Foursquare Gospel Church Igbosere (Chapel of Blessing)

OUR DAILY BREAD April 29, 2018 Sunday TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT JESUS! Arthur Jackson But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory.  Hebrews 3:6 Hebrews 3:1–6 1 Kings 6–7; Luke 20:27–47 If there ever was a faithful person, it was Brother Justice. He was committed to his marriage, dedicated to his job as a postal worker, and each Sunday stood at his post as a leader in our local church. I visited my childhood church recently, and perched on the upright piano was the same bell that Brother Justice rang to notify us that the time for Bible study was about to end. The bell has endured the test of time. And although Brother Justice has been with the Lord for years, his legacy of faithfulness also endures. Hebrews 3 brings a faithful servant and a faithful Son to the readers’ attention. Though the faithfulness of Moses as God’s “servant” is undeniable, Jesus is the one believers are...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 28, 2018 Saturday  ON-THE-JOB TRAINING Xochitl Dixon Of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.  2 Timothy 1:11 2 Timothy 1:6–14 Bible in a year:  1 Kings 3–5; Luke 20:1–26 When my son’s teacher asked me to serve as a chaperone for their science camp, I hesitated.  How could I be a role model when mistakes littered my past, when I still struggled, stumbled, and slipped into old bad habits?  God helped me love and raise my son, but I often doubted He could use me to serve others. Sometimes I still fail to recognize that God—the only perfect One, the only One who can change hearts and lives—transforms us over time. Then the Holy Spirit reminds me how Paul encouraged Timothy to embrace his on-the-job training, persevere in faith, and use the gifts God had given him (2 Timothy 1:6). Timothy could be courageous because God, his power source, would help him love and be disciplined as he continued to grow and se...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 27, 20q8 Friday WISDOM’S CALL David C. McCasland Wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her.  Proverbs 8:11 Proverbs 8:10–21 Bible in a year:v 1 Kings 1–2; Luke 19:28–48 Malcolm Muggeridge, the noted British journalist and social critic, came to faith in Christ at the age of sixty. On his seventy-fifth birthday he offered twenty-five insightful observations about life. One said, “I never met a rich man who was happy, but I have only very occasionally met a poor man who did not want to become a rich man.” Most of us would agree that money can’t make us happy, but we might like to have more so we can be sure. King Solomon’s net worth has been estimated at more than two trillion US dollars. Although he was very wealthy, he knew that money had great limitations. Proverbs 8 is based on his experience and offers “Wisdom’s Call” to all people. “I raise my voice to all mankind. . . . My mouth speaks what is true” (v...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 26, 2018 Thursday THE WIDOW’S FAITH Poh Fang Chia The pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.  Matthew 6:32 2 Kings 4:1–7 Bible in a year: 2 Samuel 23–24; Luke 19:1–27 It is pitch dark when Ah-pi starts her day. Others in the village will wake up soon to make their way to the rubber plantation. Harvesting latex is one of the main sources of income for people living in Hongzhuang Village, China. To collect as much latex as possible, the trees must be tapped very early in the morning, before daybreak. Ah-pi will be among the rubber tappers, but first she will spend time communing with God. Ah-pi’s father, husband, and only son have passed away, and she—with her daughter-in-law—is providing for an elderly mother and two young grandsons. Her story reminds me of another widow in the Bible who trusted God. The widow’s husband had died and left her in debt (2 Kings 4:1). In her distress, she looked to God f...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 25, 2018 Wednesday AMNESIA Mart DeHaan My understanding returned to me; and I blessed the Most High.  Daniel 4:34  nkjv Daniel 4:28–37 Bible in a year: 2 Samuel 21–22; Luke 18:24–43 Emergency Services in Carlsbad, California, came to the rescue of a woman with an Australian accent who couldn’t recall who she was. Because she was suffering from amnesia and had no ID with her, she was unable to provide her name or where she had come from. It took the help of doctors and international media to restore her health, tell her story, and reunite her with her family. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, also lost sight of who he was and where he had come from. His “amnesia,” though, was spiritual. In taking credit for the kingdom he’d been given, he forgot that God is the King of Kings, and everything he had was from Him (Daniel 4:17, 28–30). God dramatized the king’s state of mind by driving him into the fields to live with wild animals and graze like a cow...

OUR DAILY BREAD April 24, 2018 Tuesday THE WAITING PLACE David H. Roper Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him.  Psalm 37:7 Psalm 70 Bible in a year: 2 Samuel 19–20; Luke 18:1–23 “Waiting for the fish to bite or waiting for wind to fly a kite. Or waiting around for Friday night . . . . Everyone is just waiting”—or so Dr. Seuss, author of many children’s books, says. So much of life is about waiting, but God is never in a hurry—or so it seems. “God has His hour and delay,” suggests an old, reliable saying. Thus we wait. Waiting is hard. We twiddle our thumbs, shuffle our feet, stifle our yawns, heave long sighs, and fret inwardly in frustration. Why must I live with this awkward person, this tedious job, this embarrassing behavior, this health issue that will not go away? Why doesn’t God come through? God’s answer: “Wait awhile and see what I will do.” Waiting is one of life’s best teachers for in it we learn the virtue of . . . well,  waiting...

OUR DAILY BREAD  April 23, 2018 Monday  THE SECRET OF PEACE Keila Ochoa The Lord of peace himself give you peace.  2 Thessalonians 3:16 2 Thessalonians 3:16–18 2 Samuel 16–18; Luke 17:20–37 Grace is a very special lady. One word comes to mind when I think of her:  peace . The quiet and restful expression on her face has seldom changed in the six months I have known her, even though her husband was diagnosed with a rare disease and then hospitalized. When I asked Grace the secret of her peace, she said, “It’s not a secret, it’s a person. It’s Jesus in me. There is no other way I can explain the quietness I feel in the midst of this storm.” The secret of peace is our relationship to Jesus Christ. He is our peace. When Jesus is our Savior and Lord, and as we become more like Him, peace becomes real. Things like sickness, financial difficulties, or danger may be present, but peace reassures us that God holds our lives in His hands (Daniel 5:23), and we can ...