2 Corinthians 9:8
“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.”
INSIGHT
-El-Shaddai means God Almighty. The Prefix ‘El’ points to the power of God Himself, while ‘Shaddai’ is derived from a word meaning breast, which signifies that Shaddai is the one who nourishes, supplies and satisfies. Therefore, El-Shaddai abundantly blesses with all manner of blessings. The main scripture is one of the most quoted verses, and exposes the intention of God to provide sufficiently; all the time that we may abound in all good work. This means that the Lord does not want us to lack anything but gives sufficiently His grace to enable us abound in the purposes God has designed for us before the foundations of this world. This is not natural but it is through His unmerited favor.
PRAYER
Jehovah El-Shaddai, the All Sufficient One, You are enough for us. As we begin a new week; we declare that You are enough for us. As we begin this new year; we proclaim that You are enough for us. In our lives, homes, families, churches, ministries, businesses, careers, leadership and nation; we declare that You are enough for us. There is no one great but You Jesus. When we look to the right and to the left, we see no one great but You. Jehovah You are enough and more than sufficient to meet all our needs, we thank You. You are powerful and have provided all that we need from everlasting to everlasting, we magnify Your holy name. Through Your mercy and grace You have sustained us, nourished us, protected us, guided us, healed our wounds, given us peace of mind, and bestowed upon us the gift of salvation. You take away our weaknesses and sicknesses, and surround us with strength, all power and glory belongs to You. You take away our inadequacies and through Your sufficiency, prosper us in our purposes and every good work, all honor and power are Yours Jehovah El-Shaddai. Abound Your grace upon us every day that we may have sufficient wisdom, resources, strength, favor and grace to journey with us through every good work for the glory and honor of Your name. May Your love guide us to harken to Your voice, to always do good to others, to give to the poor and needy, and to follow Your divine purpose. 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 forevermore. Amen
Further reading: Psalm 138:8, 2 Corinthians 3:5
2 Timothy 1:9-10
“He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”
INSIGHT
-The grace of God brought us the gift of salvation through His son Jesus Christ. It is by grace that we have been saved through faith and not by our works lest anyone should boast (Ephesians 2:8). It wasn’t anything great we were, or anything great we had done, but because it fit in with His purpose, because He wanted to. We therefore come to God as a response to His call in our lives. We did not initiate the search; we do not find God, He finds us; so we must respond to His call when we sense it. The gift of salvation was freely given by God through His Son Jesus Christ. The appearing of Jesus revealed the purpose and grace of God. Jesus fulfilled the eternal plan of God; Jesus truly shows us what God and His plan are all about. That’s why we can never know Jesus too much. The good news of who Jesus is reveals to us:- God’s plan of salvation which began for us in eternity past, before time began, it continued with the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, it came to us when He saved us and called us, it continues as we live our holy calling, and it will one day show itself through eternal life.
PRAYER
Dear Heavenly Father, we come before Your throne of mercy today with thanksgiving in our hearts, thanking You for all You have done for us and for the gift of salvation. Thank You for the Grace of Salvation and the Grace to live a Holy life which you have called us into. We pray that You will preserve us and our people for Your own. That You will direct our steps and lead us in the way of righteousness and holiness at all times. We glorify and honour You dear Lord and we pray that You will remember our loved ones with the gift of salvation. Father, we commit the less fortunate in the society unto You; the poor may You provide to them their daily needs and above all may you give into them Your gift of salvation; the sick we pray that you may heal them and strengthen them in all ways. Father, may You remember those who are mourning and grieving in the society, may You give them beauty for ashes and comfort them for You are our comforter. We pray that Your light will shine through us and that You will be seen in all that we do, say or think that all may see our good works and You may be glorified above all. We pray that your grace for holiness which You have called us into shall be upon us and many others that Your Glory may be manifested. We bless you and exalt You for there is none like You. We pray this in Jesus Mighty Name, Amen.
Further reading: Ephesians 2:8-10
Philippians 2:12-13
“Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.”
INSIGHT
-It is by the grace of God that we fulfill His purpose designed for us before time. To understand this text, we must take note of the context and of several facts brought out by the Greek text. In the flow of thought, these verses introduce the conclusion of an appeal for unity that began in Philippians 1:27 and runs through 2:18. So then the main scriptures in Greek indicates a conclusion from what precedes. Also, all of the words used here are plurals in Greek. Paul is not telling individual Christians to individually work out their personal salvation, as is often taught. Rather, he is appealing to the church, based on the example of humility seen in Jesus Christ, to work out the practical implications of their salvation in their relationships with one another. Since God Himself is at work in their midst as a church, they need to lay aside personal rights and humbly serve one another, putting others ahead of self. In so doing, they will stand out as lights in this dark, selfish world (Philippians 2:15). Ephesians 2:7 also reveals that it is through the grace and kindness of God that we abound in us through unity in Christ Jesus.
PRAYER
Almighty Heavenly Father, we are here before You in humble adoration, exalting Your name and enthroning you above every thing and everyone in heaven and on earth. You are highly lifted us and exalted, there is truly none like You. Receive all praise and honor our dear Father as you are worthy of it all. Father we ask You to forgive us all our sins and wash us with your precious blood Lord Jesus. Help us Lord and endow to us Your Grace that we may work out our salvation with fear and trembling for You have called us as individuals and as the church of Christ to do so. Help us maintain and keep this precious gift of Salvation for it is not by our strength which we do so but by Your Holy Spirit who guides and convicts us always. Forgive us where we have grieved the Holy Spirit and give us more Grace to always obey His instructions and yield to His convictions. Father remember us and preserve us that we may walk this walk faithfully and fearfully to You. We pray that you may shine Your countenance upon us and bless our going out and our coming in. May You go before us in everything and everywhere we go and straighten every crooked path and flatten every mountain and hill before us. We bless Your Name Lord Jesus. We pray this in Jesus Mighty Name, Amen.
