Psalms 71:5 NIV
“For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth.”
INSIGHT
-The Bible tells us to fear not three hundred and sixty-five (365) times. Every day of the year we are reminded not to fear. Sometimes we worry about situations in life is inescapable. Are you worried about the outcome of the elections? Such matters are in the hands of the Lord and they should be left to Him for this is His business. Even if we worry, we find that the problem remains the same. If we are worried about tomorrow’s outcome, we don’t get to enjoy the present happiness. God calls us to quit worrying about what would go wrong but celebrate the Lord for everything will be okay. David said, it is good that I have been afflicted. In his affliction David learnt Gods faithfulness, he learnt running to the secret place of the Most High God. He learnt that God is our refuge and deliverer. He learnt that the name of the Lord is a strong tower and the righteous run to it and are safe. David did not compare the giant to himself, but he compared Goliath to God. The Lord won the battle for him. God has a purpose for you even though you are going through affliction in family, marriages, business, job, school, political scenario, business world, economic cycles, ministry work, social life, that seem only to lead to disappointment, scarcity and lack, health issues, compromise, delay etc. The name of the Lord remains to be the strong tower that we run to and find refuge and strength to push on. Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers them out of them all. We go through life issues with confidence that in our struggle we have a healer, provider, helper and firm foundation, so should not fear. We go through seasons of lack. God is on the throne and we do not need to worry about our circumstances but look to God who is our strength.
PRAYER
Dear Almighty Father, we dedicate this week unto Your able hands, may You guide us in every area of our lives and nation. We come before Your throne of grace today that we may obtain grace and mercy for our time of need. We worship You and praise Your Holy Name for Your Name Lord is a strong tower and we run to it for safety. You are our rock and refuge and besides You we have no other. May You fight all our battles for us dear Jesus. Lord, we choose to put our hope and trust in You for we know You have good plans for our lives and our nation. May You go before us as we receive our leaders whom You have chosen for us. For You are the one who appoints leaders and deposes others. Dear Lord, may You release Your peace that surpasses human understanding upon our hearts and minds and remove all forms of anxiety and disappointment from us. We are Your people and You have chosen us for Yourself. Thank You for Your love, provision and faithfulness that transcends from generations to generations. You are a good God. May You take over and reign in our land. May You forgive us for all iniquity and trespasses that we have done, said or thought. May You cleanse us by Your blood Jesus and purify us. May You keep us and preserve our nation for Your Glory and use and direct all elected leaders. We pray this in Jesus Mighty Name, Amen.
Further reading: 1 Samuel 17:22-51, Proverbs 18:10
2 Thessalonians 3:3-5 NIV
“But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. We have confidence in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we command. May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.”
INSIGHT
-The word of God gives us confidence for continued reliance on God. The unfolding of God’s word gives light; and understanding to the simple (Psalm 119:130). The word of God reveals His will and purpose for our lives and nation. We do not need to be afraid but know that all things work for good to those who love the Lord and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). In our walk of faith, fear and disobedience produces mediocrity in fulfilment of purpose. We need to audit our lives in accordance with God’s word. When we read the word of God, it has the ability to read us better. 2 Timothy 3:15-17 reminds us that the word of God has the ability to make us wise for salvation through Christ, by teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness for every good work. We are not good but God is Good, and He loves us. Jesus is calling us to pledge our allegiance to Him and to stay committed to His purpose for us. God is faithful, He gives us strength, and protects us from the evil one. May we continue to pray that the Lord will direct our hearts and those of our leaders into His love and perseverance, for the glory of His name. We need to have confidence in the Lord for if God is for us, who can be against us. We are called to give thanks to God in all situations; whether favorable or adverse; for He remains faithful now and forever.
