The Oscar Ajoku Blog: Daily Vitamin Devotional

DAILY VITAMIN - It Will Be " He carries out and fulfills all of God's promises, no matter how many of them there are..." (2 Corinthians 1:20 TLB) The Bible says that God is able to complete all that He has begun in your life (Phil 1:6). As such, that means that you are not intended to live a half-baked life. God is going to perfect His already perfect recipe on you. Ephraim, we are told, as a tribe appeared half-baked (see Hosea 7:8-9); but not the redeemed man in Christ- for we are COMPLETE in Him who has the fullness of the Godhead bodily (Colossians 2:10). Anyway, here is the part I want you to concern yourself with today. In The Living Bible translation of that verse, we are told that God "...will keep right on helping you grow in his grace until his task within you is finally finished on that day WHEN JESUS CHRIST RETURNS". Wow! Did you get that? What He means there is that there is so much in you to be seen and explored than you know. It is like what S...

DAILY VITAMIN - Winning With God "All nations (the surrounding tribes) compassed me about, but in the name of the Lord I will cut them off! They compassed me about, yes, they surrounded me on every side; but in the name of the Lord I will cut them off!" (Psalm 118:10-11 AMP) Sometimes, the challenges we face may pose a great threat to our faith; and as such lasso us into a state of endless panicky and fretting. However, I want you to know that the same thing happened to Hezekiah. The Assyrians had the numbers, the weaponry, the expertise of war, the confidence, and the ravaging countenance on their faces; but it didn't mean that they had the advantage. They had told the people of Judah that God couldn't save them nor could any man help them because they [the Assyrians] had never lost a war before. Well, while the statistics may have sounded right from a distance, it doesn't mean they were right. In our own lives, we have almost, if not, the same kind of adver...

DAILY VITAMIN - Spread The Word "Until I get there, read and explain the Scriptures to the church; preach God's Word." (1 Timothy 4:13 TLB) Every believer is called to be a Sower of the seed. Just like how cutting down a tree is much easier and less time consuming than the process of planting one, refuting the Word is easier than spreading it. In fact, doing nothing might be enough to refute the Word that had been received by the public, but it's never enough for spreading it. Spreading the Word is a conscious act, and a very important one at that, and that's why Jesus emphatically urges us to go and preach it in as many places and direction as possible. God's Word is a seed; and without being planted, the world would eventually die of impoverishment. God’s Word is the only hope this world has. This is because the only way to change the world is to spread the Word. It is the only way to know where true salvation and peace lies- God. The Bible says "C...

DAILY VITAMIN - Jesus Will Give You Rest "In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength" (Isaiah 30:15) Complaining has never done any man good other than reminding him of far away he is from the ideal life he presumes should be his. In fact, there is actually one thing complaining does- it reveals just how much doubt you have in God. And that's why He loathes complaining and murmuring, because it reflects doubt rather than faith. However, how does this then affect us? Every time we complain or murmur, we get bitten (Numbers 21:5-6). Every time we let it rule over us, we let doubt sink us under, thereby keeping us from realities that were and could have been ours. So, how do we overcome these bites and retrograding occurrences the compliant syndrome brings? God gave the answer as the only way out to the Israelis. And that is, by looking unto the One who was hung for our sakes- Jesus; for as many as look unto Him live. ...

DAILY VITAMIN - You Are Blessed! "You are not to curse them, for I have blessed them!" (Numbers 22:12 TLB) When the Bible speaks of how we are no longer under a curse, but have been redeemed by grace, many a person don't still understand how extreme it is. Well, let me show you. As the Lord took Israel from one conquest to another, a fear gripping king sought for a way to distort their progress. So, he had a council meeting with the leaders of Midian, and decided to have a prophet curse Israel so as to impede their growth and success rate. They went to Balaam the seer with money in order to coax him into performing the act, but God would not let him. They came again with a greater amount of treasure for him, but God sternly warned him against it. Again and again, they increased the reward and made the conditions of his work more favourable, but God would not permit it saying, "There shall be no enchantment against Jacob, and no divination against Israel" (...

DAILY VITAMIN - Your Circumstance Is A Comma, Not A Full-Stop. "Soon-and it will not be very long-the wilderness of Lebanon will be a fruitful field again, a lush and fertile forest." (Isaiah 29:17 TLB) There might be a whole lot of buts in your life presently, but it shouldn't define who you are. "He has a great vision, but no sponsor". "He is a great guy, but he has no one who wants to go out with him". "She is a bright kid, but I'm not sure she can afford College". "He is a godly man, but we can't find enough good things happening in his life right now". "She's everything but married". These are stereotypical statements, not the true definition of a man's life. Circumstances never define a man; rather his stance in them do. Even Jephthah had a but. The Bible called him a great warrior but the son of a harlot. However, I want you to get acquainted with the real message there. Jephthah might have been...

