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.

Read More

YOUR HEART OF WORSHIP WILL FIND A PLACE FOR YOU IN GOD’S PRESENCE – Oct 2021 Newsletter

Text: Psalm 8 KJV.

1. O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! Who hast set thy glory above the heavens.
2. Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.
3. When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
4. What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
5. For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.
6. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:
7. All sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field;
8. The fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.
9. O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

INTRODUCTION

Adoration, hallowing, and worshipping God is what God created you for. Although you were created a little lower than the angels, yet the angels worship God. You, who are God’s image, should worship Him a lot better.

In worship, we show reverence and awe of everything God has done, what He is doing and what He will do in our lives.

As Christians, worship connects us to God. When we are connected to God, He will make a place for us in His presence.

Cynthia Holmes-Landry in [Spiritual Life ] July 17, 2020, says “Worship is about praising God and giving to Him, not receiving. God has already given us life, His Son on the cross, grace and the promise of eternal life. When we find ourselves falling into worship for our own gain, we need to come back to the heart of worship.”

There is no place in God’s presence for someone who worships in pride and self-exaltation; this is what caused Lucifer to lose his place in Heaven.

In this focus, we will explore some of the ways in which you can easily create a place in God’s presence, so that you will remain joyful when you may be feeling weak. They are:

• Create your preparation

• Use invocative Language

• Lunch into real worship

1. CREATE YOUR PREPARATION

You need to align your heart with God if you expect Him to respond to you. It involves all your being; your mind, body and spirit.

Psalm 24:3-4 KJV.
3. Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in his holy place?
4. He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

With preparation in place as described in the Psalms above, you are ready for a befitting worship.

2. USE INVOCATIVE LANGUAGE

Invocation in prayer means to call on a deity or spirit as a witness or for inspiration. To invoke in worship is to invite the Spirit of God into your heart.

As part of traditional worship, the priest or worshippers will use chants or gongs with shakers in order to call upon the gods or the deity. Incense or sacrifices may be used with a sweet aroma to call upon the gods. If they can do that, you should do more.

Your God lives eternally and He is Omnipresent.

Psalms 8: 1.
“O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.”

The Psalmist states the mightiness of God using invocational language. To enter the presence of the Lord, your language must be invocative.

3. LAUNCH INTO THE REALM OF WORSHIP

To enter the realm of worship, one does not have to sing alone. Dancing, contemplative reflections, hymn singing, clapping and waving, rolling on the ground, singing praise songs are all other options.

Use the language that feels natural to you to communicate or express your feelings to God. Select the best style that feels comfortable for you.

The language of worship has been mostly misunderstood. Some Church leaders misdirect their followers to prefer a certain language of worship, some people are stuck into a certain extent in the cause of worship because they have a limited ability to flow in the language.

Psalms 8: 3.
“When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained.”

God hears everyone’s worship individually and is pleased by the uniqueness of our languages as part of His great work.

CONCLUSION

You can’t find a place in God’s presence unless you’re a member of His family, and the only way to do that is to give your life to Jesus Christ and let Him be your Lord and Savior.

Finally, If you say you don’t have good singing voice, then you are wrong. Worship isn’t about how good one’s voice is, but how good one’s heart is towards God.

Let’s Worship:

Go ahead to worship the Lord as you read and meditate on Psalms 8 : 1-8. Feel God’s presence around you and be expectant of your miracle.

It is well with you.

John Aderogba, for ROPMI.

Read More

YOU SHALL RECOVER ALL – Sept. 2021 Newsletter

Text: Psalms 126: 1-6 (NIV)
( A song of ascents)

1. When the LORD brought back the captives to Zion, we were like men who dreamed.
2. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.”
3. The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.
4. Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like streams in the Negev.
5. Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.
6. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.

INTRODUCTION

Recovery is the action or process of regaining possession or control of something stolen or lost (Google dictionary). In other words, it means “back to base” i.e. returning back to the normal state, life, health, finances, possession, etc.

Many forces could be the cause for loss in man’s life. Some people were forced to give up their valuable things and possession, some willingly gave it up because of the situation that overwhelmed them; they lost it to the hands of their enemy.

The scripture we read is a song of ascents that the people of Israel sang as they were going up to render their sacrifice of worship on Mount Zion. They remembered how the Lord delivered them from the land of slavery and restored them to their own land. It was like a dream.

In verse 4, they still prayed that God should restore their fortunes. I pray for you, whatsoever might have caused you pain, it shall create an avenue for you to praise God.

What are the steps to follow in order to claim your recovery? This shall be our focus.

To recover, you need to:
1. Seek for God’s leading.
2. Stand in great assurance.

SEEK FOR GOD’S LEADING

The Devil always hides people’s mind from this fact whenever they are in pain or state of dilemma. Many depend on themselves and their head knowledge for way out.

David was also in this situation when his house and that of his soldiers were invaded by the enemies.
1 Samuel 30:6-8
6. David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.
7. Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelek, “Bring me the ephod.” Abiathar brought it to him,
8. And David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?” “Pursue them,” He answered. “You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue.”

David had everything to fight back to recover everything he had lost, but he didn’t do that immediately. He first inquired from God, then, God gave him the direction to recover all he had lost.

When David was depressed and weeping, God didn’t say anything to him, but the moment he encouraged himself and sought God’s leading, he recovered all.

Don’t allow anything make you depressed. Whatever that have been forcefully taken away from you, be it physically or spiritually, you shall recover them all.

STAND IN GREAT ASSURANCE

The very good way to put your faith in action is to be positive in your utterances. Even when the storm is raging and it seems there is no  more hope, or at the thick darkness of the cloud, be rest assured that it is just a test of time; it will soon fade away.

Job, during his trying time, lost everything including his wealth, children, flock, and health.
Job 19:25-27 ( NIV)

25. I know that my redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand on the earth.
26. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God;
27. I will see him with my own eyes. I, and not another, How my heart yearns within me!

His confession of assurance shook the heavens for his total restoration. This was the one whose wife, friends and family deserted, yet he stood firm in his faith in God. What is that thing that has made life miserable for you? Put your mind off it. I encourage you to know who you believe and stand on His promises for you. He can not fail you, He’ll stand by you and you shall prevail in all your endeavors.

CONCLUSION

Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, bringing sheaves with him…

All of your struggles and troubles are noticed by God, He’s working out the way out for your total restoration.

Finally, you need Jesus in your life; He’s the only redeemer and restorer of everything you might have lost. He can reverse the irreversible, but He needs your input. Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness,  every other things shall be added to you.

Let’s Pray:
1. Father, I thank you for not leaving me alone…
2. My Father, my Father, by your mercy, speak to my situation and let things turn around for me.
3. Oh Lord, deliver me from spiritual and physical bondage I find myself.
4. Lord Jesus, restore to me everything that has been forcefully taking away from me.
5. My Lord and my Savior, help me to fulfil my destiny.
6. Let every weapon of frustration the enemy is using against me cash fire!
7. I shall not labor in vain in Jesus Christ’s name

Read More