2 Corinthians 13:11 NIV
“Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.”
INSIGHT
-Apostle Paul in his farewell speech, exhorts the Corinthian church to rejoice. In other words he tells them to be glad and joyful. As it was prophesied during the birth of Jesus, many will be joyful and rejoice because of His birth (Luke 1:14). He is the Prince of peace and in Him we live, and move, and have our being. It is through Him and in Him that we are able to rejoice and live peaceably with each other. Paul in his salutation prays for the peace of God to be with them all. It is by God’s peace that we are able to rejoice in Him and be of one mind.
PRAYER
Lord Jesus You are the Author and Finisher of our faith, in You we live, and move and have our being. We trust in You Jehovah and declare that there is none like You, and none can compare to You. You are our God and Savior, we enthrone You Lord Jesus. We exult Your holy name for this far. Thank You for the gift of life and for the air that we breathe. We do not take it for granted. Many have passed on before us. Many others are sick and suffering in hospital and at home, may You have mercy dear Jesus. May You heal all those who are sick and grant comfort to all the bereaved. May You take over our nation and grant us Your peace that surpasses all human understandings. May You cover us with Your precious blood and forgive us all our trespasses. We humbly ask for Your guidance in our personal affairs and welfare of our nation. We pray all this believing and trusting in Jesus mighty name. Amen
Further reading: Psalm 29:11
Psalms 33:21 NKJV
“For our heart shall rejoice in Him, Because we have trusted in His holy name.”
INSIGHT
-Rejoicing In the Lord is a mandate for every Christians, since we believe in Christ. Jesus is the Rock of our salvation, our Foundation and Good Shepherd. We rejoice in hope that our God is always with us, and He will never leave us nor forsake us. We rejoice in every circumstance, in tribulation and comfort, for our God is good unto us all the time. When we rejoice in the Lord, we remain patient in tribulation, and steadfast in prayer, for His name is a strong tower, we run to it and are safe.
PRAYER
Your name Lord is a fortified tower, the righteous run to it and are safe. We run to You Lord in every situation and circumstance. We run to You with our shortcomings and distress. We run to You with our victories and testimonies. We run to You with all our hearts. May You keep us safe always, with our family members and fellow countrymen, and women. We believe in You our true Foundation and Shield. Our mouths are filled with praise. We rejoice in You always and pray without ceasing while giving thanks; for this is Your will Lord in Christ Jesus. Amen
Further reading: Romans 12:12, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
Philippians 3:1-3 NKJV
“Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same things to you is not tedious, but for you it is safe. Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the mutilation! For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh,”
INSIGHT
-Apostle Paul warns the believers in Philippi against evil workers. His harsh warning is preferably against the Judaizers who taught that the observance of law was necessary to receive salvation, and constantly sabotaged the gospel of free grace. They legitimized physical circumcision as a way to eternal life. As we rejoice in the Lord we are then able to worship the Lord in the Spirit. It is also by the character of men/women that the heart is revealed (Proverbs 27:19), and the Lord calls us to maintain purity of heart as we work out our salvation with fear and trembling.
PRAYER
Almighty Heavenly Father, we come before You today with praise and adoration. We exalt You and honor You with all our heart, soul, body and mind. You are worthy to be praised and worthy of all our worship. There is truly none like You. Father we humbly ask that You may forgive us all our sins and iniquities. May You wash and cleanse us with Your precious blood dear Lord Jesus Christ. May You purify us and make us white as snow. We cast all our burdens and cares unto Jesus for You care for us and we take up Your yoke which is light and easy. Oh Lord clothe us with Your garments of praise and wipe all our tears and pain away. May You give us the joy of You salvation and help us by Your Holy Spirit to rejoice in You. May Your gospel reach the unreached and Your gift of salvation transform the hearts of Your people. Thank You Father for You always hear us, may You answer us for Your glory. May You touch our nation and impact leaders with Your character that they may lead us Your people with Your wisdom. May You transform us to become and always portray Your image and likeness dear Jesus. We pray this believing and trusting in Jesus Mighty name. Amen
Further reading: Matthew 7:17, Ephesians 2:8
Psalms 118:24 NKJV
“This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it.”
