The Oscar Ajoku Blog: Daily Vitamin Devotional

 DAILY VITAMIN - You Have Been Glorified "Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified." (Romans 8:30) Your life is designed to exhibit God's glory at all times. That's what He means when He called us God's building (1 Cor 3:9). A builder always imprints himself on his work. Because it is the source of his success, his best has to be revealed in it. The same applies with God. His best is revealed in man. Adam may have lost it at first, but in Christ all is restored; but only to those who are born again. To be born again means to bear the Spirit of Christ in your now regenerated spirit as a sign of identification that you belong to Him; and this happens the day you believe and accept His Lordship. When this happens, some things take place. First, we receive His full glory (John 17:22); that is, the glory that comes from being one with Him, because that's all it ...

  DAILY VITAMIN - How To Safeguard Your Joy "yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior." (Habakkuk 3:18 NIV) We are in a world that breathes just as much sorrows as felicities on a daily basis. In such a world, it becomes difficult to say completely avoiding being sorrowful is possible; but God says it is. Philippians 4:4 tells us to rejoice always. That means to live every day in the joy of the Lord free of sorrows. And if He says it is possible, then best believe it is. This doesn't mean things that might want to make you cry won't happen, it just means you won't be focusing on them, so your response won't be determined by them. But the first thing you must know is that true joy comes from God. It is a condition of the Spirit of Christ in us. All the world offers is a state of happiness-- a period of glee defined by happenings. A swing determined by how much jollity you earn as compared to how much despair you have, but God offers mu...

  DAILY VITAMIN - How Big Is Your God? "Am I only a God nearby,” declares the LORD, “and not a God far away? Who can hide in secret places so that I cannot see them?” declares the LORD." (Jeremiah 23:23 NIV) How do you see God? Because that determines what you'd believe in that situation of yours. Do you think He is a God that can do some things; perhaps heal a headache but not lupus? Or do you think He can do all things as He said? An enemy king once came against the people of God saying that the Lord of hosts has power only on the hills but not in the valleys (1 Kings 20:28), and so came through the valley, but he forgot that the same God who sits in the hills is the same God who watches over the valleys. David said even in the valley, God watches over His own (Psalm 23:4); and you can clearly see how that perspective affected his attitude and belief toward God. So much that he boasted that though a multitude rage against him, yet in the LORD's Name he'd destroy...

 DAILY VITAMIN - The Perfect Life Is Yours "Fear the Lord, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing." (Psalm 34:9-10 NIV) God is recreating a perfect world in you. That was what man had before he fell. The Bible says there were no weeds, thorns, sin, death and decay before the fall (Romans 8:20-21). No rot or failure. Man knew no failure, no struggling, no hardship; and when Jesus died and rose again, He restored that perfect world into our identity again.  Remember that the garden was called the garden of God. So it was just a physical place, it was also a spiritual experience, like the very Kingdom. And Jesus says it is within you. In other words, through Christ we have access once again to that perfect life of dominion God prepared for man; and through Him we can exercise it in our daily lives. Your case can be different from the rest of the world. Recall that this is God...

  DAILY VITAMIN - You Will Not Die But Live "I shall not die, but live, And declare the works of the LORD." (Psalm 118:17) Death is a spirit just as much as it is a natural phenomenon. What this means is that not all deaths are natural, and thus God's will. Many deaths are projected to people. Revelations 9:6 speaks of a time when men will want to die, but death will flee away. So death is a spirit that catches men, but it can also be made to flee. It has no right touching a man still on the road of destiny. Even Jesus tells us that it couldn't touch Him if He had not laid down His life (John 10:17-18); and Paul was deciding when it will have him (Phil 1:21-26). However, a lot of people have been forced to die before their times by demons. Scripture shows us that demons have the power to agonize and kill (Rev 9:15). And these demons only understand two sides--with God or not with God. You can fight the devil all you want, but that doesn't mean you're on God...

