THE LORD SHALL GO BEFORE YOU – JANUARY 2022 NEWSLETTER

TEXT: EXODUS 33: 12-20.

12. Moses said to the Lord, “You have been telling me, ‘Lead these people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. You have said, ‘I know you by name and you have found favor with me.’ 
13. If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people.”
14. The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”
15. Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 
16. How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”
17. And the Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.”
18. Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.”
19. And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
20. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.”

INTRODUCTION:

It is imperative to have a companion on a journey. He who goes with you on the journey determines how smooth the trip will be.

Occasionally, some people’s journey of life has been a very tragic one because of the voice or the attachment that followed them.

The key to a dependable companion on a journey is a good and solid relationship.

Moses had a relationship with God, and it was a cordial one that set the pace for Israel’s victory. The smooth relationship between God and Moses allowed them to talk for a long time to affirm Moses’ dependence on God.

Thus, for you to enjoy the presence of God in all areas of your life, you must know what to do.

Rick Warren said, “When you go through pain next week or next month, or this year, you don’t need God’s explanation. You need God’s presence. Let go of control and surrender yourself to him.” ( Daily Hope devotional, October, 14,21.)

We will elaborate on what you must do in breaking down this focus.

GET IT RIGHT WITH GOD (verse 17)

God was pleased with Moses.

The first thing you should do is let God be pleased with you. Allow God to take hold of you, dwell within you, and take total control of your life.

For Moses to be bold in his discussions with God, he got it right.

In order to walk with God, he dropped his smartness and craftiness.

You cannot do it on your own this year. Walk with God with all honesty, and He shall carry you through.

FOCUS ON GOD’S DIRECTION

You will encounter many distractions along the way. Many will try to frustrate you and take your focus away from what you are doing. Regardless of what may come up this year, keep your focus on the Driver of your vehicle. With God on your side, you will land safely.

Let these verses of the Bible be your anchor (Hebrews 12:2. KJV):  “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

BE IN HIS PRESENCE ALWAYS

This year, let God’s presence be your hiding place. His presence can help you through every step you take.

 

Moses understood this mystery, that was the reason why he cried out to God in verses 15, “Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.” (NIV).

Without the presence of God, the journey would not be successful. So I want you to keep in mind that if you leave God’s presence, you will be in danger.

Psalms 99:1 says, “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” (NIV).

Evils are flying around that you cannot see with your naked eyes. Only God can protect you from them, but you must be under the protection of his presence.

Conclusion:

God has already given you a free ticket for your trip and has blessed the year for you by going ahead of you now.

Nevertheless, He wishes you to register yourself in His company as a covenant member by accepting Jesus as your Lord and Savior now.

Please, don’t hesitate to make the right decision right now; you won’t regret it.

I wish you a safe journey this year; it’s well with you.

 

LET US PRAY:

1. Father,  I thank You for giving me the privilege to cross over to the year 2022.

2. Lord, among those You will have mercy on this year, let me be one.

3. My Father and my God, hide me under the shadow of Your grace this year.

4. Every mountain before me this year shall become low.

5.  I shall not be a victim of evil circumstances this year.

6. I shall operate under open heavens anywhere I turn to this year.

7. God, bless me indeed this year and enlarge my coast.

AMEN!

John Aderogba for the ROP:MI team.

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ADVENT OF JESUS CHRIST: A CALL TO WORSHIP – December NewsLetter

DECEMBER 2021, Newsletter

Topic: ADVENT OF JESUS CHRIST: A CALL TO WORSHIP

Text: ISAIAH 40:9-11, Luke 2:1-20

Isaiah, 40:9-11
9. Zion, herald of good news,
go up on a high mountain.
Jerusalem, herald of good news,
raise your voice loudly.
Raise it, do not be afraid!
Say to the cities of Judah,
“Here is your God!”
10. See, the Lord God comes with strength, and His power establishes His rule.
His reward is with Him, and His gifts accompany Him.
11. He protects His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them in the fold of His garment.
He gently leads those that are nursing.

INRODUCTION:
The advent season is the preparation for the memorable celebration of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.

It begins on the last Sunday of November until the Sunday that precedes Christmas.

Advent (from Latin adventus, “coming”), in the Christian church calendar, the period of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas and also of preparation for the Second Coming of Christ (www.Britannica.com).

The alteration of the garden of Eden by Satan caused man to lose fellowship, communion, and a good relationship with God.

As God sought to restore man to His glory, He fulfilled a promise in Jesus Christ.
There were many prophets sent to make the world aware of God’s intentions, with Isaiah included.

The verse from Isaiah 40 above was not sent just to the Israelites, but to the entire world as a whole as well.

The Advent Season is all about reflecting on how we can prepare our hearts and homes for Christ’s birth in the world as it is today. It is a time for faith communities and families to remember, through prayer, reflections, special music, and good deeds what the true meaning of Jesus’ birth is (www.outlittleroses.org., Dec. 13:2019).

This season is a time to reflect on the promises made to Israel and to the church through Jesus Christ; He has come and will come again.

This is the essence of the Advent season.

Ultimately, we are created to worship God. In worship, we invoke the presence of God, and when done with all your energy, the glory of God will be reflected.

When the wise men saw the Angels, they sensed the glory of God.

In this writing, we shall focus on:
• Glory To A Born King:
A remarkable aspect of Jesus Christ’s birth that has caused rulers and religious leaders to be furious is the fact that no king could be enthroned while a ruling king was still at the seat with his staff.

In the event that the wise men had submitted themselves to worship the Lord, God reflected His glory through the angels and empowered them to break the hard news.

