Gods Heritage Center

Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the Church unto God for him. And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison. And, behold, the Angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands. ACTS 12:5-7 “It is never too late to pray because it is never too late for God to intervene.” In Acts 12, we see the attempts made by Herod the king to vex the Body of Christ. What did he do? He killed one of the apostles and took hold of Peter. It was at this point that the Church became conscious that if nothing was done, Peter’s head will go. Since the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, the Church engaged the weapon of spiritual warfare. While Peter was kept in prison, prayer was made without ceasing for God to intervene. Prayer force is strong enough to intervene at any point and deliver on desired miracles. It is never too late to pray because it is never too late for God to intervene. Herod had concluded that Peter will join his ancestors in Heaven. We don’t know how long Peter was held in prison – maybe for days or weeks. It looked like it will be forever, they had decided Peter’s fate. I prophesy to you this day, your story will not end the way the enemy has thought or planned it will end. The plan was that it will end in death, it will end in failure, in defeat, in shame, in reproach, but God surprised them. I see God surprising all your enemies in the Name of JESUS. Whatever plan, decision, agreement, or conclusion that was made by the enemy, it is aborted, in the Name of JESUS. One minute before it was all over, God showed up and the chains fell off from Peter’s hands. Whatever has been the chain of bondage, chain of financial captivity, the chain of witchcraft captivity, keeping you where you should not be, it is falling off you right now, you are loosed from such captivity, you are loosed from such demonic influence, in the Name of JESUS. Ponder Point Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: EZRA 9 – 10 NEW TESTAMENT: ACTS 27

And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead. And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as ye have said. Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also. And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men. Exodus 12:30-33 “God’s vengeance is a total package.” All through Scriptures, God calls Himself the God of vengeance, the One that avenges His people of their enemies. For a long time, it may look like the enemy of God’s people is prevailing and winning but the day comes when salvation will arise for the people of God and that day is called the Day of the Lord’s Vengeance. What is the day of the Lord’s vengeance? When the Day of Vengeance comes, liberation is automatic. Look at this, for 430 years, every attempt at the freedom of the Israelites were made, Moses killed an Egyptian, many years later, Pharaoh was entreated, all manner of moves had been made, however, their liberation did not come until the Day of Vengeance. The table turned on the Day of Vengeance, the poor and afflicted Israelites became wealthy, the Egyptian Lords were wailing, while in the camp of God’s people were shouts of victory. Friend, when the day of the Lord’s vengeance comes, it is the enemy begging and asking you to go from age long captivities as was the case in Egypt. Before now, it was Moses going to Pharaoh day after day to ask for the release of the people of God, but when the Day of Vengeance came, Pharaoh sent for Moses, begging him to go with the Israelites. The Day of Vengeance reveals the superiority of God over the devil; Pharaoh was asking for blessings from the one who has been his captive.  The Day of the Lord’s Vengeance is a chain of events that culminates in the total, wholesome settlement of an individual. Trying to fight for yourself is doing yourself a great disservice as no one fights, judges faithfully and avenges a man like our God. Wait on Him, He will surely avenge you of your foes. Just Do It If you want the God of vengeance to step into your case; Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: EZRA 7 – 8 NEW TESTAMENT: ACTS 26

And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins. Use hospitality one to another without grudging. As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. 1 Peter 4:8-10 “In life, miracles and fulfillment of prophecies usually elude the undiscerning because they are too insensitive to recognize their visitation when it passes by.” Forever, God is up to a spectacular thing in your life when you have an Angel visit without announcement. I want to let you know that God is still in the business of visiting His people, therefore it is the business of the every believer to be discerning. Have you ever stopped to ask yourself what would have become of the prophecy of fatherhood to many nations that was upon our Father Abraham if he did not discern, receive, welcome and entertain those three strangers when they passed by his abode that day? Genesis 18. He was not expecting them, our father of faith, Abraham was about his business when he spotted them, but he went out of his way to look after them. Though he did it as a way of life but, unknown to him, he was entertaining his miracle. Before now, the child of promise’s coming was a prophecy hanging over their heads but it came to fulfillment just by that singular action of hospitality. Incidentally, that Angelic visitation did not present itself as the coming of their child, it was not even the main business of those Angels as they were on their way to Sodom but Abraham cornered them by hospitality and got his blessing. Gideon in his lowest moment in life had an Angelic visitation that rewrote his life’s story and that of his entire generation forever. That visitation did not only bring deliverance to Israel from the Midianites, it also led to the discovery of virtues that Gideon never knew he had, it unveiled a new Gideon, made a star out of him and brought an end to the wickedness of the wicked in Israel thereby launching that whole nation into a new season altogether. But you would notice that Gideon, even in his timid state, had to beg the Angel to wait and accept a sacrifice from him which of course was meant for God. Entertain strangers, be hospitable, do good to all; who knows, the key to your next level in life may just be with the Angel (in human flesh) you are entertaining without knowing. Just Do It Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: EZRA 4 – 6