PRAYER
Abba Father we thank You and glorify Your holy name. Thank You because You are good and Your mercies endures forever. Thank You because You love us and care for us. Thank You for nothing can separate us from Your love. You are the King of kings and Lord of lords. You are our God and there is none like You. Thank You for giving us peace in our nation. Thank You for doing great and mighty works in our nation. Thank You for remaining faithful to Your word even when we become faithless. Your promises are yes and amen, we praise Your name. May You protect us from the evil one. The devil comes to kill, steal and destroy, but You have come Lord so that we may have life in full. May You cover us with Your precious blood dear Jesus. May You protect us with Your hedge of fire Holy Spirit that no harm will come near our lives, families and nation. We declare that there shall be no violence, and death, in our nation of Kenya, but we will continually enjoy Your peace and prosperity, our Prince of peace. We declare that there shall be no drought or flood but Your people will be persevered. May You heal our hearts and our land dear Jesus. May You direct our hearts in Your love and perseverance. Your word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our paths, may Your word remove every form of darkness and impurity within us. May You give our elected leaders wise counsel that they may lead Your people according to Your will. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us now and forever more. Amen
Further reading: Matthew 4:4
Hebrews 4:16 NIV
“Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
INSIGHT
-We build confidence in Christ through prayer. We are called to approach the throne of grace with confidence, knowing that Christ is our Redemption, so that we may receive mercy and grace to help us during our time of need. Sometimes we go through storms and one may asks why have You forsaken me my Lord. The disciples followed Jesus and at one time they ended up right inside a storm. They panicked and thought that they would drown and die. They woke Jesus up and ask Him, don’t you care if we drown (Mark 4:35-41). Sometimes is it better to be in a storm for it makes you stronger in faith. In the middle of the storm, we know that Jesus is there for He is the Master, and He will deliver us. We may deny the challenges we are facing but the truth of the matter is that the problem could be real but the Lord we serve is Mightier. We know that nothing is impossible with the Lord and God is able to do exceedingly abundantly all that we can think of or imagine. God calls us to cast all our burdens and cares to Him for He cares for us. We need to quit looking at our delayed or adverse circumstances, and start looking to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith. When you are feeling abandoned and alone, call upon Jehovah Shammah, who is always there. When your soul is bare and dry and you are searching for some form of satisfaction, call upon Jehovah El Elyon, for He is the Most High God and He will satisfy. When you need healing, call upon Jehovah Rapha, who is the healer. When you are going through a storm, call upon Jehovah Shalom, our Prince of peace. Philippians 4:6-7 reminds us that, we should not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present our requests to God, and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
PRAYER
We come to Your throne of grace dear Jesus with confidence so that we may receive mercy and grace to help us in times of need. We call on You Jehovah Raah, for You are our Shepherd that You may lead us in the way that we should go. We call on You Jehovah Shammah, for You are always there with us for us. We call on You Jehovah El Elyon, for He is the Most High God and satisfy our souls. We call on You Jehovah Rapha, for You are our Healer. We call on You Jehovah Shalom, for You are our Prince of peace. We cast all our burdens unto You dear Jesus for You care for us. We place our prayers and petitions unto Your able hands knowing that nothing is impossible with You. We pray that You may increase in us the fire of prayer to enable us break every barrier by Your precious blood dear Jesus. We humbly ask You to intercede for us with groanings that cannot be uttered Holy Spirit. May You make a way for us even where there seems to be no way. We praise You and bless Your name now and forever. Amen
Further reading: Psalm 55:22
Hebrews 11:1 NIV
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
INSIGHT
-Some situations can make one to doubt God’s power especially when there is a delay in answers to prayer. One may ask, what if God fails? What if God will not come through for me? The response is God cannot fail because He is God. We must trust Him enough to let Him succeed at His time, on His terms and not fear the outcome. The man of faith is sure that God is going to supply in whatever ways, however. Waiting on God to respond could be a frustrating affair. Sometimes we get so impatient and other times we get discouraged. In the waiting room we need to wait on God the most. To trust in Him more and submit to Him confidently. The man or woman of faith believes that God has means that he/she is not aware of. The man or woman of faith pleases God. Worry and anxiety diminishes our faith. When we worry, it robs us our joy and focus on God. We need to remember that delay is not denial. God has plans and resources that we cannot even comprehend. Although our circumstances might be dark, God is on the throne and He has promised to take care of us. God reminds us wait on Him and His plans will bear fruit in our lives. Let us then keep waiting on the Lord in all things as we trust Him for those who wait upon the Lord mount up with wings like eagles, run and don’t grow weary, walk and don’t be faint (Isaiah 40:31). Truly the Lord is faithful. We are hence encouraged to approach the Lord with confidence and with sincerity of heart as His precious blood speaks of greater things for us, and has washed us and given us access to the inner most – holy of holies. We are therefore privileged to have a High Priest who is our Advocate and who has given us the Holy Spirit to always help us.
