Category: Daily Devotionals

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo (1/5/2022)

Hebrews 11:4 "By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead." - NIV

The offerings of Abel by faith and in honour of God lives on and still speaks to us even in his death. It serves as a good example of the nature and attitude of our offerings to God to date. Great and heroic men and women in the Bible and in the contemporary world who made significant achievements in history remain speaking through their achievements long after they are gone. Some were good, others were terrible. Their impact lives on. So will yours.

We are not here forever. We shall move on at some point to another level or out of this life. Everyone of us in the path of life leaves behind footprints that those who come after will either choose to follow or ignore, depending on how we impacted them. What footprints do you leave behind wherever you have been? Are they inspiring others for the better or would they wish to forget and move on? How will you leave the world, better or worse? Will generations that follow be glad you lived or will they wish you never existed?

One doesn’t need to be a prominent public figure to leave a legacy. Each one of us in our small areas and small ways can make a difference. The best impact we can make is to live life in honour of God, see and treat people as God would, inspire and help them become the best they were created to be. That is investment in people first, using things. May you purposefully live your life in such a way that it positively impacts others long after you transitioned from your current position to another, or from this life into the next as Paul did.

1 Corinthians 11:1 "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ."

Shalom children of God.

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

Mark 10:28-30 "Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!” “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life." - NIV

Change can be very costly. To Jesus’ disciples, it cost everything; careers, families, personal comfort, and property to follow Jesus. This was very drastic change. And Peter raises it with Jesus who acknowledged and promised they would be rewarded, in this life and in the one to come. The point of forsaking all was that their primary allegiance was now to Jesus who would help them live life in honour of God in careers, family, personal life and managing wealth and property.

In following God, we shall have to make some changes from our old ways of life. Every change God initiates in us is for our good. There is always something new and better than what we already know or have. We benefit from it now or later in this life, and some on to the other side of eternity.

When all has been said and done, and you have come to the goal of the change process you or God wanted you to attain, you will discover it was worth it. It was worth the pain, discomfort, the things you forsook or endured, the despise and rejection. Then you can enjoy the fruit of your obedience to Him and enter the rest He has prepared for you.

Revelation 2:7 "Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God."

Shalom children of God

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

Psalm 33:10-11 "The Lord foils the plans of the nations;  he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations." - NIV

The psalmist pondered over the greatness of God in His creation, how nothing that men do escapes His attention and His intervention in the affairs of men. He now makes a comparison between people’s plans and His purposes. What God has established stands whatever people may do in attempt to thwart it. But people’s plans against God will not stand.

In our human understanding, God may seem to have failed, and evil appears to have triumphed over righteousness when we see what is happening in the world. And some may ask, ‘where is God as gross evil is committed under His watch.’ God is forever true, just and righteous. Some of what happens is people’s outright rebellion to God despite His warnings. God in His mercy and grace gives them time to change their ways. But a time of judgement comes for those who reject His ways and insist on evil.

God has plans for individuals and groups of people. They will be fulfilled in their time. The enemy will attempt to sway them using human evil plans, but in the end, God’s purpose prevails. No one fights Him and succeeds. Those who insist on their ways against God will crush. The Lord remains God alone. Be wise and turn to Him early. Do not be wise in your own eyes. Align your ways to His, and they will be established.

Proverbs 3:5-7 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart  and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil."

Shalom children of God.

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

From everlasting to everlasting
He is God and ever lives
Above all other gods
All creation bows in worship
How great is our God

He fills the entire vast universe
All billions of the stary host
Each in its course
He calls them by name
How great is our God

All the people who ever lived
And the billions alive today
By name He knows
Each He specially made
How great is our God

My God, the great King, Savior
I find meaning only in you
Nothing else satisfies
In you is my life complete
How great is our God

Psalm 8:3-4 "When I consider your heavens,  the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?"