 DAILY VITAMIN - The Kind Of Servant The Lord Seeks "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him..." (Job 13:15) The Bible tells us that in a house there are vessels of gold and those of wood; some unto honour and others unto dishonour. However, there are those in God's house with the greatest honour, and these are those who are committed to Him at all times. Those who are faithfully devoted to Him. God desires a people who would seek Him not for the miracles He gives, but for the person He is. Those who are after His heart and not merely His hands.  This is important because only these will stick to the Lord in the hardest of times. There is something about knowing God; it is where trust and faith are built. That's why Job could say what he said. It doesn't matter if everything is against me, he said, even God, I will yet trust and serve Him. He could say that because he knew God. It's also why Abraham and Sarah knew God would keep to His Word even when He had...

  DAILY VITAMIN - God Walks As we See Him "Therefore hath the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his eyesight. With the merciful thou wilt shew thyself merciful; with an upright man thou wilt shew thyself upright; With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself froward." (Psalm 18:24-26) I love this scripture because it is how God taught me the most important lesson of life. A hard lesson: that God walks with us according to how we see Him. It says He recompensed me according to my righteousness. That means He gave me according to what I put in. This is somewhat like how a bank works. You can only take out a similitude of what you put in. And so, says, to the merciful, He shows Himself merciful; to the froward, He shows Himself froward. So you see, God doesn't mind showing Himself as froward if that's how you see Him. In the parable of the talent, the last servant saw Him ...

 DAILY VITAMIN - Trust God To Keep His Word "For ever, O Lord, thy word is settled in heaven." (Psalm 119:89) Everything God promised us is bound to be if we'd only stay in faith, and this involves doing as He calls us to per time. The odds may not be in your favour, you might not be the smartest in the room, or the prettiest, but if you will trust God to keep His Word, it will happen as told you. Jesus told Mary that all she had to do was believe and she'd see the glory of God revealed (John 11:40). All you have to do is believe too. God has already written the script of your life, and everything He promised you is a part of that. So, it's bound to be, if you'd stay in line. In 1 Samuel 13, the people of Israel fled in fright when they saw the huge armies of Philistia, and they didn't know how victory would come about. They knew of the covenant but they didn't know how God would bring it to pass with such a view. They had no weapons nor anything to de...

  DAILY VITAMIN - Just A Little Longer "But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul." (Hebrews 10:39) In the same book of Samuel, the scripture says "as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, Samuel came..." (1 Sam 13:10). This was about Saul trying to play God and take matters into his own hands, rather than trust God. He had waited for seven days and nothing happened, and as he saw his people deserting him, he opted to act; and act he did, but wrongly and to his own demise. It was indeed the beginning of the end for him. But what do you think made him do it? You know; because it is the same thing that makes you choose to do it your own way than stay in trust. I can just imagine the devil whispering into his ears as he did with Eve, telling him "You got to do something or you gon be left with nothing." And believing in his fears than in his faith, he gave in.  But no reason i...

  DAILY VITAMIN - Trust God Through The Test "Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4 NIV) Let this same mind be in you. The Bible tells us the mind of God toward us. It says that even through the fire and the flood, He will be with us (Isaiah 43:2). If that be so, then why do we doubt at the slightest flinch of His promises? Truth is, sometimes God doesn't show up when appointed just to test our faith. He did it in time past and still does the same today. In 1 Samuel 13, we see what He did with Saul. The people of Israel saw the horde of Philistine soldiers and fled. In this fright, they asked for God's counsel, and He assured them to show up on a certain day through Samuel; but He didn't (v. 8). And the Bible said as a result the people scattered from Saul. Seeing this and in an attempt to keep them with him, he tried to play God and that was the beginning of ...

