Mt Olive Tabernacle Ministries International-MOTMI

17/09/2026

15/09/2026

A Prayer for Marriage

Gracious and Heavenly Father,

We thank You for the gift of marriage,
for companionship, friendship, love and covenant;
for the privilege of building a life together
and of learning, day by day, how to love.

Renew our minds, O God.

Where we have carried traditions that are harmful, give us wisdom to examine them.
Where we have misunderstood one another, give us understanding.
Where pride has entered, give us humility.
Where resentment has grown, give us grace to seek healing.
Where we have spoken harshly, teach us gentleness.
Where we have been silent when we should have spoken, give us courage.
Where we have spoken when we should have listened, give us wisdom.

Teach us to love with the charity of Christ.

Help husband and wife to see one another again—not merely as the people we first married, but as the people we are continually becoming.

When bodies change, give us tenderness.

When children arrive, give us patience.

When work becomes difficult, give us strength.

When parents grow old and need care, give us wisdom.

When the household becomes heavy, teach us to carry the burden together.

When one is weak, let the other remember compassion.

When one succeeds, let the other rejoice.

When we disagree, keep us from becoming enemies.

When we fail, teach us repentance.

When we hurt one another, teach us forgiveness and changed behaviour.

Protect our homes from control, humiliation, manipulation, violence, dishonesty and every form of abuse.

Teach us that authority is responsibility,
that leadership is service,
that submission is not humiliation,
that love is not ownership,
and that marriage does not make one human being the possession of another.

Let our homes become places where truth can be spoken safely,
where children can grow without fear,
where forgiveness is possible,
where laughter is welcome,
where prayer is natural,
and where Your presence is honoured.

Make our marriage a place of worship—not because we are perfect, but because we continually turn our hearts toward You.

May our kitchen know gratitude.

May our table know fellowship.

May our rooms know peace.

May our backyard know companionship.

May our doors welcome what is good and guard what is precious.

May our windows remind us to look both inward at our own household and outward at the world You have called us to serve.

And when we look upon the life You have entrusted to us, teach us to say:

“Lord, this is Your gift. Teach us how to steward it well.”

Help us never to make our spouse our god,
our children our god,
our possessions our god,
our traditions our god,
or our marriage itself our god.

You alone are God.

You alone are Lord.

And may Christ remain at the centre of our home.

As we seek to love one another,
teach us first to love You.

As we seek to forgive one another,
remind us of the grace You have shown us.

As we seek to serve one another,
teach us the servant-heart of Christ.

As we seek to build our home,
teach us to build it upon wisdom, truth, love and faith.

And when we cannot find the words,
teach us simply to come before You together and say:

“Lord, help us.”

May our marriages become places where love is practised,
where dignity is protected,
where responsibility is shared,
where forgiveness is learned,
and where Christ is honoured.

For we ask all these things through Jesus Christ our Lord,

who lives and reigns with You,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Apostle Primate & Archbishop Metropolitan
St Ruth Cathedral in the Province of St Andrew ©️

07/09/2026

FATHER, YOU ARE GOD INDEED

September Prayer & Reminder

Heavenly Father,

You are God indeed.
Jehovah Adonai, we hallow Your Name.

As we enter and journey through this month of September, remind us that You have brought us this far—not by our own strength, but by Your grace.

Father, go before us.
Order our steps.
Guard our homes and families.
Strengthen the weary.
Encourage the discouraged.
Restore what has been broken.
And give us wisdom to walk according to Your will.

Jehovah Shalom, speak Your peace over us.

Jesus Christ, Son of God,
our Saviour and our Lord,
keep our eyes fixed upon You.
When we are afraid, remind us that You are with us.
When we are weary, renew our strength.
When we cannot see the way forward, lead us.

Holy Ghost, our Helper and Friend,
come and fill us again.
Teach us, guide us, comfort us,
and make us sensitive to Your voice.

Lord, let September not simply be another month on the calendar.
Let it be a month of renewal, remembrance, restoration, and revival.

May we remember what You have already done,
trust You for what You are doing,
and believe You for what is yet to come.

🔥 OUR SEPTEMBER DECLARATION

Father, You are God indeed!
Jehovah Adonai, we worship You!
Jehovah Shalom, give us Your peace!

Jesus Christ, Son of God,
You are our Saviour and our Lord!

Holy Ghost, our Helper and Friend,
fill us and lead us!

We declare:

September belongs to the Lord.
Our homes belong to the Lord.
Our families belong to the Lord.
Our future belongs to the Lord.

No matter what this month brings,
God will be with us.

We will not walk by fear.
We will walk by faith.

We will not be ruled by yesterday.
We will trust God with tomorrow.

And by the grace of God:

We shall see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living.

In the Name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Ghost.

Amen.

07/09/2026

Prayer Chorus — “Father, You Are God Indeed”

06/09/2026

Psalm 151 is fascinating for teaching because it sits at the intersection of Davidic tradition, the Septuagint, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the question of biblical canon.

One important point first: Psalm 151 is not included in the 150-Psalm Hebrew Masoretic Psalter used by most Protestant and Jewish Bibles. It appears in the Greek Septuagint and in several Eastern Christian traditions. An ancient Hebrew form was also discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran, which shows that it was not simply a late Christian invention.

Psalm 151 — the full Septuagint text

The following is the public-domain Brenton English translation of the Septuagint Psalm 151.

This Psalm is a genuine one of David, though supernumerary, composed when he fought in single combat with Goliad.