Luke 2: 8-14
8. In the same region, shepherds were staying out in the fields and keeping watch at night over their flock.
9. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.
10. But the angel said to them, “Don’t be afraid, for look, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people:
11. Today a Savior, who is Messiah the Lord, was born for you in the city of David.
12. This will be the sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in cloth and lying in a feeding trough.”
13. Suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying:
14. Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to people He favors!

You need to bring up whom you are before God in order that God’s glory can be reflected in your worship, just as wise men did.
Although they were busy people, they created time to let God speak to men through them and to use them as a vessel for communicating the message of heaven.

Let this be a great challenge for you.

• O Come, Let Us Adore Him: ‘Come’ means to call attention to something or to call for someone’s attention. As for this context, it is a call to embrace the one who deserves your paise and services.

Luke 2: 15-16
15. When the angels had left them and returned to heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go straight to Bethlehem and see what has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.”
16. They hurried off and found both Mary and Joseph, and the baby who was lying in the feeding trough.

A group of angels flew to this group of men, and informed them of the divine love being released from Heaven. The wise men didn’t hesitate and they immediately began worshipping God.

What is distracting or keeping you from worshiping your God? Can you please put everything aside so you can worship the King of kings and Lord of lords?

• Worship Christ The Lord:
Matthew 2:11
“Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary, His mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”

A remarkable act of the wise men was that they found time to locate where Jesus Christ was laid to worship Him. Then they offered  Him worship materials as a sign to commemorate His Lordship as the one to reign forever. No one commands them to do so, but they see it as the right thing to do.

If Jesus Christ is so important to you, nobody would compel you to worship Him with all your heart.

Conclusion:
The birth of Jesus Christ has raised controversy around the world. However, the truth is that you can’t worship Him as Lord if you do not believe in His birth and set your heart up for His second coming.

A big worship gathering will take place in Heaven when He returns.

Finally, as a family and as individuals, make time to sing Christmas carols you know and hymns which echo the message of the season to worship Jesus Christ.

WISHING YOU A VERY HAPPY SEASON!!!

John Aderogba for ROPMI.

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SONGS OF HARVEST – NOVEMBER NEWSLETTER

Text: Psalms 147: 7-8
7. Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; play the lyre to our God,
8. who covers the sky with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, and causes grass to grow on the hills…

INTRODUCTION
A song of harvest is an expression of gratitude to God for a good season to plant; He waters and we have a good harvest. Farmers or people in the agricultural sector are not the only ones affected by this. It applies to everyone.

Every year, God opens up the year for people to set goals, visions, and aspirations, then equips them with ability and capacity to work and make money throughout the year. As enumerated in the anchor scripture, God gives us rain, sun, dew and wind without charge for our good. The strength, power, wisdom, knowledge, connection and ability you exhibit in your everyday life are all by the grace of God.

This article will primarily discuss a few areas in which you can prepare and sing your songs of harvest.

1. PONDER ON GOD’S ACTS TOWARDS YOU
To raise a song of harvest, one needs to ponder. Pondering means thinking deeply and reflecting on the care and love of God in one’s life.

You were protected by Him when the storm raged, when mountains fell, when the tick dark cloud suddenly covered you and He saved you, or when an accident happened on your way and you were not hurt.

When you submitted a business proposal and God followed it up for you. When you went for a job interview and God chose you out of thousands of candidates.

“Count your blessings;
Name them one by one.
Count your blessings;
See what God hath done.”

“Count your blessings;
Name them one by one.
Count your many blessings;
See what God hath done…”

Every aspect of your life has been blessed by God, and He deserves your harvest songs.

2. OFFER GOD A BEFITTING SACRIFICE
A sacrifice is an act of presenting something precious, meaningful, and tangible unto a deity. In other words, it is an act of showing your love and devotion to someone close to you. As a result of your sacrifice to God, your harvest song will flow.

Alternatively, you can make your sacrifice by singing deep songs of praise to God, or you can dance like David did.

Sharing gifts with people, donating to orphanage homes and giving to the less privileged are all ways to express your harvest thanksgiving sacrifice.

Psalms 50: 7-15.
7. “Listen, My people, and I will speak;
I will testify against you, Israel. I am God, your God.
8. I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices or for your burnt offerings, which are continually before Me.
9. I will not accept a bull from your household or male goats from your pens,
10. for every animal of the forest is Mine, the cattle on a thousand hills.
11. I know every bird of the mountains, and the creatures of the field are Mine.
12. If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and everything in it is Mine.
13. Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?
14. Sacrifice a thank offering to God, and pay your vows to the Most High.”

Consequently, whatever you have or want to offer to God is not yours, it is of God. Therefore, your sacrifice will be your heart of thanksgiving to God.

3. SING LOUD YOUR SONGS
Psalms 66: 8-9
8. Praise our God, you peoples;
let the sound of His praise be heard.
9. He keeps us alive and does not allow our feet to slip.

Harvest song should not be a silent song. It should be sung loud and clearly to entice all people to want to know why the song is sung.
While singing your songs, you need to raise your voice in order to affirm your victory over the evil plan of the enemy. The Scripture verses above explain why you should raise your voice as you sing.The devil would not want you to do that, he would want to distract or discourage you because of your bad voice.

Developing a habit of singing loud with a grateful heart doesn’t require any singing skills or membership in a choral group.

Lastly, the source of songs of harvest is the Lord Jesus Christ. His righteousness will give you a heart that is filled with gratitude that will lead you in songs of harvest. Receive Him as your Lord and Savior. He is the Lord of harvest.

Conclusion
Read Psamls 66, 100, 117, 118 and 136. Pick out the reasons why you need to praise your God. This season shall favor you in every areas of your life. It’s well with you.

John Aderogba for ROPMI.

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