When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace: But when a stronger than he shall come upon him, and overcome him, he taketh from him all his armour wherein he trusted, and divideth his spoils. Luke 11:21 – 22 “After suffering has had its perfect work, God launches His people into their season of settlement.” Today, I want you to know that there is blessing in suffering. It may not look like it, it may look like nothing good will come out of it, but just hold on, as long as God allowed it, there is a sure blessing coming out of it. The captivity of the children of Israel lasted for 430 years, but when God brought them out, He brought them out with plenty of gold and silver. God plundered the economy of Egypt in one night and transferred the wealth of Egypt to His people. God’s people came out with dividends and manifestations of glory after suffering. Some of the things you are complaining about are not there to destroy you but to strengthen you. In the strengthing phase, God trains us by the things He allows us to suffer. He makes us strong by allowing us to face, deal with and overcome strong oppositions. How did David become strong in defeating Goliath? It was by the lion and the bear, the things he had gone through in the bush alone while tending the sheep of his father. If you are established and you are not strengthened, you can be easily defeated. Of a truth, you may never backslide or leave Church, neither will you fall into sin, but you will be losing the battles of life everyday. Sadly, there are too many believers like that and I know you must have met them. They are good believers, consistent in Church, Heaven bound, but are subdued and dominated by the forces of life because they are established but not strengthened. Beloved, your goods, your due by covenant, blessings and inheritance are only safe when you are stronger than the strong man. Otherwise, life will become a chain of defeats. This is why Apostle Paul admonishes us to be strong in the Lord – Ephesians 6:10. Without strength, even though God settles you, you will still be left empty as though you were never settled because of the activities of the strong man. Wake up and put on your strength oh child of God, the glory is here. Just Do It Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: EZRA 1 – 3 NEW TESTAMENT: ACTS 25

For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; 2 Corinthians 4:16 – 17 “If only you refuse to mind the light affliction at the moment and ignore the pain, there is a weight of glory waiting for you around the corner.” Like we had earlier established, God never allows His people go through momentary suffering just for the heck of it; no, with God there is always a reason for every experience He permits to come our way. We have seen one of the purposes as perfection, the next immediate reason why God takes us through some unpalatable experiences is for our establishment in the faith just as the Bible says in 1st Peter 5:10 “….after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.” The establishment phase is that point where you are grounded in the faith. It is that stage in the glory process where your mind is made up about following JESUS come rain or shine. At this point, the blessing is still important to you but whether it comes or not is no longer a factor to determine your stand for JESUS. Even though only Joshua and Caleb made it out of the wilderness out of an entire generation of Israelites that came out of Egypt, you cannot be in any doubt that these two men were well grounded and established in the faith. Many are in the Christian Faith for what they can get. They have a mentality that the Church of JESUS is a “bless me” club but for the established believer, it’s not so. He or she is not in the Christian Faith for things. Like Paul, they have learnt how to abound and be abased, they are rooted whether there is plenty or otherwise. Do not be deceived, many are in the kingdom but they are not established and that is why their faith cannot stand the test of time nor stand in the face of fiery trials. Friend, there is a place for establishment in suffering because when you learn what you should learn and you are perfected, there is no way you would not be rooted. Just like Joshua and Caleb submitted to the process and entered into their glory season, so also do you need to submit to the process, the suffering is for a while and its intent is to get you established. Just Do It Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: 2 CHRONICLES 33 – 34        NEW TESTAMENT: ACTS 23

