Wednesday, 24^th May 2023

Bible Reading: Nehemiah 8:10, Isaiah 12:3

Memory Verse:  And Nehemiah continued, “Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the LORD is your strength!” Nehemiah 8:10 (NLT)

Credit to the insight of Dr. D.K. Olukoya. You are not a failure when you fall, you become a failure when you remain on that floor. A lot of people are becoming really miserable. Because of that, they are always thinking about themselves and measuring themselves in the mirror of others, thereby making themselves miserable. If you want to make yourself miserable and unhappy, you can listen greedily to what people are saying about them.

If anywhere you go, you are always waiting for people to respect you, you will make yourself miserable. This is now a world of ingrates, so if you are always suspicious, jealous of others, oversensitive to how people see you, that will make you miserable. When you are always insisting and demanding respect, you will make yourself miserable. If you are very selfish, you do not do anything for anyone free, you will make yourself miserable. If you waste the whole of your time meditating upon your problems regularly, you will make yourself miserable.

One thing which you must decide to do which is a policy of those who do not give up is to determine that you will not be miserable and you will not allow others to make you miserable. You should allow the joy of the Lord to be your strength. It is not in vain that the Bible writes “the joy of the Lord is my strength”. It is not in vain that the Bible writes “therefore with joy shall you draw water out of the well of salvation”. So, there is no use in making yourself sad and miserable, it is the first step towards giving up. If every time you want to win every argument, get ready to be miserable.

Seeing a glass half filled with water as a glass half empty of water is another recipe to being miserable. Brethren, you must learn to celebrate the little progress you are making. When you constantly worry about all the bad things happening in your life, neglecting the miracle of seeing each new day, then you have enrolled in the school of unhappiness. Holding on to grudges, gossiping about wave makers, always complaining, trying to control every outcome of your life, being judgmental, being overtly jealous of other people’s successes, etc, are all requisites in the school of misery. Flee from such things.

Quote: With joy you will drink deeply from the fountain of salvation! – Isaiah 12:3 (NLT)

Prophetic Decree: Your heart will not run dry of the joy of the Lord, in Jesus name.

Prayer Focus

1. Thank you Father for the river of joy in my soul.

2. Sing the song, “I’ve got joy like a river…Joy like a river….Joy like a river in my soul”

3. Arrow of unhappiness fired into my heart, backfire, in Jesus name.

4. Blood of Jesus laminate my from unhappiness in Jesus name.

5. Holy Spirit, shift my paradigm. Help me to see situations only as you see it, in Jesus name.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Psalm 108-110