. Some were wounded and taken to the hospital but never recovered. One of the survivors was an owner of one of the shops selling handset accessories. He had earlier sold an accessory to a customer who later returned with a policeman to arrest him for selling a defective accessory. They left his shop and crossed over to the other side of the road, waiting to board a vehicle to the police station, when almost immediately the straying vehicle swept a row of shops, including the man's. They froze as they watched this real life movie. His arrest was bad alright, but it became his saving grace. This year, the Lord will use everything that happens to work for your good. Love God and fulfill the purpose for which you were called. That affliction, trial, denial, delay is working for your good. You are coming out strong from that fire.

ACTIONPOINT
As you fulfill your part, ask God to cause all events - good or bad to work in your favor this year.