Father, from the bottom of our hearts we declare Your glory, we declare Your praise for all that You have done for us and for all that You have done for our nation. Father, our heart is filled with joy, and Lord almighty God, we are here to return all the praise and adoration to You; take all the glory Father in Jesus name.
Thank You for preservation; thank You for salvation; thank You for Your support; thank You for Your encouragement; thank You for daily loading us with Your benefits; thank You Father for Your word that You have given unto us as our purifier; thank You for purifying us with Your words in a constant basis; Father accept our praises in the name of Jesus Christ.
Thank You for Nigeria; thank You because Nigeria is still one today all by Your grace; the enemies of this nation never thought we would be together up till now, but we thank You because You are always a step ahead of the devil. Thank You because You said there are many devices in the heart of man, but nevertheless, the counsel of God shall stand; thank You Father for Your counsel that has prevailed over this country, accept our thanks in Jesus name.
Father, we ask Lord once again, have mercy on us in Jesus name; have mercy on our nation in Jesus name; restore the glory of our land in Jesus name. Lord almighty God, let it be well with us in Jesus name; disarm all our oppressors in Jesus name and give us a new ease of life; heal our land oh God; thank You Father because You have answered.
Father we thank You for bringing us to the tenth month, nine out of twelve, it is Your doing and it is marvelous in our eyes, and we know that You oh God that has brought us this far, You are more than enough to see us through, accept our thanks in Jesus name.
Lord almighty God, we profess today that this year shall end in praise with us; it shall end in praise for us; it shall end in praise for our nation in the mighty name of Jesus Christ.
Lord almighty God, today we mark the beginning of a new birth for the citizens of this country and our nation, Nigeria, in Jesus name. You will help us to do what is right; You will help us to do what will move Nigeria forward and You will deliver us from the shackles of bad leaders and bad followership in the name of Jesus.
Have Your way in this service; glorify Your name; let Your grace come through for us and at the end of everything, let Your name be praised. I pray oh Lord for all Your children who have been faithful in the payments of their tithes and the giving of their offering; Lord according to Your word, in blessing You will bless them in Jesus name; honor Your word in the lives of everyone in Jesus name and make all of us a delightsome land; thank You blessed Saviour, in Jesus wonderful name we have prayed.
Good morning and happy independence anniversary! It’s a celebration time, we need to congratulate ourselves, we need to rejoice with ourselves that God in His infinite mercies has preserved us to this moment, may His name be glorified forever in Jesus name.
I would like to welcome every one of you to this glorious occasion and I want to welcome you to the month of October, our month of double portion; everything for us this month shall be double; grace shall be double, favor shall be double; blessings shall be double; promotion shall be double; let me crave your indulgence to say commitment shall be double; soul-winning effort shall be double and our upliftment shall be double; your peace shall be double.
There will be no sorrow for you; there will be no weeping and gnashing of teeth and nothing will die in your hand; and like I prayed before, please take it to the bank, this year will end in praise for us and the name of the Lord will be glorified in the name of Jesus.
Tomorrow by the grace of God, we are having a very special prayer chain and the theme for tomorrow is “I am Lifted”; you are lifted, we are lifted, and because we are lifted, we are not coming down, we are going up, higher and higher we will go in the mighty name of Jesus. The text is taken for the Book of 1st Samuel 2:8; come and be blessed in the name of Jesus.
Praise the Lord! This month has been declared as our month of double portion; the scripture is taken from the Book of Isaiah 61:7, it says “For your shame ye shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them”. It’s our month of independence and I can assure you that in the place of confusion, you will rejoice in the mighty name of Jesus; and in the place of shame, your life as a person and in our lives as a nation, as a country, the Lord will give double in the name of Jesus, and we will all possess our possessions in the mighty name of Jesus.
So make sure you work with that, let it resonate and key into it from time to time and it shall come to pass in your life in Jesus name.
Acts of Apostles 2: 25 – 27, “For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved: 26Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: 27Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption”.
I stand on the authority of the word of God this morning and I declare concerning you and concerning Nigeria that never again will we see corruption in the name of Jesus Christ.
