ojaysjoel blog

The Lord is close to those who are of a broken heart and saves such as are crushed with sorrow for sin and are humbly and thoroughly penitent. Psalm 34:18 AMPC https://bible.com/bible/8/psa.34.18.AMPC Devotion: David wrote this psalm when he changed his behaviour before Abimelech who drove him away and he departed. David was running away from King Saul, he pretended to be mad. Yet Abimelech drove David away and there was imminent danger but God delivered David, he wrote the song of praise for deliverance from certain death. (Read the whole psalm 34) David was genuinely penitent and he praised God.  In the spiritual realm if you confess your sin know that God is nigh unto you to welcome and deliver you from your sin; God is at the door (Revelation 3:20).   In the physical when you are broken either by a terrible diagnosis, financial loss or something bad instead of self pity all you need to do is to surrender to God, tell him Lord this is your battle and be faithful. God w...

This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. John 15:12 NKJV https://bible.com/bible/114/jhn.15.12.NKJV Devotion: We hear the 4 letter word frequently and most use it without thinking it out if they really understand what it means - to love.  Let's try to understand Jesus' love - it is intense and emotional eg His love for Lazarus(John 11:35), it is deep eg His love for John the beloved(John 13:23), it is beyond measure eg Jesus' love for you and me cannot be quantified; He cares eg He fed 5000 in the wilderness(Mark 6: 31-44). Jesus' love is selfless eg He loved till He was crucified on the cross for you and me. Jesus' love has no end - He is pleading for you and me till date, in heaven.(1John 2: 1-2)  The kind of love described above is what Jesus prescribes for you and me, to love one another just as He loves us. To give love and importantly to love ourselves and receive love. If you give true love you'll also be loved. Amen. NB-this...

that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9 NKJV https://bible.com/bible/114/rom.10.9.NKJV Devotion: Many people tell us they are saved, born again or that they were born into Christianity but their character do not not show them as truly save children of God. The reason is simple - they believe in Jesus they don't really know.   Some will tell you Jesus is just a prophet, not a son of God, not God and even deny His ascension to heaven,(Matt 16:13-16) yet such person call themselves Christian. No, they are not they are something else and that is why they use occultic powers to draw people to their churches, their end is destruction.  To be truly saved you have to confess that Jesus is the son of God, God himself turned to man to experience what you and me experience and paid the price for our sin on the cross. You have to believe that God raised Him from death and He ascended...

Ephesians 3:16  That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man.  Devotion: Apostle Paul prayed for the young Ephesians church that they may be strengthened with might by Holy Spirit because he knows that it is impossible to do God's work with human strength.   We are nothing without God so it is right to ask God for power to do His work and wisdom to live right. I urge you to ask for strength before you embark on your daily duty this morning so that you will easily accomplish that which God set before you to do.    Dearly beloved, we are talking of power of the Holy Spirit here, ask for it and you'll soon begin to testify of God's goodness. Hallelujah.  Written by Dr Joel Olanrewaju, reach me on gbemide09@gmail.com for questions, suggestions and prayer requests. For more devotionals check ojaysjoel.blogspot.com. 

Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, I Peter 5:6 NKJV https://bible.com/bible/114/1pe.5.6.NKJV Devotion: Humility is an attribute of Jesus Christ, who being God yet came in human form to reconcile man with God (1Timothy 3:16 & Colossians 2:9). We as followers of Christ must learn from him and be humble under God's mighty hand.    We're know the story of Peter who being humble took the advice of Jesus to dip his net into the sea (Luke 5:4-7). He could have argued as expert fisherman but Peter did just as Jesus told him to do. He caught so many fishes that his net began to break.    Solomon wrote that pride comes before destruction (Proverbs 16:18) which is very correct, we have read or seen many great men whose end was disgraceful because of pride.(Nebuchadnezzar)    To make it in life one must humble oneself, I did when I went back for residency after 20 years of graduation. Most of my trainers wer...

Oh, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples! Psalms 105:1 NKJV https://bible.com/bible/114/psa.105.1.NKJV Devotion: David in his wisdom wrote the verse above which encapsulate the whole essence of the commission of Christ given to us in Matt 28:19.   It is not just about witnessing to the people but firstly Praising God for what he has done, doing presently and will do. It involves worshipping God for who He is - mighty God, everlasting father, I am that I am, omnipotent, omnipresent and onmnificent God (add more). Secondly - Do not shy away from calling the name that is above all others, the name JESUS. In modern times some may not want to offend some others because of religion and therefore say something like "in your name I pray" no you should be bold enough to say "in Jesus name I pray".  The third element is that you should be able to tell people what God did for you when you call on His name. People want to hear your...