Shalom children of God

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

Psalm 27:13 "[I had fainted], unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living." KJV

Life’s journey is not straight. It can be tough. One time you are at the mountain top and everything is alright. Another time you are at the valley and things seem to be falling apart. One time there are friends all around. And in another no one seems to care. You seem to be all alone. What keeps one going is hope that things will be better.

God operates in seasons and times. There is day time and night time. That’s how things are. David acknowledged that if he had not believed, in hope, for better times ahead, he would have given up on living. This happens to us many times when the storms of life beat, situations are so tough and unforgiving, and thoughts of quiting or even dying cross one’s mind.  

It’s so encouraging that amidst all the ups and downs and uncertainities of life, God, in Whom we trust and hope, doesn’t change (Malachi 3:6). He is God in the good and bad times. He remains a good God and faithful in the mountain top and in the dark valleys. Our faith and hope should rest in Him. Men may fail. Our businesses, investments, treasures and all the other things we rely on can fail. But God doesn’t.

Hope in God doesn’t disappoint. It will be well at the end. Tomorrow will be better, however bad today is. Do not quit your endeavors. Hold on to faith in an unchanging, faithful God. There is light at the end of dark tunnel, even into eternity.

Psalm 30:5 "For his anger [endureth but] a moment; in his favour [is] life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy [cometh] in the morning."

Romans 8:25 "But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently."

Shalom children of God.

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

Psalm 34:19 "Many [are] the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all." - KJV

The Psalmist in the previous verses of this chapter noted many blessings that come upon the righteous in comparison with the wicked. The several promises for good doesn’t mean everything will flow smoothly all the time for the righteous. He now observes that there will be many troubles for them, but God commits to deliver the righteous out of them all.

Some believe that afflictions in their lives are a sign of something gone wrong, a sin committed or God displeased with them. This could be true in certain circumstances. But to the righteous, it’s part of the package of walking with God. Jesus said in this world we will have tribulations, but encouraged us to cheer up because He overcame (John 16:33). Troubles come because there is an enemy, the devil, whose intention is to draw us away from the faith through painful experiences. On the other hand, God allows afflictions to strengthen our faith, among other reasons.

Dont be disoriented or discouraged by the many troubles you face. Neither give room to deception of the enemy. Instead, look upto God Who promised to rescue us from all kinds of troubles. They will not destroy us. The waters will not drown us, nor the fire of these trials consume us. We shall emerge victorious, stronger, refined and better out of them all. Keep your faith and hope alive, and walk with your head high. You are an overcomer in the Lord.

Isaiah 43:2 "When you pass through deep waters, I will be with you;  your troubles will not overwhelm you. When you pass through fire, you will not be burnt; the hard trials that come will not hurt you." GNB

Shalom children of God.

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

1 Chronicles 29:14 “But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand…" - NIV

King David led Israel into a resource mobilisation drive to build the temple towards the end of kingship. He gave very generously from personal wealth towards this work. He acknowledged that all that he had: greatness and power, glory and majesty, wealth and honour, everything, come from Him. In their generosity towards this work, whatever they gave was simply giving back to God what came from Him.

Many people behave like what they have is their own. This explains the pride and boasting of what one has. We are all stewards of whatever we have, including life itself. It was given to us. God asks us to voluntarily give back what came from Him as an act of worship and gratitude recognising that it all came from Him and is all His. That’s what David realized and freely, cheerfully and heartily released it back to God the Giver. This should form another foundational basis for any giving.

God cautioned Israel not to think that their hardwork, intellect and abilities gave them the blessings they had. Instead they were to ever remember that it’s God who gives power to make wealth and acquire the possessions they would get (Deut 8:18). The earth and its fulness, including all people, belong to God, whether people acknowledge it or not. He gave usife and these things to glorify Him and for our enjoyment. It’s all His and we are His! Why withhold from the Owner?

Psalm 24:1 "The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it"

Shalom children of God.