This morning by the special grace of God, I will be talking to us very briefly on the topic, “Hope for a Greater Tomorrow”; Job 14: 7, “For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease”. Brethren, there is hope for you, there is hope for me, there is hope for us and there is hope for Nigeria.
Hope is commonly used to mean a wish; grammatically, hope is synonymous to a wish. The strength of hope is the strength of the person that wishes desire. In other words, the strength of hope lies in the desire of a fellow that hopes. However, in Biblical term, hope is a confident expectation of what God has promised and the strength of that hope or expectation is the faithfulness of God.
When you talk about the faithfulness of God, you talk about the ability of God to keep His words. The Bible tells us in the Book of Hebrews that by two immutable things, in which is impossible for God to lie. One of the things that God cannot do is the fact that God cannot lie; He has the capacity to keep His words and because of that, He’s too faithful to fail, He’s too faithful to disappoint, He’s too faithful to let us down, and that’s why David said, I trust what God can do; it doesn’t matter the situation, it doesn’t matter the circumstances, God will not allow His own to see corruption.
Hope is a desire accompanied by expectation or a belief in fulfillment. Suffice to say that hope is a gift, and I pray in the name of Jesus that for as many of you that are under the influence of my voice this morning, either here physically or those who are with us online, you will receive the gift of hope in Jesus name.
Brethren, a wonderful result of hope is only and can only be delivered by the Holy Spirit of God. He gives us the power to hope and that is the demonstration of God’s love for us, Hope given by Him works together to give us confidence; the hope that God gives works together to give us confidence.
One of the things He does and He does very well is the fact that He reinforces our confidence; hope gives us joy; you’ll find out that if you are very hopeful, your heart will be filled with joy, you are joyful, it’s not that anything has happened, but you are hopeful of what God is going to do, and when you are confident and you are joyful, ultimately, you will have peace of mind. Peace will come, and where there is peace, there will be power, and where there is power, there will be love.
One of the things that promotes hatred is fear; when people are afraid, there is what I call a great distrust, there is doubt, there’s unbelief, you don’t know what is going to happen next, but where there is joy, there will be peace, where there is peace, the power of God will be made manifest and wherever the power of God rules and reigns, love will cover the atmosphere, and that is the true gift that we are talking about.
Therefore brethren, hope must be activated and sustained as long as we are alive.
Our declaration for the year as taken from the Book of Ecclesiastes 9:4 says “For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion”. Lack of hope makes the heart sick and has a dangerous effect; when you hear of people going to Third Mainland bridge or Lekki bridge here or Idumota bridge to plunge into the lagoon, that is what hopelessness can do. And I pray today in the name of Jesus that every root of hopelessness in your life, the Lord will uproot in Jesus name.
David said I saw the Lord always before me; if you take it in the International Version, it says I saw the Lord always before me because He’s at my right hand; brethren, look at your right side, God is there, you may not have seen Him but God is there.
He says I saw the Lord always before me because He’s at my right hand, I will not be shaken. (That’s the International Version, that one is more contemporary, so it gives you the whole thing in bullet points) therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices, my body also will it be hope because you will not abandon me to the grave nor will your holy one see decays.
In King James Version, it talks about corruption; in International Version, it talks about decay-ness. And David is so quoted to give us insight into where we can find hope for a greater and a better Nigeria; we find hope in the providence of God; when you talk about the providence of God, you talk about God’s caring nature and character, and I can assure you brethren, that regardless of the situation around us, we can find hope in a greater Nigeria.
David said I saw the Lord always before me because He’s at my right hand, I will not be shaken; therefore, I do not need to be shaken. You don’t need to be shaken, regardless of what the fuel price is talking – the fuel crisis, you are not shaken; you are not shaken because of the forex crisis; you are not shaken because of the economic crisis; you are not shaken because of the present moral situation in Nigeria, all you just need to do is to look for hope for a better Nigeria, and that hope will not come from the political class.