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28 NKJV https://bible.com/bible/114/rom.8.28.NKJV  Devotion: Are you into the work of God? How successful are you in the work? Let me try to define success as I understand it. In ministry success is the number of heaven bound souls you win for God, how many souls won by you are actively winning souls for God.  Success is not how big your church is, not the number of congregants, not the number of cars in your fleet, not the houses you amassed for yourself but how many souls. You may not have a church, you don't need it but the fruits of your labour are all over the places actively working for Christ according to Matt 28:19.   If you are truly called then everything will be in place according to the definition above. Everywhere you go you will easily win souls for Christ. If you called yourself as many have done, pretending that God calle...

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28   Devotional: Still on One Love, the song written by Bill Withers in the seventies aptly tell what love means. The song is even more relevant in this age when loneliness is common everywhere.  There comes a time when you need to lean on someone, someone to assure you that all will be well even when it seems not. Such people are hard to come by but you and I can be such a person, a shoulder for someone to lean on when in sorrow, when trouble comes.   How can you become such a person? Accept Christ into your life and follow in His footsteps then you'll become a strong pillar to lean on when trouble comes.   You have access to Christ and He eagerly waits for you to lean on Him when you need Him.  Read the lyrics to the song below --- Hmm... hmm-hmm-hmm-hmm Hmm-hmm-hmm-hmm Hmm-hmm-hmm-hmm-hmm Sometimes in our lives We all have pain We all have sorrow But if w...

Beloved, if God so loved us [in this incredible way], we also ought to love one another. 1 John 4:11 AMP https://bible.com/bible/1588/1jn.4.11.AMP Devotion: Late Bob Marley in his song "one love" sang about love and it is one of the best music ever. The song can be downloaded via the link below https://cdn.trendybeatz.com/audio/Bob-Marley-&-The-Wailers-One-Love-People-Get-Ready-[TrendyBeatz.com].mp3 This song was during post election turmoil in Jamaica. In many parts of the world today there are wars and serious problems affecting people that shows absence of love among the peoples of the world, economic wars, war of surviver. We cannot say we love God when we fail to love our neighbours, we as children of God ought to show love to others, peach love to others and encourage others to love fellow human beings.    This is our primary assignment when Jesus says go ye into the world in Matt 28:19, Jesus is love therefore wherever we preach Jesus we must preach love. Love must...

For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Philippians 2:13 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/php.2.13.KJV Devotion: Humanly speaking it is difficult to do what God wants all the time because the flesh is always struggling to have you do what it wants. There's another reason - you live among unbelievers and are likely to be influenced by therm. Let's see another interpretation of this verse "For it is [not your strength, but it is] God who is effectively at work in you, both to will and to work [that is, strengthening, energizing, and creating in you the longing and the ability to fulfill your purpose] for His good pleasure."  Philippians 2:13 AMP Try to understand the verse as interpreted by the amplified bible above; you'll understand that it not you who which and does the will of God but God himself gives you the enablement and strength to do His will. Good does this by the power of the Holy Spirit in you when you give your life...

Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah. Psalm 68:19 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/psa.68.19.KJV Devotion: When you understand how to say thank you, you are likely to be blessed again and again. David understand this phenomenon and he regularly thanked God for daily provision. You and I are who we are and where we are today because of God's benevolence, see should therefore thank Him and bless Him for it. There are many promises in the bible but the most important apart from our salvation is our daily bread without which we may not be able to live. This is what God gives daily. Do not tell me it is your labour, if God did not bless the labour of your hands, thieves, swindlers etc can steal your income from you. They indeed do when you do not pay your tithe, when your source of income is criminal the income goes into uncharitable purpose like gambling, alcoholism, to treat illness , to pay fine and the like. Dearly beloved do you...