DAILY VITAMIN - Tired Yet Moving! "And Gideon came to the Jordan and passed over, he and the 300 men with him, faint yet pursuing." (Judges 8:4 AMP) When the two kings of Midian took a glimpse at Gideon, after they had noticed how despite being at the disadvantage and in the minority he still persisted till he caught up with them, they assumed he was the son of a king (see Judges 8:18). But was he? No! Rather he was of the most insignificant family in Manasseh, not to talk more of Israel. But yet he was presumed to be of royalty. You see, kingship is not a position per se, it is a character trait. It is in the behavioral pattern. Gideon had every reason to give up, but he didn't. He kept moving and conquering just as God keeps on being above all circumstances forever. He was blatantly tired, yet he wouldn't give up. He was rejected twice, yet he couldn't permit himself to stay dejected. His destiny depended greatly on it. Similarly, do you ever feel tired and...

DAILY VITAMIN - Love Obeys "The person who has My commands and keeps them is the one who [really] loves Me; and whoever [really] loves Me will be loved by My Father...... " (John 14:21 AMP)" The love God has for His created man, including you is something that can never be quantified or met up to; it is exceedingly superfluous in its own magnificence, and this He proved when Christ died for the sinner in you and I. Paul said "But God shows and clearly proves His [own] love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) died for us" (Romans 5:8 AMP). Yet, regardless of the consistency of this love, God said in an open letter to the Children of Israel through the hands of Hosea that ..''He would love them no more" (9:15), for the reason that they chose to repay Him with their wicked works. It is strange, right? For one whose love is unconditional to speak of being able not to love the recipient anymore...

DAILY VITAMIN - You Will Get There Because You Can "I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am [h]self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency]" (Philippians 4:13 AMP) Mary McLeod Bethune started what would become a great American College with nothing more than six dollars. Walt Disney started his dream with only about forty dollars to his name. While Jose Feliciano, on the other hand, became a great composer with just an old piece of guitar. What this means is that life may give you limited options, but only you can choose your limits. The Bible says that He has blessed us with all the blessings there are to be men and women of great virtue (2 Peter 1:3, Ephesians 1:3). The present lack is not a good enough reason to end up as nothing in life; but the gift of God in you is enough resource to be everything you can ever be. You just have to believe in all you ca...

DAILY VITAMIN - Like The Bumblebee, Fly! "And Jesus said, [You say to Me], If You can do anything? [Why,] all things can be (are possible) to him who believes!" (Mark 9:23 AMP) Mary Kay cosmetics is now one of the largest cosmetic companies in the world because one woman refused to give in when everyone else said it couldn't be done- and that it wasn't possible. In lieu of this, she has the symbol of the company represented by the image of a bumblebee- to showcase her resilience to conquer the many importuned conditions of life. Now, over the years, scientists have made theories on how it is impossible for a bumblebee to fly, yet it flies. Animal experts also say it should be impossible seeing it has tiny wings and a really big body; but the bee doesn't know it is impossible. It just flies anyway. The bumblebee outdid statistics and still baffles realists today, and so did Mary Kay Ash. It outgrew its limitations, and now it stands an icon forever. In the sa...

DAILY VITAMIN - Take Control Of Your Life "For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he..." (Proverbs 23:7) It's such a very funny statement, that is, what we say when we sometimes try to start a conversation with our acquaintances. We ask them with so much veracity ''How is life treating you?''; but literally I have reached an understanding by the grace of God that it is very wrong. 'Why?' we may ask. Well, here's why: - One, when God made you and I, He did it fearfully and wonderfully; meaning He did not create us to fear, but for the other constituents of creation to fear us for His awesome glory upon us, giving us dominion as well. And wonderfully because we were made for signs and wonders (Isaiah 8:18), showing that anything that should occur must be determined by us, and not life itself or its circumstances; for the results of life were programmed to be automated by the choices made, and by the actions and beliefs of you and I, we can ch...

DAILY VITAMIN - Avoid Excuses "For every man shall bear his own burden" (Galatians 6:5) Failure is perfected when there is always an excuse for it. Note, it's not a crime to fail, but it is one when we find comfort in it, and this we do when we fail to admit our flaws, but always have an excuse to back up our failures. For instance, after Adam had fallen at Eden, God came, asking him for the reason why he did fail, and immediately he turned and unconsciously blamed it all on God for the woman He had given him. But we also see a contrasting case in the life of David. After he had killed Uriah to usurp his bed and his wife, God came to judge him by the mouth of Nathan; and notice David didn't spend anytime giving excuses of him being too bored or deceived by power, but went down on his knees, and immediately sought forgiveness, having the knowledge that though excuses don't cure a problem, but at least acknowledgment brings it to the open for forgiveness to all...

DAILY VITAMIN - Is God Worth Everything To You? "Nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:39 AMP) If you were to choose between a billion bucks to aid your present state, or eternity with God, what would you pick? First things first, I'm not in anyway insinuating that a man can't have both on his own side of the lever, rather I'm trying to bring into awareness the choice the elements of this world lay before us every day, thereby forcing us deceitfully to derail, as it paints it as our only hope for a legacy. Many a times, a lot of people go the 'very known' wrong way just because they willingly self-convince themselves that the gains they want is greater than the salvation they need; and due to these actions of theirs rain heavy self destructive predicaments on themselves. For instance, Judas had salvation right in front of him; in fact he h...