Further reading: Titus 3:7
Hebrews 4:16
“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
-God’s throne of grace assured us of mercy, peace, love and all the spiritual blessings. God calls us to have courage and have no doubt while approaching His throne of grace that we may obtain His unmerited favor and mercy. Through the grace of God we obtain pardon for our sins and compassion amidst life issues. We also get strength there that will enable our slack and benumbed fingers to grasp again the thing we hold. There we get that fresh grip of Christ which quickens us for the labor of entering into rest. 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 reminds us that God’s grace is sufficient for us, for His power is made perfect in weakness. We then take delight in weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, difficulties for through these Christ’s power is made manifest in us; for when we are weak then we are strong.
PRAYER
We come to Your throne of grace dear Jesus that we may obtain mercy and grace to help us in times of need. In Your mercies dear Jesus we are not consumed, because Your compassions never fail, they are new every morning, great is Your faithfulness. May Your grace and peace be multiplied to us in Your knowledge Lord our God and Jesus Christ our Savior. May You forgive us of all our trespasses, the sins of our forefather, our family members, our leaders, our nation and the entire world, great is Your faithfulness merciful Savior. You are rich in mercy, and great in love with which You have loved us, great is Your faithfulness. May You go before us this day and make every crooked paths straight. May You respond with favor upon us and answer all our hearts desires. We submit our burdens unto You dear Jesus for You care for us. Thank You for loving us and for taking good care of us dear Jesus. All glory, honor, power, grace and blessings belongs to You dear Jesus, now and forever. Amen
Further reading: 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, 1 Peter 5:7
Acts 4:33
“With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all”
INSIGHT
-The Holy Spirit moved powerfully in the lives of the apostles from the day of Pentecost. It is through His grace that God released great power in them to perform signs and wonders for the glory of His name. Apostle Paul a murderer and persecutor of Christians was converted and obtained the mind of Christ. Jesus was filled with grace and He accomplished His mission of salvation (Luke 2:40). This is the power that comes with God’s grace, that we may do exploits.
SUMMARY
Grace is the enabling power that opens us up to divine frontiers that are not naturally possible. God makes all grace abound toward us, that we always have all sufficiency in all things, and abound in every good work (2 Corinthians 9:8). Christ Himself gave us diverse abilities, some apostles, others prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, to equip us for works of service, so that the church may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-13). Grace is undeserved favor that reminds us of the victory that we have in Christ Jesus and brings us to fullness in Him. He took away our sins on the cross and imputed upon us His righteousness. Jesus took away our shame and gave us His shalom. We are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus (Romans 3:24). All this God did not because we are good, but because He is good. God is our Father and He gives good gifts to us His children. It is by grace that we are saved through faith and not by our works lest anyone should boast (Ephesians 2:8-9). He has given us the gift of grace that abounds in many areas of our lives. His grace is sufficient to us for His power is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). God makes a way for us even when there seems to be no way. God reminds us to boldly approach His throne of grace that we may obtain grace and mercy to help us during the time of need (Hebrews 4:16). God always works behind the scenes even when we cannot see. God is a good Father and He loves us. God reminds us to keep trusting in Him even when we get to the lowest place. He is the way maker, and calls us to have faith in what is unseen. God calls us to be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 2:1). God’s delays are not denial’s. God is a miracle worker and calls us to faith and obedience. God reminds us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12). Abraham obeyed and believed God, and it was accounted to Him for righteousness. Abraham obeyed and he did exploits. It is not always about how long we live but what we do with our lives. God has good plans for us and has a purpose for our lives. God is our Jehovah El-Shaddai and supplies all our needs according to His riches in glory and we should always give thanks to Him.
PRAYER
Jehovah El-Shaddai we adore You and blessed Your holy name. You are the Lord of lords and the King of glory. There is none like You dear Jesus. You are our good Father we are honored to call You Abba Father. You are Emanuel and You are always with us. You have never left us nor forsaken us. Your grace is sufficient for us for Your power is made perfect in weakness. Teach us dear Jesus to wait on You for You have good plans for us. Plans to prosper us and not to harm us, plans to give us hope and a future. Teach us dear Jesus to wait on You in our plans, ambitions and hearts desires. You never fail us and know what is best for us, teach us to trust in You wholeheartedly. At the appointed time we believe that You will perform what is perfect for us. May You give us Your peace that surpasses all understanding dear Jesus. May Your peace always be present in our lives and nation even as we go into elections later this year. No evil plan fashioned against us shall prevail and no tongue raised against us shall prosper in Your name Jesus. We shall live in peace with Rwanda and all our neighboring countries in Your name Jesus. May You surround us and our nation with Your precious blood dear Jesus. May You increase us in faith dear Jesus that we may access that which Your have promised us. May Your grace abound in us that we may walk in power and be excellent in every area of our lives. May Your grace increase toward us, that we may always have all sufficiency in all things, and abound in every good work for the glory and honor of Your name. May You bless us Lord and keep us. May You make Your face to shine towards us and be gracious to us. May You turn Your countenance upon us and grant us peace. Amen
Further reading: Luke 2:40, Romans 5:15