For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Romans 8:6 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/rom.8.6.KJV Devotion: The people around me or who knows me always ask how I managed to navigate life even in the midst of severe problem or chaos that will make some to misbehave or go into depression. I once lost $120 that I was supposed to send to a cousin, it was confiscated by Russian custom because I sent it through wrong channel. My friend who was with me nearly went into shock, I, who was directly affected had to calm him. It was a lot of money to students in the 1980s.  Twice I was told to go from my place of work not for wrong doing but because they felt my time was up, even when I was called to stay on because of staff shortage. I took it in its stride.   In these episodes I saw opening elsewhere because I know that if one door did not close another will not open, now that is being spiritual. If I was thinking in the flesh my Blood pressur...

He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: But a companion of fools shall be destroyed. Proverbs 13:20 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/pro.13.20.KJV Devotion: A saying goes thus "show me your friend and I will determine who you are" it is a true saying. A medical doctor will not make a street urchin his best friend nor will a cleric make a pagan his best friend unless he himself is a fake cleric.   Solomon in his wisdom wrote the verse above and it describes the whole essence of the Christian commission (Matt 28:19) that says go and preach the gospel to every part of the world BUT it did not say make friendship with unrepentant world. You preach the gospel and move on, pray for his/her soul to be saved by God. Not that you should walk (make friends) with him/her.   Some christians out of misunderstanding marry unbeliever thinking by that they will convert their spouse unfortunately they themselves, especially the women get reconverted from Christianity. The bible says what ha...

He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Psalm 23:3 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/psa.23.3.KJV Devotion: As we continue the topic Caring God, we see a God who Restores souls and leads in the right direction. Only a caring God does that.  We must make a conscious effort to follow God when He leads because we know that He leads us on the right path, not only to honour His name but also that were will not perish. There are so many other paths people follow but the end thereof is always disaster (Matt 7:13) so I encourage you to allow God to lead you.   We also should also assist our friends, family and relations to follow God's lead and our souls will be restored. In doing that we bring honour to God's name and we are also saved. Bless you in Jesus name, Hallelujah. From Dr Joel Olanrewaju, reach me on gbemide09@gmail.com.

Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. 2 Corinthians 1:3‭-‬4 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/2co.1.3-4.KJV Devotion: Still on care, our God cares for us in all ramifications and we are therefore in position to care for others.   As we emulate our God in caring for others and making them comfortable we must bless God who comforted us first. It is because we are comfortable by His Grace that we are able to comfort others. It is our duty also to guide others to comfort others so that the chain will continue.   Dear reader, how do you relate with your colleagues at work or neighbours when they need to be comforted? Don't feel unconcerned reach out to them in love of Christ, share your means with them and comfort them with the word of God. Shar...

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/mat.11.28.KJV Devotion: We continue to the topic "Care" today. Our God the God of heaven is a caring God and what happens to us matters to him. He does not discriminate once you present your case to him in faith and trust that He can handle it. The ball is in your court, my court to call on Him and he will answer. He says in Jeremiah 33:3 "Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not." I urge you to call on Him this morning concerning your situation, job, business,  finances etc. He will answer you because He cares.   Testimonies await you, don't forget to share it so that others will believe. Hallelujah.  Written by Dr Joel Olanrewaju, on gbemide09@gmail.com. 

"Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 1 Peter 5:7" Devotion : Sometimes, due to the challenges the children of God go through, there is the feeling that nobody cares, not even God. Above is a specific example of scripture proving that God cares as He said we should walk by faith and not by feeling.    Another good example that is care about and for you and me is found in  Matthew 11:28 " Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." To be laden is to have so much troubles at the same time and you feel the troubles are beyond your capacity to handle. Go to Jesus in faith and your troubles will be lifted off you. The key word is Faith and Trust.  Feeling can be positive or negative; the devil uses negative feelings against us so we might doubt God's Word. Continue to trust in Christ Jesus that He is able to save you and provide for your daily needs. How do you feel about this scripture? Share your comments here!...

Like as a father pitieth his children, So the LORD pitieth them that fear him. Psalm 103:13 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/psa.103.13.KJV Devotion: Something happened when I was traveling overseas to study. I can never forget, my dad was by the taxi taking me to the next town to board a bus to Lagos crying to the extent other passengers asked what was the matter. He was so compassionate that he used his bare foot to kill a deadly snake in my room. He loved us and cared for us so much.  Such is our heavenly father, God loves and cares much more for us that He waits to heal us of our sin and other ailments. All we need to do is take the first step towards Him and God will do the rest. God is so compassionate that He does not want you and me to perish especially when we fear(Revere) him by doing his will.   Do you fear God and do His will, tell us your experience, I know God cares for me, delivered me from sin, diseases, provides for me when I thought it was over, saved me fr...