PRAYER
Blessed is the one who trust in You Lord, whose confidence is in You. All our confidence is in You Lord. May You increase our faith in You Jesus Christ. May You allow Your revival to come to our nation of Kenya as You use us to spread the gospel to other nations. We offer our bodies as a pleasing sacrifice to You Lord, may You sanctify us with Your precious blood dear Jesus. May You forgive us all our trespasses and cover us with Your precious blood. You are Holy Lord, You are faithful. May You bless our children as they go back to school and allow their hearts to know You, and to have confidence in You Jesus. May You bless the work of our hands and break every chain in our lives, businesses and work. We pray that You may bless all those who are waiting on You for marriages that You may allow them to be joined together with their spouses and become one flesh. May You bless all those who are married that they may always be united in Your love. May You bless our relations and friendship Oh Lord. May You answer our hearts desires and make all our plans succeed dear Jesus. May You bless all our leaders and touch their hearts with Your grace to work for Your people. May You open the eyes of our hearts that we may see You in every situation Lord. Amen
Further reading: Jeremiah 17:7, Hebrews 10:19-22
Hebrews 10:35-38 NIV
“So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For, “In just a little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay.” And, “But my righteous one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.”
INSIGHT
-Our confidence in Christ is in His death and resurrection, and hope of final glory. We are called to focus on Who and what never changes. Our hope should not be in political leaders, connections, positions, power, possessions, education level, physical strength, fame, and idols. We need to focus on the unchanging God whose grace is sufficient to us. God calls us to see situations of life through a lens of hope and expectations. We don’t know what awaits us in future but we know Who holds our future. God knows us and our hearts. He knows us by name and His eternal plan for us is perfect. The realization of the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is overwhelming, who does not desire that we shrink back in faith leading to perdition. If God is for us who can be against us. God has promised us that, He will uphold us with His righteous right hand and calls us to remain committed to Him.
SUMMARY
The word confidence in Hebrew is written as Mibtach, which is the act of confiding, trusting, or putting faith in God, and reliance on Him. It also means trusting in God, having certainty and assurance of one’s relationship with God, and a conviction that one’s destiny is secure in God. We have confidence in God by first submitting our fears and anxiety unto Him. The Bible tells us not to fear three hundred and sixty-five (365) times, and every day of the year we are reminded to remain calm in Christ. King David did not look at his disabilities by comparing himself to Goliath, but he compared the Philippine giant to God. Secondly, the word of God gives us confidence for continued reliance on Him. When we read the word of God, it has the ability to read us through better and better each time. The word of God reminds us of our promises in God which builds up our trust in Him. Thirdly, we also build confidence in Christ through prayer. We are called to approach the throne of grace with confidence, knowing that Christ is our Redemption, so that we may receive mercy and grace to help us during our time of need. When we go through storms of life, we have confidence in our God who overcomes all storms when we ask of Him. Fourthly, our faith in God is the sure confidence that we have in Christ Jesus. When we wait patiently on the Lord and rely on His power, we have an account for righteousness. Last but not least, having confidence in God is putting our hope in Jesus Christ, who has given us the gift of eternal life.
PRAYER
Jehovah El Shaddai we magnify Your holy name for You are our Lord God Almighty. Jehovah El Elyon we praise You for You are the Most High God. Jehovah Nissi we exult You on high for You are our Banner. Jehovah Rapha we call on You for healing for You are our Lord Who Heals. Jehovah Raah we submit our hearts unto You that You may guide us according to Your purposes for You are our good Shepherd. Jehovah Shalom we call upon You for Your continued peace that You so generously give, and exchange our worries for Your peace. You are our hope and salvation and from You we live, move and have our being. Lord we praise You and worship Your Holy name. Dear Father may You cleanse us from all our iniquities and wash us by Your precious blood. May You increase in us as we decrease all for Your glory. May You increase in our nation peace and stability for the glory and honor of Your name. May You bless us and keep us Lord. May You make Your face shine upon us and be gracious to us. May You lift up Your countenance upon us and give us peace. Amen
Further reading: Isaiah 43:1-2, 2 Corinthians 4:17-18