Revelation of the Word:

THEME: THANKSGIVING TO GOD

1 Samuel 7:12 NIV

“Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far the Lord has helped us.”

INSIGHT

-Ebenezer is a Hebrew word that means “stone of help.” The Hebrew transliteration shows the pronunciation as ‘ebhen ha ‘azer. Before Samuel sets up his stone of remembrance, the Israelites are set to fight the Philistines once again. After two prior defeats, we can surmise that the morale of the soldiers was down. As the battle begins, Scripture says “The Lord thundered loudly against the Philistines that day and threw them into such confusion that they were defeated by the Israelites.”  At this point in Scripture, Ebenezer becomes the name of an altar. The meaning does not change but the power in it is brought to light. Samuel has been praying for his people to let go of their idols and immoral ways. Once his prayers are answered with the defeat of the Philistines, the land is restored to the Israelites, and there was peace between the Israelites and the Amorites. All these blessings deserved an act of remembrance. It is vital to give thanks to God for He has been a Stone of help to us. He has brought us this far. It is the last month of the year and we need to give our gratitude to God our Sustainer. Despite to difficulties and challenges that we have experienced in our personal lives, families, economy etc, the Lord has been our Ebenezer. We have not been consumed but we have experienced His mercy and grace. We need to give thanks for what we have already achieved and whatever we have not yet achieved knowing that God is in control and He is going to respond to all our needs according to His plan and purpose. Let us keep away all idols in our lives and keep praying and trusting in God and all things will be accomplished according to the plan and mercies of God.

PRAYER

Dear Almighty Father, we come before Your throne of mercy today with thanksgiving in our hearts. Because of Your great love we are not consumed, for Your compassions never fail. We thank You Lord for Your love, goodness, kindness and mercy that are new every morning. Thank You Father for this far that You have brought us and the far that You are taking us. Thank You for all Your spiritual blessings and the benefits that You have bestowed in our lives. We bless Your name for creating us, protecting us, providing for us and above all saving us by Your saving Grace through Your precious Son Jesus Christ. We thank You for the finished work of the cross and for the blood that You shed and Your body that You gave for us. Thank You for Your redemption power upon us and redeeming us from the grave. Thank You for healing our diseases whenever we got unwell. Thank You Lord for providing us and sustaining us. We love and appreciate You. We adore You and bless You with all our souls. Thank You for all the prayers You have answered this year and for all of us who are still waiting on You in some areas, we thank You for all Your good plans for us. We thank You for Your word and favor in our lives. We pray that You will forgive our sins and wash us with Your precious blood and purify us. We surrender the rest of the 26 days of this year to You that You may reign and fulfill all Your promises and great miraculous works. We thank You because we know that You have heard us. We pray that in Jesus’ Mighty Name. Amen

Further reading: Lamentations 3:22-25, Psalm 103:1-5

Blessed Week

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