DAILY VITAMIN - Take A Walk With Jesus "[For my determined purpose is] that I may know Him [that I may progressively become more deeply and intimately acquainted with Him, perceiving and recognizing and understanding the wonders of His Person more strongly and more clearly], and that I may in that same way come to know the power outflowing from His resurrection [which it exerts over believers], and that I may so share His sufferings as to be continually transformed [in spirit into His likeness even] to His death, [in the hope]" (Philippians 3:10 AMP). The principles of friendship sometimes may be confused as being based on how close two people are, but I believe that it's based on how close two people want to be. The desire to start something beyond what you presently see has always been the starting point for relationships. That's what truly defines the potential of a relationship- that is, how far you are willing to go. For instance, when Jesus was passing by th...

DAILY VITAMIN - God Can Lift You Today! "Both riches and honor come from You, and You reign over all. In Your hands are power and might; in Your hands it is to make great and to give strength to all." (1 Chronicles 29:12 AMP) From the beginning of the Bible to the last page of it, we are shown one peculiar feature of God out of the many other peculiars, which is the Wonder Working Power of God - the ability and willingness to raise Something out of Nothing, and Someone out of No one. Let me show you one particularly special case study. The scripture tells us of the story of David in his trying times when his son Absalom usurped his throne, and sought to totally annihilate him from mortal existence. But in the midst of these trials and troubles, God drew wise men towards David to help him find comfort, hope, faith, and recovery once again; and one of such was the man Barzallai. When the throne was restored back to David, out of gratitude he chose to compensate this old f...

DAILY VITAMIN - You Need To Know "That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power in us who believe, according to the working of his great might." (Ephesians 1:17-19 RSV) There comes a time in a man's life when he sits and reasons if his present condition is all there is-and can ever be-to life, seeing the predicaments that stand at traffic against him. In the midst of this hardship, he condemns any hope of rising again-terming it impossible, thereby totally condemning life as non-profitable. And by this, it becomes clear that for those in this circumstance, they make problems the overseer and the arbitrator of their hope in life . Though the ability to find out our tr...

DAILY VITAMIN - G.R.A.C.E: Recreated In And For Christ "For we are God's [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live]" (Ephesians 2:10 AMP). While writing to the church in Ephesus, Paul specifically made mention of the unimaginable grace of God, when he wrote: ''...Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ'' (Ephesians 2:5). Paul, a man who had been to the very extreme of sin, while believing he was righteous, came to the understanding that it was impossible for him to have saved himself; that is, to have reasoned out salvation out of the blue, and thus saved himself, seeing how deeply he had erred...so deep that he used the plural 'sins' to show how extreme t...

DAILY VITAMIN - Believe The Word ''And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed not''. (Luke 24:11) When we as individuals hear or read the Word of God concerning us....His words of promise, I believe some of us still choose to doubt so as to feel safe in our own small little world, in order to have that excuse of "I didn't believe, so in case it doesn't work out, it won't really hurt me"; failing to understand that the inability of the words to become a reality in our lives was first as a result of our inaction towards believing. Many of us believe in God, but not many believe God. There are multiple religions, but the supposed religious people are still active on the field of doubts when it comes to the subject of God. God can and will only be accessed by faith. Little wonder why Jesus said ''Blessed are they who believe without seeing'', showing us that the orientation of receiving blessings from God begin...

DAILY VITAMIN - We Are Well Covered   "Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep" (Psalm 121:4 AMP) As John narrated the ministry of Christ in his gospel, he spoke about the gathering of the disciples to Him one after the other; and when he came to the part of Philip's conversion, he said that after Philip had followed Jesus, 'he found Nathaniel' (John 1:45), and told him about the Messiah he had seen with his own eyes. Though Nathaniel argued against the statement as it begged the question of a Messiah coming forth from such a non-renowned town as Nazareth, yet Philip's confounding words of ''Come and See'' ended the feud, and Nathaniel followed him. On seeing Jesus, he saw a man who spoke to him as if He had known him aforetime, and he asked if they had met before, and Jesus said 'when you were yet under the fig tree, I SAW THEE' (v. 48). This mystic verse in scripture teaches us one thing: that though it may se...

DAILV VITAMIN - Overcoming Problems (3) "I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency]". (Philippians 4:13 AMP) There is a verse in Scripture I call my personal winning verse, because it helps me bounce back in times of trouble. It also reveals the truth that men try to hide from us - which is, that surely problems would come, but it also gives a plus, which is the fact that ..yes there may be problems, but there is also a God...a Father who help men scale through these ordeals. ''Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked when it comes. For the Lord shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy feet from being taken''(Proverbs 3:25-26) Doesn't that excites you? Doesn't it make you feel that there's nothing in all the world that can keep you down? In this life-chan...