“But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ JESUS, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you”. 1 Peter 5:10 “God does not see as man sees, while you are eager for the breakthrough, God may be eager at breaking through you.” God is very clear on His call upon our lives, it is a call unto eternal glory. The glory that transcends time and space, the glory that you will bask in, in time, but more importantly, beyond time. It is the kind of glory that knows no end, its life span is longer than our time here on earth and will continue even after we have gone to be with God in eternity. But preceding this eternal glory is what God calls “suffering for a while.” For the believer, no suffering is permitted to last forever. It is unscriptural for any believer to suffer unendingly. It is a covenant illegality for a believer to be unsettled beyond a moment. God only permits us to suffer for a while. A while could mean a night, a season or a short period of time. But the Bible’s position on the suffering of the believer is very clear, it is to last for a while, not a lifetime. Have you not seen in your Bible that “…weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning?” Psalm 30:5. Why would a good God allow His children to suffer for a while? The answer is found in our text today. The first reason is our perfection. While you may be concerned about how things will fall into place, how you will buy the next car, build the next house, get the next promotion…etc, God is concerned about your perfection. HE wants you mature, God wants you to become a better believer. HE wants you to move from spiritual childhood to sonship. God took His people, the Israelites, out of the land of bondage into the wilderness but His ultimate plan for them was the Promised Land, a land flowing with milk and honey but He had to take them through the wilderness where nothing was working, where they had to feed on manna, where they had plenty of gold but there was nothing to buy with it. God allowed this moment of suffering for a while, because HE wanted to perfect them, to prove what is in their heart, to teach them lessons they may not have learnt in any other way. For the Israelites in that generation, their moment of suffering for a while was the wilderness experience they had. Saint, when you go through things, do not just go through them, find out from God what He is trying to teach and make out of you, seek to learn the lessons you need to learn because failure to learn the intended lessons may prolong that season of suffering. The children of Israel were slow at learning and ended up prolonging their days in the wilderness. The more God tried to teach them, the more they resisted, murmured, complained and looked back at Egypt. Learn every lesson and learn fast, there is glory waiting. Ponder Point Understand that God is not taking you through those times and seasons of life for nothing. The essence of the suffering for a while is for your perfection. God is not looking at what you are looking at, He may allow you to suffer for a while, but His target is your perfection Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: 2 CHRONICLES 33 – 34        NEW TESTAMENT: ACTS 23

And the man waxed great, and went forward, and grew until he became very great: Genesis 26:13 “As long as you the heir remains a child, you will never be able to access all that is yours by covenant.” There is a stage you get to and growing becomes difficult if not impossible. There is a stage people get to in the school of growth and maturity that you cannot help them anymore. They have grown old and there is nothing you can do to bail them out. A right decision made today can deliver a lifetime fortune to your future; even so a wrong decision made, can maim a destiny for life. The decision to grow up, change your level and status in life is one of the best decisions you can make. Incidentally, no one can make this decision for you, it is a decision you have to make for yourself, but sadly, this is a decision many never make. They go round marking time, never taking a stand for personal growth and development, weeks roll into months, months roll into years, wrinkles appear here and there and they don’t even realize that time has gone. Friend, understand that refusal to grow is a decision made to remain in captivity because as long as you are stagnant, actualizing your destiny and becoming all God will have you be will be impossible. Sustainable greatness is for those who grow. Isaac was not always great, he grew and became. People who refuse to grow end up begging their mates and their children or their children’s age mates because when others were growing and pushing forward, they were wiling away time. People who don’t grow become bitter and envious.  Many children that refused to grow are liabilities and shame to their parents. Sonship is about maturity. When you work hard you should be able to celebrate the glory. There is no honour in stagnation, there is no joy in marking time, there is only honour and joy in growing. As a believer, you must grow to enjoy all God has ordained for you in this kingdom. Look at this – “Now I say, that the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all” – Galatians 4:1.God does not have a problem blessing any man but He has a problem with you being destroyed on account of the blessing. Just Do It Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: 2 CHRONICLES 30 – 32

Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? PROVERBS 6:6 “The future you create is the one you will have.” Wisdom is knowing what to do and doing it. Wisdom makes you pay attention to details, make you seek to understand how things are done and get to know what it takes to get things done.  An unwise person often is too busy or too much in a hurry to give attention to details. Solomon was a man of astounding wisdom, he engaged in a lot of studying and research to increase in wisdom. He said “…I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under Heaven…” Ecclesiastes 1:13. If you must achieve greatness in life, you need to give attention to studying and research. Seek and search out by wisdom how things are done and why things are the way they are. Many people are stagnated in life and have lost their bearing on the path of destiny because they are sleeping; they are not observing what they should observe; they are not paying attention to what they need to pay attention to, neither are they seeking what they should be seeking, they are just sleeping through life. A new day springs forth and they have no new plan to do something different from what they did yesterday; they are sleeping. In our search for wisdom today, we are looking at what the Bible says about the amazing creature, the ant. Our opening Scripture says, “Go to the ant…consider her ways…”,that means, inspite of its size, there is what to learn from it. There is so much wisdom that can be drawn from just watching the ants. The ants see a future for themselves and begin to work today to create it, to ensure the future is protected and preserved. They become very active today because they know that something is likely going to happen tomorrow which could deny them food. So they do something today so that when famine comes they are bouncing; they secure their future, exempt themselves from adversity, and ensure that the storms that batter others won`t batter them. But you know what this means for the ants? It means working extra time; they gather food, not just the food that they are going to eat today, but what they are going to eat in months to come. If it is about what they are going to eat today, they will just gather what will suffice, eat and rest and they’ll have plenty time to run around and play but because there is a future they see, they are working extra to protect the future. There is something you should be doing today to create the future you desire. The one hour you spent doing nothing; the two hours that you were careless about should have been productively invested. You should wake up each day conscious of that fact that every minute you have lost is your future gone. Can you change your approach today? Do you realize how much that can be achieved in 24 hours? If you have never given attention to managing your time, this is the time to do so. In a matter of weeks, the first half of 2023 will be over and we will be taking the next leap into the second half. Secure the future you aspire to see today. Just Do It Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: 2 CHRONICLES 28 – 29        NEW TESTAMENT: ACTS 22

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. ISAIAH 55:11 “You can never use your natural senses to understand or explain spiritual realities.” It does not matter what the case or situation is, the Word of God is supreme. To ever doubt the Word is to doubt God. To doubt God is to court fear, to court fear is to invite satan and to invite satan is to open up to destruction. Every time you entertain fear, you are looking at the wrong picture. In Numbers 11, the children of Israel cried out to Moses in the wilderness, “Give us flesh, that we may eat”. Their weeping put Moses in a state of confusion because he had no idea where that would come from to satisfy the multitudes. Eventually when he reported the matter to his Boss, a solution was mapped out but Moses questioned how the miracle was going to take place because of the great multitude. And Moses said, The people, among whom I am, are six hundred thousand footmen; and thou hast said, I will give them flesh, that they may eat a whole month. Shall the flocks and the herds be slain for them, to suffice them? or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to suffice them? Numbers 11:21-22 Moses was looking at natural facts, not spiritual facts. He was not looking at Who was speaking. All of a sudden, he allowed fear to becloud his judgment. He was looking at the wrong picture. In 2 Kings 6:15, Elisha’s servant saw the facts and was gripped with fear. What he saw was real but the Word of God is more real than facts. Facts are products of the senses – what you feel, see, taste, touch, smell or hear. Facts fuel fear and give it the wheels to ride on. But when you choose to allow the Word of God to dominate any situation in your life, you have chosen to abort fear. Fear is what triggers the power of the enemy. Fear is what opens the door for satanic operation. If the Word of God must rule over your life, if the Word of God must deliver expected results, then fear must be dealt with. Just Do It Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: 2 CHRONICLES 26 – 27        NEW TESTAMENT: ACTS 21

Thus saith the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me. Isaiah 45:11 “Fresh ideas as to how to break through a dead end are always at the disposal of a man of vision.” Understand that in the journey of pursuing the future set before you by God, you may experience pain, you may be bent over and turned upside down, but what to do is to ignore the pain and its surrounding circumstances because when you arrive your destination, you will forget the pain. I have come to know that the accomplishment of your vision brings you to your “Manasseh” where you can say like Joseph, “God has caused me to forget.” Joseph, in the pursuit of the future set before him by God, suffered many things from slavery to false accusations, to imprisonment…etc. but he refused to be deterred and when he got into his glorious future, his first son was named Manasseh and he said “for God has caused me to forget” – Genesis 41:51. When you pursue the future set before you by God with ardent commitment and without wavering, barriers will crumble before you. Why? Because; Vision opens the way when once the will of the man of vision is involved, why? Because as long as there is a will, there will of necessity be a way and the stronger the will, the stronger the force to make a way. The truth is, there is power in vision to break barriers and open your way. I counsel you to get a hold of vision and get drunk with it.What do you see? What can you see? What is the future you see that you desire? Seeing the future influences everything about your life forever and keeps your way perpetually opened till JESUS returns. Just Do It Prayers 1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN OLD TESTAMENT: 2 CHRONICLES 23 – 25