And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. John 1:5 KJV  https://bible.com/bible/1/jhn.1.5.KJV Devotion: Light always overcome darkness. A single lighted candlestick will illuminate the path for one to walk around in the deep of night. In our lives Jesus Christ is the light of the world that lights our way and no form of darkness can overcome Jesus' light.  When you give your to Jesus, His Spirit, the Holy Spirit will live in you and become a light unto your path to guide you in the darkness of this world at home, work, abroad, spiritual and in the physical life. Provided you remain in Christ, His light will continue to light your path so that you'll not stumble in difficult situations of life. When you live right the light of Jesus will radiate from you to your surroundings so that people will say this person is a follower of Christ the light of the world. The world will not be able to overcome you, you will always shine over and above then becau...

Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms. James 5:13 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/jas.5.13.KJV Devotion: The worshipers of idols faithfully worship, praise and dance before their idols and feel fulfilled. But most followers of Christ find it difficult to pray for 5 minutes before they start yawning and drowsy as if praying is a sleeping pill.   Today we are reminded to pray to God for relieve when afflicted, when there's trouble, when there's lack. We are equally admonished to sing praises and worship God when situation is good and not only that but I'll say always because God inhabits our praises.    The same Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without ceasing", we should also pray till our joy is full. Let's remember that prayer is a demonstration of our faith in God so if you don't pray to God your faith is under scrutiny.   Dearly beloved, what is your experience on this, share your testimony with us. Hallelujah.

But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. Hebrews 13:16 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/heb.13.16.KJV Devotion: The writer of Hebrews, teaches us to do good always because our good is good all the time. So we have no reason not to be good all the time if truly we are believers in God through Christ Jesus.  We must must communicate the goodness of God to every contact we meet. This means we must witness to people of God's goodness and win souls for God. (Matt. 28:19)  Let us remember that people do not read the Bible again but they monitor us, the followers of Christ. Therefore it is necessary we live our lives in such a manner that people will see Christ in us in other words we should be excellent ambassadors of Christ. Dearly beloved what is your take on this? Share your experience with us. Dr Joel Olanrewaju's devotionals are  available online at ojaysjoel.blogsot.com. Send your questions, suggestions and prayer requests t...

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Philippians 4:8 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/php.4.8.KJV Devotion: Whatever you think about frequently is what you act out or do most of the time. Whatever you fear most and think of happens to you. "For the thing which I greatly feared is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me" (Job 3:25).  Apostle Paul this morning under the inspiration of God tells you and me to think positively and have a set of direction on what to think about. A child of God has no fear, need not think evil or act foolishly but think right and act right.  Dear reader, what are you thinking about as you step out today? Let your thought process be positive and act it. Lines will begin to fall in right places for...

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity! Psalm 133:1 KJV https://bible.com/bible/1/psa.133.1.KJV Devotion: I remember we used to sing a song from the verse above at departure for end of year vacation in school. The song was to remind us of beautiful time we had in hostels and a urge to come back. It was a beautiful song which unfortunately I have not heard anyone sing in recent years. Back then life was simple we lived in our communities and villages in friendship, we were one big family, I could go to a friend's family house and eat with love, the was no fear the other guys will also share from my food as well.   These days of hardship and financial insecurity such is not frequent again. In fact friendship and communal living is not mordern again because our handsets and computers have become our friends. There are people with millions of online friends they had never met before and will never meet. Families live under the same roof but...

But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Romans 8:11 KJV Devotion: Once you give your life to Christ and repent of your sins the Holy Spirit of God (will) lives in you. This Spirit is the comforter promised by Jesus (John 14:26) and it is the Spirit of God that raised Jesus Christ from the dead.   By simple logic, it is understandable that if this holy spirit lives in you he will raise your mortal(perishable) body from the dead at the appropriate time. We know that Jesus who made the promise to send the holy spirit did not fail(Acts 2:3-4), hence in this case we also believe he will not fail.  All that is required of me and you is Faith and steadfast expectation of His(Jesus') coming. Therefore dearly beloved I urge you to remain steadfast in your Faith in God (Mark 11:22  And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in ...

Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Philippians 2:3 KJV Devotion: Most natural persons like to be praised, to receive accolades for achievements. It is natural but most of the time it doesn't happen that way and leads to acrimony and even strife.  When person is not recognized for what he did for the community he will probably stop doing it, when his expectation is not met he withdraws from doing the good he used to do. Sometimes such may lead to open strife, especially when someone else who did not take active part got the praises or financial return that one rightfully claim. Above are just some of the possible human reactions.  Jesus prehistorically was equal with God (Genesis 1:26; John 1:1) but he left all that and came to live a lowly life just to reconcile you and me with God. He even died like a sinner, he did not claim any position. This is what you and me should emulate. We need not c...

But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream. Amos 5:24 KJV Devotion: In or society these past years people agitate for justice so much that the word is almost a street song. People demand for elusive justice every now and then but most are as well guilty whenever it is convenient for them.  It is a know fact that there in human society there cannot be real justice without equity. An example will suffice - a region holds 5 political posts but thinks the posts are minor and therefore demands justice to take the only 1 post of the other region that it thinks is more important. Where's equity, to achieve justice and equity in this situation the one with 5 post must relinquish some of the posts it holds.  Our God is not like humans, He judges all as equal without seeing any as more important than the other. Be you a street vendor, the governor of a state or a Bishop God uses the same standard to judge all. We as children of God must follow God's standa...

There are many devices in a man's heart; Nevertheless the counsel of the LORD, that shall stand. Proverbs 19:21 KJV (https://bible.com/bible/1/pro.19.21.KJV) Devotion: Good day, today you probably are not what you desired to be as a child. I for example wanted to be an architect and in fact spent a year in the Polytechnic but God had other plans and I got scholarship outside the country. Today I'm a medical doctor.  Solomon in his wisdom knew that he was not supposed to be king over Israel because there were elder brothers ahead of him but God chose him over and above them. He became the richest, wisest king over Israel. Are you aspiring to do something, planning to settle in a certain town or marry someone ask God for directions. (I am not saying go to prophet but go on your knees and pour out your heart to God, you will receive directions). Do not miss God's counsel for your life, otherwise you will not be fulfilled. Be fulfilled in Jesus name amen.  Dearly beloved, what ...

But I will sing of thy power; Yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning: For thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble. Psalm 59:16 KJV Devotion: David had reason to sing aloud of God's mercy because God was his defence and refuge. God delivered his enemies into his hand, saved him from Saul's sword, from the Lion assisted him to overcome Goliath. David appreciated God and praised God.   I have many reasons to sing God's praise because without God there's no me. He has been, He and will be my shelter, saviour, benefactor, help, provider, guidian and lots more. So I sing "what the Lord has done for me I cannot say it all (3 times), He saved me and washed me in his blood, so I will shout hallelujah (2ice) I will shout praise the Lord."  Dearly beloved, do you have reasons to praise God? List out the reasons and sing God's praise this morning. Your testimony is on the way. Hallelujah.   I am Dr Joel Olanrewaju visit my page at gb...

Ephesians 4:1-3  I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Devotion: Anybody remember this song by Late Bob Marley? ONE LOVE. This is what Paul thought the Ephesians in the passage of today. He teaches you and me the same message today to love One another with brotherly love, to forbear one another meaning to understand each other's low point and overlook when one did not achieve measure of love expected.   I like this version of the verse "In light of all this, here’s what I want you to do. While I’m locked up here, a prisoner for the Master, I want you to get out there and walk—better yet, run!—on the road God called you to travel. I don’t want any of you sitting around on your hands. I don’t want anyone strolling off, down some path that goes nowhere. And ...

But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you, bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you. Luke 6:27‭-‬28 KJV Devotion: Welcome to the month of August, I pray for God's guidance, protection and blessings for all who read the devotionals in Jesus name, amen. True Love is found only in the father in that He gave us His son to die in our place. He(God) loves us even as we do not love Him and do what He(God) does not like(sin).   Those of us who claim that we are followers of Jesus do we emulate God? Do we love all including our ENEMIES(the people who deliberately do evil to us, some even confess they hate us). Most of the time we find it very difficult to love such people, we hate them we don't associate with them.   Yeah humanly speaking we are right but when we have given our lives to Christ were no more live humanly we live spiritually, we are filled with the Holy Spirit and it guides us and teaches us t...