Foursquare Gospel Church Igbosere (Chapel of Blessing)

OUR DAILY BREAD DECEMBER 1, SUNDAY IS THERE  HOPE? Estera Pirosca Escobar If God is for us, who can be against us?  Romans 8:31 Romans 8:31–39 Ezekiel 40–41; 2 Peter 3 Edward Payson (1783–1827) led an extremely difficult life. The death of his younger brother shook him to the core. He struggled with bipolar disorder, and he was affected by extreme migraine headaches for days. If this wasn’t enough, a fall from a horse led to paralysis of his arm, and he almost died from tuberculosis! Surprisingly, his response wasn’t one of despair and hopelessness. His friends said that before Edward passed away, his joy was intense. How could that be? In his letter to the believers in Rome, the apostle Paul expressed his complete confidence in the reality of God’s love regardless of circumstances. He asked with boldness, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31). If God gave His very own Son, Jesus, to save us, th...

OUR DAILY BREAD November 30, SATURDAY CAREFULLY CRAFTED Linda Washington Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people.  Ephesians 4:11–12 Ephesians 4:11–14 Ezekiel 37–39; 2 Peter 2 In a YouTube video, Alan Glustoff, a cheese farmer in Goshen, New York, described his process for aging cheese, a process that adds to a cheese’s flavor and texture. Before it can be sent out to a market, each block of cheese remains on a shelf in an underground cave for six to twelve months. In this humid environment the cheese is carefully tended. “We do our best to give it the right environment to thrive . . . [and] to develop to its truest potential,” Glustoff explained. Glustoff’s passion for developing the potential of the cheese he produces reminded me of God’s passion for developing the “truest potential” of His children so they will become fruitful and mature. ...

OUR DAILY BREAD November 29, FRIDAY HAZARDOUS MATERIALS Jennifer Benson Schuldt See, this [live coal] has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.  Isaiah 6:7 Isaiah 6:1–10 Ezekiel 35–36; 2 Peter 1 The sound of a siren increased to an ear-piercing level as an emergency vehicle sped by my car. Its flashing lights glared through my windshield, illuminating the words “hazardous materials” printed on the side of the truck. Later, I learned it had been racing to a science laboratory where a 400-gallon container of sulfuric acid had begun to leak. Emergency workers had to contain the substance immediately because of its ability to damage whatever it came in contact with. As I thought about this news story, I wondered what would happen if sirens blared every time a harsh or critical word “leaked” out of my mouth? Sadly, it might become rather noisy around our house. The prophet Isaiah shared this sense of awarene...

OUR DAILY BREAD November 28, THURSDAY A SINCERE THANK YOU Xochitl Dixon I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.  Psalm 9:1 Psalm 9:1–2, 7–10 Ezekiel 33–34; 1 Peter 5 In preparation for Xavier’s first job interview, my husband, Alan, handed our son a pack of thank-you cards for him to send out after he met with prospective employers. He then pretended to be a hiring interviewer, using his decades of experience as a manager to ask Xavier questions. After the role-playing, our son tucked several copies of his resume into a folder. He smiled when Alan reminded him about the cards. “I know,” he said. “A sincere thank-you note will set me apart from all the other applicants.” When the manager called to hire Xavier, he expressed gratitude for the first hand-written thank-you card he’d received in years. Saying thanks makes a lasting impact. The psalmists’ heartfelt prayers and grateful worship were preserved in...

OUR DAILY BREAD November 27, WEDNESDAY GREEDY GRASPING Remi Oyedele Better one handful with tranquillity than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.  Ecclesiastes 4:6 Ecclesiastes 4:4–8 Ezekiel 30–32; 1 Peter 4 In the ancient fable  The Boy and the Filberts  (Nuts), a boy sticks his hand into a jar of nuts and grabs a great fistful. But his hand is so full that it gets stuck in the jar. Unwilling to lose even a little of his bounty, the boy begins to weep. Eventually, he’s counseled to let go of some of the nuts so the jar will let go of his hand. Greed can be a hard boss. The wise teacher of Ecclesiastes illustrates this moral with a lesson on hands and what they say about us. He compared and contrasted the lazy with the greedy when he wrote: “Fools fold their hands and ruin themselves. Better one handful with tranquillity than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind” (4:5–6). While the lazy procrastinate until they’re ruined, those who p...

OUR DAILY BREAD November 26, TUESDAY HE’S GOT THIS Mike Wittmer But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  2 Peter 3:18 2 Peter 3:14–18 Ezekiel 27–29; 1 Peter 3 Pastor Watson Jones remembers learning to ride a bike. His father was walking alongside when little Watson saw some girls sitting on a porch. “Daddy, I got this!” he said. He didn’t. He realized too late he hadn’t learned to balance without his father’s steadying grip. He wasn’t as grown up as he thought. Our heavenly Father longs for us to grow up and “become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13). But spiritual maturity is different from natural maturity. Parents raise their children to become independent, to no longer need them. Our divine Father raises us to daily depend on Him more. Peter begins his letter by promising “grace and peace . . . through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,” and he ends by urging us to “grow in” tha...

OUR DAILY BREAD NOVEMBER 25, MONDAY GOD’S SPECIAL TREASURE John Blase But you are . . . God’s special possession.  1 Peter 2:9 1 Peter 2:4–10 Ezekiel 24–26; 1 Peter 2 Imagine a vast throne room. Seated on the throne is a great king. He’s surrounded by all manner of attendants, each on their best behavior. Now imagine a box that sits at the king’s feet. From time to time the king reaches down and runs his hands through the contents. And what’s in the box? Jewels, gold, and gemstones particular to the king’s tastes. This box holds the king’s treasures, a collection that brings him great joy. Can you see that image in your mind’s eye? The Hebrew word for this treasure is  segulah , and it means “special possession.” That word is found in such Old Testament Scriptures as Exodus 19:5, Deuteronomy 7:6, and Psalm 135:4, where it refers to the nation of Israel. But that same word picture shows up in the New Testament by way of the pen of Peter the apostle. He’s describing t...

Theme of the Year: Covenant of Peace (Isaiah 54:10) Theme of the Month: From Glory to Glory (2 Corinthians 3:18) Topic: Giving Him the Glory (Matt. 5:16) In Matthew 5:16, Jesus says "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven." This implies that for us to have the glory of God on increasing measure in our lives we must give Him glory first. There are various ways we can give glory to God and I admonish you to pay attention to this piece. First, Jesus clearly commands that the goal of our lives should be to live so that God gets the glory. Live so that men will see your life and give your Father in heaven glory, not you. So, it should be very clear that glorifying God is not only an act of worship on Sunday. It is a peculiar kind of living. Second, for God to get glory from the way we live, we must be engaged in good deeds. It is not only by avoiding sins that God's people display his glory, but rather ...

OUR DAILY BREAD NOVEMBER 24, SUNDAY GOD TALK Amy Peterson Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads.  Deuteronomy 11:18 Deuteronomy 11:13–21 Ezekiel 22–23; 1 Peter 1 A study conducted by the Barna Group in 2018 found that most Americans don’t like to talk about God. Only seven percent of Americans say they talk about spiritual matters regularly—and practicing believers in Jesus in America aren’t that different. Only thirteen percent of regular churchgoers say they have a spiritual conversation about once a week. Perhaps it’s not surprising that spiritual conversations are on the decline. Talking about God can be dangerous. Whether because of a polarized political climate, because disagreement might cause a rift in a relationship, or because a spiritual conversation might cause you to realize a change you need to make in your life—these can feel like hi...