INSIGHT
-The Lord has graciously granted us life and the air that we breath. Just by virtue of being alive is a reason to rejoice in the Lord. The Lord knows us and takes good care of our every need. We are called to always give thanks to the Lord for the gift of life. The Lord has a great purpose for each one of our lives and we have every reason to praise His name. He tells us in Psalm 150:6, that let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Even if we worry, we cannot add even a single hour to our lives (Matthew 6:27).
PRAYER
We give thanks to You Lord, with all our hearts and tell of all Your wonderful deeds. We rejoice in You and are glad. We sing praises to Your holy name, our Lord Most High. We thank You for the gift of life that You have bestowed upon us. We thank You for the far that You have brought us and the far that You are taking us. We count our blessings and name them one by one. We thank You for the good health that You have given us. We know that many have gone before us but You have been merciful and gracious unto us. It is not because we are good but only You are good Father, we thank You for Your mercy and grace. May You grant comfort to all the bereaved. May You heal all those who are sick and suffering, and totally restore their health loving Savior. We pray for full restoration of health, and everything that the locust has eaten. We pray for a restoration of peace in our nation and economic prosperity. We pray for a restoration of our businesses and jobs wonderful Master. Thank You for the plans that You have for us dear Jesus, plans to prosper us and not to harm us, plans to give us hope and a future. May the purpose for which You have called us come to pass according to Your merciful love Lord Jesus, and make us fruitful in every sphere of our lives. We exult Your name Lord and worship You now and forever, Amen.
Further reading: Hebrews 13:15, Jeremiah 29:11
Isaiah 61:10 NKJV
“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”
INSIGHT
-It is the mandate of all believers to rejoice in the Lord. As a bride and bridegroom adorn themselves with precious ornaments, so has the Lord embellished us with His gift of salvation, and covering of righteousness, because we believe in Him and have accepted Him into our hearts. We then have the hope of glory and joyful until the end of the age.
SUMMARY
In Hebrew, rejoice is written as samach and it means to cheer up, be glad, be joyful, and to make merry. There are uncountable reasons why we should rejoice in the Lord. In fact, the Lord calls us to rejoice in Him always. First, we should notice that it is not possible to rejoice always unless one is in the Lord (Philippians 4:4). Even though we are faced by numerous life challenges, we are given emphasis to rejoice in all circumstances. When we rejoice always we are able to give thanks to God in all situations (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). For us to be able to rejoice in the Lord always, we needs the peace of Christ (2 Corinthians 13:11). Sometimes one may be sick, economically challenged, socially and spiritually submerged, and experiencing various storms in life but you find him/her at peace and always in a cheerful spirit. This is only possible through the peace of Christ that surpasses all human understanding. Also, when we put our trust in God and in His holy name, we are able to rejoice in Him always (Psalms 33:21). Further, when we do not have confidence in the flesh but in the Spirit of God, we are awakened to the realities of rejoicing all the time. Apostle Paul warned the Philippians against putting their trust in the law and physical circumcision with the hope of receiving the gift of salvation, but to believe in God and worship Him in the Spirit (Philippians 3:1-3). The Holy Spirit therefore empowers us with His gifts and fruit, and enables us to rejoice in Him always.
PRAYER
We rejoice in You Lord always. We joy in You God of our salvation. All our hope and trust is in You. Some trust in horses, others trust in chariots but we put all our trust in You Lord our Savior. You are our God, we have no other but You. You are our Shelter and Shield, our help comes from You Lord our God. May You answer all our prayers and hearts desires. May You heal all our wounds and make a way even where there seems to be no way. May You bless and prosper all our going in and coming out. May You open new and supernatural doors of prosperity for us in Your name Jesus. May You enable us to rejoice in You always. May You bless us and keep us dear Lord Jesus. May You make Your face to shine towards us and be gracious unto us. May You turn Your countenance towards us and give us peace. Amen
Further reading: Habakkuk 3:18, Colossians 1:27