I was telling them in the workers’ meeting today, we keep complaining as a people – oh, we have bad leaders, (I think I shared that here not too long ago) where are these bad leaders recruited from? Tell me which country we get them from; every four years we change the governors, we change the senators, but the narrative has not changed, where are they coming from? When you look at this thing reflectively, you’ll find out that the challenge is actually with us as a people, I think it’s in our DNA not to comply, but I pray that today, deliverance will be our portion in Jesus name.
So I do not need to look for hope for a better Nigeria in the political class; I can say confidently that God is our palliative package; the provisions so made have been misappropriated, some have been stolen, some have been diverted. So if all our hope is on the political class, then we are in trouble, but I’ve studied the Bible and I’ve seen that God is our providence, He’s our enough palliative package.
And we like David can get our hope for the providence of God in our life; we can also have hope in God to heal our country because the Bible tells us in Daniel 4: 17 & 18 that God ruleth in the affairs of men; God ruleth in the affairs of nations.
A man (Benjamin Franklin) once said I have lived a long time and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth that God governs the affairs of men; and the key to believing that God is our palliative package is being able to perceive God in our nation’s affairs. There is no superman anywhere, there is no super-president anywhere, God is Nigeria’s only hope and we can find hope (like David) in the perception of God. Just perceive God that He is at your right hand.
David says that because of the providence of God, I can perceive Him and when I perceive God in my circumstances, I can be happy even if my circumstances have not changed. When you perceive God in your situations, you will be happy even though there is no solution yet, but that confident expectation, that impact of hope will give you that assurance that something is going to change.
And David said yes, I can shout right now; therefore, my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices. And brethren, today, I can perceive God making His presence known; we can hear hope for a brighter tomorrow in Nigeria. A man of God said, when you come to know God, the initiative (whether to act or not) lies on His side; if He does not show Himself, there is nothing you can do. But when you perceive God, when you come to God in righteousness, when you come to God in purity of heart, when you come to God with every sense of humility, God will reveal Himself, God will take the initiative, because the Bible says there is no one that comes to Him that He will ever cast out. I pray in the mighty name of Jesus that none of us will be a cast away in Jesus name.
Can you feel God in the atmosphere? Can you feel God in your situation? Yes, and you can do that by faith. The Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:38 that the just shall live by faith; so brethren, we need to lean on hope over and over again, David did it, he never regretted it; Abraham did it and never regretted it; you will surely not regret it if you do.
I feel and I know that God is up to something great and this is a divine moment for the glory of God to be made manifest in our nation. I believe that in this dark hour, the grace of the Lord will come through for us as a people and as a nation and of course I know, all the promises that God has made concerning our nation will find fulfillment in no distance time in the mighty name of Jesus.
We need to key into it, key into hope and find hope in the promises that God has made to His people. Like I said, the immutability of God’s nature guarantees the fulfillment of His promises.
David said, my body also will live in hope because You will not abandon me to the grave nor will You let You holy one see decay. What a great promise God is giving us today; I guess David was indirectly saying ‘let’s keep hope alive’ I want to urge every one of us to keep hope alive.
The Bible says hope in God does not maketh ashamed; for the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts, Romans 5: 5 – 8; and you need to know that with God, nothing shall be impossible. Brethren, a new Nigeria is possible; the restoration of lost glory is possible, all we need to do is for us to be positively minded and do our bit; it is not enough for us to cast aspersions on our leaders, every one of us is a leader in our own right; every time we abuse the political leaders, meanwhile, the things we should do, we don’t do them: pay your taxes; obey the law of the land; don’t join the multitude to do evil; anything that is not right, don’t join them; you want to build a house, get approval before you go ahead; don’t drive against the traffic.
We accuse our policemen, we accuse our custom men for corruption, but if there is no offer, there will be no acceptance. Let every one of us make up our minds to become good citizens of this country; it will start with you and start with me.
Offer yourself as a good example to others and live the rest to God. God can provide employment in an unemployment situation; God can make a way in a financial crisis; there is no problem that God cannot solve; God can make a way where there is none; God can provide a solace in the midst of fuel crisis; God can provide a great leader in a political crisis; God can provide holy men and women of God in an amoral society; yes, God can do it.