DAILY VITAMIN - Clear Off The Debris "How can a young man stay pure? By reading your Word and following its rules." (Psalm 119:9 TLB) The Bible affirms that God's Word is like a fire; it refines us and burns out every stubble that is not of God in our hearts. It is God's instrument of weeding out whatever He didn't plant in us. It is how He clears the debris out of our mind. He says by taking heed to it, we would live pure lives in body and soul.  David said he sought God with his whole heart, and thus filled his heart with God's Word, because it was the best prescribed way to overcome the shadows of sin (Psalm 119:10-11). It works all the time. Like a lamp, it illuminates your heart with light that engulfs every darkness in it. Thus, are you deep in depressing thoughts, evil thoughts, suicidal thoughts and the likes, and you feel it's becoming uncontrollable? Don't worry; just keep filling your heart with the Word. Study it day and night. Meditate up...

  DAILY VITAMIN - Receive Wisdom (2) "My instruction is far more valuable than silver or gold.” (Proverbs 8:10 TLB) The Bible never tells us that the people are destroyed for lack of gold. Because where gold is lacked, silver or any other resource will suffice. It tells rather that they are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6); for if knowledge is lacking, nothing else will suffice (Isaiah 33:6). And this it says is important because only knowledge can fill the chambers of our lives with precious and pleasant riches (Proverbs 24:3): reason why nothing surpasses wisdom in value (Proverbs 8:11). In our theme scripture, it is said that wisdom cries every day to the sons of men, and it will be given to those who respond by seeking after it with all they are (Proverbs 8:17). And we are told that they that find it never lack the necessary knowledge of the times (Proverbs 8:12); for by it do kings reign and the great have their place. It is wisdom that makes us forces to reckon wi...

 DAILY VITAMIN - Crying Won't Cut It "If I regard sin and baseness in my heart [that is, if I know it is there and do nothing about it], The Lord will not hear [me]; But certainly God has heard [me]; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer." (Psalm 66:18-19 AMP) Crying for God to help you is not a quick fix for getting His attention, especially when there is no intention to change. That's what our theme verse says. And this is because God isn't interested in tears and pleas, He's interested in action. That's what captivated Jesus in all of Zacchaeus words-his desire and decision to be different (Luke 19:1-5). He calls men to reason with Him, declaring to make them brand new. But then He says there has to be an intention to let Him help you and one to obey Him thenceforth (Isaiah 1 :18-20). So, once there is a decision to be different, God shows up swiftly. You can't cry your way out of everything. The truth is if you could, the whole world would b...

  DAILY VITAMIN - How To Consistently Trust And Sincerely Worship God At All Times "And the godly shall rejoice in the Lord, and trust and praise him." (Psalm 64:10 TLB) The godly are meant to rejoice at all times, and this scripture says is possible through trust and praise. The Bible also tells us that God speaks to us daily. In fact, it tells us He does so every morning (Job 33:15-16); whether through the voice of the Word or by His still voice in our spirit, God speaks. And we are advised to listen and obey for our good (Hebrews 3:15-19). And what does He speak? He tells us what pleases Him. The first is living in faith (Hebrews 11:6) and the second is worship (Hebrews 12:28). But now that we know this today, how can we heed it? How can we learn to do both on a constant basis? The disciples asked Jesus to help strengthen their faith, but rather than praying for it, He taught them a simple principle.  "“If your faith were only the size of a mustard seed,” Jesus answer...

  DAILY VITAMIN - God Has Expectations "Happy are all who search for God and always do his will, rejecting compromise with evil and walking only in his paths." (Psalm 119:2-3 TLB) As was said to the Marvel character, "With [the desire for] great power comes great responsibility". You see it's easy to shout "God is too faithful to fail," but are you? Are you too faithful to fail Him? Everything Jesus came to do was to create a two way relationship. So, it is not about what God can do, it's about what God and you can do. There's an expectation He has of you and that defines everything. Yes, He has blessed us with the free gift of grace, but to have grace work as intended, there is something He expects of us every day. And that is called faithful devotion. Remember Hebrews 6:10, He will not forget you not because of what He has done, but because of your works and labour of love. There is a lifestyle He encourages you to put up to attract all the ...