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

Deuteronomy 29.29 "The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law." - NIV

Moses the great leader of Israel from Egypt, was summing up their journey upto that point. He was soon to die and handover to Joshua. The journey had been both exciting and challenging, with so many life time experiences for him and the whole Israelite community. He had known God to a degree few others had. The statement he made above shows that despite knowing God that much, there is so much more we cannot understand about Him and His ways. Indeed His ways are past finding out (Rom 11:33). He chooses to reveal what is necessary and useful for us one day at a time.

Our knowledge of God is just but a glimpse. When we seek Him with our limited understanding, our expectations and how He answers sometimes don’t match. Because of this, we may wonder why He seems to delay, not answer or is so quiet about our situations. In His vast wisdom, God only reveals to us what we need to know and that is to enable us trust Him. In this world we only know in part. So when we don’t understand why God does or allows certain things happen a certain way different from our prayers and expectations, He knows why and still means well for us. Let’s only do our part, praying and believing.

This happened Abraham, Joseph, Job, John the Baptist, Mary and Martha and many others who closely walked with Him. Don’t despair nor charge God with unfaithfulness. He remains a gracious loving God in all His dealings with us in the clear and unclear. We’ll understand by and by.

Isaiah 55:8-9 "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."

Shalom children of God. 

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

Mark 15:30-31 "Now come down from the cross and save yourself!” In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the Law jeered at Jesus, saying to each other, “He saved others, but he cannot save himself!" - GNB

Jesus was hanging on the cross between two thieves. He was falsely accused of a crime He didn’t commit by the custodians of the law. The priests, elders and teachers of the law had successfully executed their mission to kill Jesus by a shameful death on a cross. They now mocked Him, telling Him to safe Himself from their hand and the cross. They didn’t know it was in God’s plan.

Jesus had performed so many miracles to safe others, but couldn’t avoid the cross because that was part of the path to achieve His mission. We have known those used by God to do great things in others, only to succumb to some of the very trials they helped others overcome. What we do as vessels is by the Spirit as God saves, heals, transforms His people. Some of the crosses are part of the path assigned for us to tread in our walk with God. Instead of pray against them, we should pray for grace to go through them.

God’s power in us doesn’t serve our wishes, but God’s will and purposes. If God has used you to be a blessing to others, allow His will be done. What He used you to do in others is no guarantee that He must do in you. Some thinking so have become discouraged when what they did to others didnt happen to them. It shouldn’t be. Rejoice in the Lord. He accomplishes His plans in us differently, all to His glory.

2 Corinthians 12:7-9 "…Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me."

Shalom children of God.

By Pastor Dr. Aggrey Soyekwo

1 Timothy 4:1-2 "The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron." - NIV

Paul describes what will happen in the last days, increase of hypocriti liars with dead consciences. The conscience is the reason we can tell right from wrong, good from bad. It is based on values and beliefs. When one has a living and good conscience, he will do what is right and good, and reject what is wrong and evil. A living conscience towards God leads to a life that glorifies God and rejects evil. A dead conscience is non responsive to good.

The process of killing the conscience comes over time through disobedience to God. When one keeps doing what is evil, they are slowly grieving away the Spirit (Who convicts) and killing the conscience. Initially, they are convicted of the wrong. With time, that conviction reduces and engagement in evil goes without much feeling. The gentle sensitive Holy Spirit has been grieved away. The person now does wrong ‘freely’, seems to enjoy it and will even justify and defend it!

Paul mentions the things that lead to, or manifest dead conscience, including abandoning the faith, following deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. This will characterise the last days as false teachers increase. All this results from disobedience to God. A dead conscience is a dangerous state to be. A person will be a hypocrite, a liar, and open to demonic teachings and influence as he teaches others the same. It’s like driving a car down slope without brakes and yet celebrating! Our desire and commitment to keep our conscience alive should like Paul’s when he said,

"So I strive always to keep my conscience clear before God and man." Acts 24:16

Shalom children of God.