David said my body also will live in hope; God has not abandoned me to the grave, God will not let His holy one to see decay. I hope for a greater tomorrow because I put my hope in God. Jeremiah 29:11 says for I know the thoughts that I have towards you, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, but to give you an expected end. God’s plans for our lives and nation will not be aborted in Jesus name.
What are the benefits of hope?
Number one: hope gives supernatural joy, Romans 12:12.
Number two: hope in God empowers you to take appropriate steps. Hope in God helps you or enables you to take appropriate steps, Romans 4: 18 – 20.
And lastly, hope in God gives you freedom from depression. Depression is a thief of the future; the Bibl e tells us in Proverbs 13: 12 that “Hope deferred maketh the heart sick: but when the desire cometh, it is a tree of life”; when hope is deferred, the heart falls sick and of course what follows is depression.
So, as I conclude this morning, I enjoin every one of us to keep hope alive. You may be in trouble, but be rest assured that you are not without hope; yes, we live in a hopeless world, but hope is required for us to be able to navigate through it knowing that God will give hope to His own. So let’s join hands together continually to offer prayers of mercy and forgiveness to God and for ourselves and our nation so that the grace of God will come through for us.
2nd Chronicles 7: 14 says “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land”.
Brethren, shall we rise; it is not over until it is over; the Bible tells us in Job 14:7 that there is yet hope for a tree; don’t commit suicide, there is no need for you to commit suicide; those of you that are contemplating japa, you have to think twice before you take a plunge. Like somebody said it jokingly on this altar sometimes ago that as people are talking of japa, some are talking of japada and the painful thing is that to japada is not always easy, because at the time you are japa-ing, you have sold everything; you’ve sold your car, you’ve sold your house, you’ve sold everything you have, to japada now, people will ask you question, and it’s as good as coming to see corruption; and David is saying the holy one will not see corruption and I pray that none of us will see corruption in Jesus name.
So we need to take time to reflect, it’s a season for a rebirth, let’s think about what we can do for Nigeria and not only what Nigeria can do for us, like J.F Kennedy; so let’s key into the hope for a better tomorrow.
A songwriter says, because He lives, I can face tomorrow; because He lives, all fear is gone; because I know He owns my future and my life and everything are in God’s hands. If you believe that your lives are in God’s hands, then you need to keep hope alive.
A child of destiny does not die until his destiny is fulfilled, and I can assure you, whether the devil likes it or not, the glory of our land will be restored; joy will be restored back to Nigeria; oneness will be restored back to Nigeria; unity will be restored back to Nigeria, and once again, there shall be peace in this country; and of course as for you, once the land is blessed, then you’ll be blessed because God has promised that none of us will see corruption; you will not beg before you eat.
So let’s just go before the Lord and appreciate Him, let’s glorify His name; 2nd Chronicles 7: 14 gives us the basic things that we need to do if we must see a great turnaround in the life of our nation, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land”.
Brethren, let’s go before the Lord with every sense of humility; let’s confess our sin and let’s pray that God please, reveal Yourself unto us; reveal Yourself unto our nation in the mighty name of Jesus.
Forgive our unrighteousness in the mighty name of Jesus; heal our land oh God and deliver us from the shackles of poverty, from the shackles of corruption, from the shackles of killings, from the shackles of every form of evil in Nigeria; so shall it be, in Jesus mighty name we have prayed.
If you have prayed the prayer of forgiveness this morning and you totally desire forgiveness from God so that you can experience a great turnaround and healing in your personal life – physically, spiritually, financially and every area and if course, healing for our nation, can you please raise up your hand.
[Altar call]
My God will receive you unto Himself; the joy of the Lord will fill your heart; mercy will intervene in your life; mercy will intervene in the case of Nigeria; God will give us a new joy, a new land, a new testimony; there shall be peace in our land in the mighty name of Jesus.
And every shame in our lives, the Lord will take away; in place of shame, God will give us double and from glory to glory the Lord will take us; blessed be the name of the Lord forever, in Jesus wonderful name we have prayed.
