September 7, 2019 LIVING WATER CAC DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE : TOPIC – YOUR GIVING, YOUR GAIN (IV)
THE LIVING WATER CAC DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE
Saturday, September 7, 2019
TOPIC – YOUR GIVING, YOUR GAIN (IV)
Read 2 Kings 8:1-6
1. Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go thou and thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn: for the Lord hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years.
2. And the woman arose, and did after the saying of the man of God: and she went with her household, and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years.
3. And it came to pass at the seven years’ end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines: and she went forth to cry unto the king for her house and for her land.
4. And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done.
5. And it came to pass, as he was telling the king how he had restored a dead body to life, that, behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said, My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life.
6. And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed unto her a certain officer, saying, Restore all that was hers, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even until now.
MEMORISE: He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions (Psalm 107:20)
EXPOSITION
No giver lacks the goodness of the Lord at the appropriate times. The story of the Shunemite woman continues in 2 Kings 8:1-6. As part of her rewards for taking care of the man of God, she got direct “Word” from God to vacate shunem for another land for a period of seven years. When God’s word comes to you, what happens? It distinguishes you from the rest, and singles you out for miracles.
God’s Word brings healing, restoration, prosperity, and all good things (cf. Jas. 1:17). He protects and preserves from danger. God’s Word preserved the woman from the God-ordered famine. Before God’s Word would locate one, there are conditions to be met. One of them is generosity, as we can see in this woman’s life. There are other examples of people who received the Word – Abraham and Sarah, Cornelius (Acts 10:1,2), The woman of Zarephath (1 Kgs. 17:9ff), etc.
Apart from direct utterances from God, words like “Thank you”, “Thanks”, “God bless you”, and “God will reward you”, are powerful words. You need to accumulate them daily. Does your action warrantee that people say “Thank you”, or “God bless you” to you? Check it and make amendment. As if that was not enough, after the seven years period of famine, the woman and her family returned, and she divinely got all her properties back, including her farm produce for those seven years. That is how God rewards people for their benevolence.
PRAYER POINTS
1. O Lord, help me to give without ceasing, in season and out of season.
2. Lord, equip me with the mercy and empathy to always be of help to the languishing.
3. Lord, help our church leaders to show more concrete concern for the widows/widowers and orphans in and around our churches.
EXTRA READING FOR TODAY: Psalms 115:7 – 119:1; 1 Corinthians 11:23 – 12:10
Author: C.A.C WORLDWIDE
Remain blessed!