  DAILY VITAMIN - Never Compromise "The Lord has said in strongest terms: Do not under any circumstances go along with the plans of Judah to surrender to Syria and Israel." (Isaiah 8:11 TLB) A lot of people do things they never intended nor anticipated they would all because of pressure. Be it parental pressure or peer pressure. You never thought you'd date a man or woman who readily lives against the principles of the Word of God, but because your friends or parents keep telling you about what you might miss out on refusing such a gorgeous person, you surrender. Well, guess what? God is saying don't you do that. Your colleagues at school or work tease you about how lame you are for still being a virgin, and you believe them and thus go on an adventure of sexual experience. All because of pressure. Our theme scripture cautions the people of God never to go along with the plans of the nonbelievers to displease God. Verse 12 says though they might call you a cat or what...

  DAILY VITAMIN - Trust God, Not Your Ideas "Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track. Don’t assume that you know it all. Run to God! Run from evil! Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life!" (Proverbs 3:5-7 MSG) A lot of us try to convince God to hurriedly help with great ideas we believe will well work out His plans best. But guess what? Before they were your ideas, they were first His. So there's no way your ways can outdo His. You have to trust that He has a perfect plan for you. If scripture says eyes have not seen it, ears have not heard it, nor minds imagined it (1 Cor 2:9), then what makes you think your plans for a great future can outshine His? you see, with God all you need to actualize the vision He placed in your heart concerning your life is trust. All you need is a heart that t...

 DAILY VITAMIN - The Only Thing Strong enough To Limit God "So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief." (Hebrews 3:19) The Bible tells us that nothing is impossible with God, but there is something that can make things impossible for God in the life of a man, and that singular trait is called unbelief. Unbelief has many tentacles and forms-of which one can find doubt, fear and indifference.  These virtues can ruin the intentions of God for a life if harboured by it. The Bible tells us even when He dwelt among us, He couldn't do much because of unbelief (Matt 13:58). So, it didn't where God stayed, as long as unbelief dwells in the heart of a man, He is limited to act in such a life. Of Israel, it is said that again and again they turned away and tempted God, and limited Him from giving them His blessings (Psalm 78:41). That's why the first thing God asks of a man is to free himself of unbelief. The man with the lunatic son, when he saw his miracle...

 DAILY VITAMIN - God Can Raise Up Anybody "and lifts the poor from the dirt and the hungry from the garbage dump, 8 and sets them among princes!" (Psalm 113:7-8 TLB) For men to help you toward a higher position, they ask for certain qualifications. A business degree, a professional and social proficiency certificate etc., but when God wants to lift a man up, He needs no permission nor secular qualification, just that you have a heart for Him. Our theme verse says He lifts the poor from nothing and even take hungry men from the dumpster and make them princes. And He is still in the business of doing that today. He did it with Jephthah an outcast. Scripture says He took David from the sheepfold (Psalm 78:70). He took Moses from being a vagabond to being a saviour and Joseph from a prisoner to a governor. He didn't ask them for any certificate, just a proof of their love for Him. Remember that His eyes go out through the world to lift the man whose heart is given to Him (2 C...

 DAILY VITAMIN - God Doesn't Do Things Halfway "God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it?" (Numbers 23:19) A lot of us question God's faithfulness because of our fear of the unknown. Because of the fear of not being sure. But guess what? God is sure. The scripture says when we are out of faith, God is yet faithful (2 Tim 2:13). Yet we are scared He will back out just before before he completes the miracle like Hezekiah was. In Isaiah 37 after he had seen the enemy king besiege his capital, Hezekiah cried out, "This is a day of trouble and frustration and blasphemy; it is a serious time, as when a woman is in heavy labour trying to give birth, and the child does not come" (v. 3 TLB). He had received God's plentiful promise of peace but as soon as his biggest act of devotion was over, an enemy came (see 2 Chro 32:1). Like a roaring lion, he came boasting threats and Hezekiah ...