1. I was small among my brethren, and youngest in my father’s house: I tended my father’s sheep.

2. My hands formed a musical instrument, and my fingers tuned a psaltery.

3. And who shall tell my Lord? the Lord himself, he himself hears.

4. He sent forth his angel, and took me from my father’s sheep, and he anointed me with the oil of his anointing.

5. My brothers were handsome and tall; but the Lord did not take pleasure in them.

6. I went forth to meet the Philistine; and he cursed me by his idols.

7. But I drew his own sword, and beheaded him, and removed reproach from the children of Israel.

The Greek manuscript tradition actually calls it “outside the number”—meaning outside the traditional 150 Psalms.

EXPOSITION OF PSALM 151

Theme: “God Can Take the Smallest and Make Him Great.”

Psalm 151 is very short, but its message is powerful:

David begins as the overlooked shepherd and ends as the instrument through whom God removes Israel’s reproach.

It connects especially with 1 Samuel 16–17.

⸻
1. “I was small among my brethren”

“I was small among my brethren, and youngest in my father’s house.”

This immediately takes us to the story of David.

When Samuel came to Jesse’s house to anoint Israel’s future king, David wasn’t even initially presented.

His older brothers stood before Samuel.

They looked impressive.

They looked like kings.

But God said, in essence:

“That is not the one.”

Eventually David was brought in from tending the sheep.

This teaches something important:

Being overlooked by people does not mean being overlooked by God.

David was:

* the youngest,
* the shepherd,
* apparently insignificant,
* outside the room where the important decision was being made.

But heaven knew his name.

That is a tremendous teaching for ministry.

Never measure your calling by the attention you receive from people.

God can find you in the field.

⸻
2. “I tended my father’s sheep”

This is significant.

Before David became a king, he was a shepherd.

Before he carried a crown, he carried responsibility.

Before he ruled people, he cared for sheep.

There is a principle here:

God often develops leadership in hidden places.

David learned:

* courage,
* patience,
* responsibility,
* music,
* protection,
* obedience,

while looking after sheep.

And later those experiences became useful when he faced Goliath.

The lion and bear were part of his preparation.

Goliath was simply a larger assignment.

⸻
3. “My hands formed a musical instrument”

David was not only a shepherd.

He was a musician.

This is beautiful because the hands that would eventually hold a sword were first trained to hold a musical instrument.

David’s worship preceded his warfare.

His harp became part of his ministry.

This is one reason David is such an important biblical model for the relationship between worship and spiritual leadership.

Before David confronted the giant publicly, he had learned to worship privately.

That is a powerful principle for the Church.

Public victory is often preceded by private worship.

⸻
4. “The Lord himself hears”

“And who shall tell my Lord? the Lord himself, he himself hears.”

This is one of the most beautiful statements in the Psalm.

David’s confidence isn’t ultimately in his ability.

It is in God who hears.

David does not say:

“I am strong.”

He essentially says:

“God hears.”

That changes everything.

When nobody sees you—

God sees.

When nobody hears you—
God hears.

When nobody recognizes your labour—
God knows.

When nobody understands your calling—
God knows.

⸻
5. “He took me from my father’s sheep”

Now we see the transition.

David was in one place:

the sheepfold.

God moved him toward another:

the throne.

But notice something important.

David did not promote himself.

The Psalm says:

“He took me.”

That is the language of divine calling.

There is a difference between:

self-promotion

and

divine appointment.

David didn’t have to manufacture his destiny.

God knew how to bring him out of the field.

⸻
6. “He anointed me”

This is the heart of Psalm 151.

“He anointed me with the oil of his anointing.”

This connects directly with 1 Samuel 16:13, where Samuel anointed David.

And something extraordinary happened:

David was still a shepherd after he was anointed.

The anointing came before the manifestation.

He was anointed king—

but he didn’t immediately sit on the throne.

That is an important lesson about calling.

Anointing does not always mean immediate elevation.

Sometimes God anoints you and then sends you back to the field.

Why?

Because the anointing does not eliminate preparation.

It empowers preparation.

7. “My brothers were handsome and tall”

Now the Psalm returns to David’s brothers.

They looked impressive.

But God wasn’t impressed merely by outward appearance.

This echoes the great principle from 1 Samuel 16:7:

“Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.”

David teaches us:

God’s choice is not always according to human appearance.

People look at:

* size,
* status,
* education,
* wealth,
* position,
* appearance,
* popularity.

God looks at the heart.

⸻
8. “I went forth to meet the Philistine”

Now the story moves from preparation to confrontation.

David had been prepared privately.

Now his faith would be tested publicly.

The Psalm deliberately identifies the enemy simply as:

“the Philistine.”

The larger biblical story identifies him as Goliath.

And there is an interesting textual detail here.

Psalm 151 does not mention David’s sling and stone, which are central to the familiar account in 1 Samuel 17.

Instead, the Psalm emphasizes what happened after David confronted the Philistine: David ultimately took the enemy’s sword and used it against him.

⸻
9. “He cursed me by his idols”

Goliath represented more than physical strength.

He represented a challenge to Israel and Israel’s God.

The battle was therefore spiritual and theological as well as physical.

David’s confidence was not:

“I am bigger than Goliath.”

David’s confidence was:

“The God of Israel is greater than Goliath.”

That is why David could stand when others were afraid.

10. “I drew his own sword”

This is perhaps the most striking image in the Psalm.

David uses the weapon of the enemy to bring about the enemy’s defeat.

It reminds us that the thing intended to destroy God’s people does not necessarily have the final word.

The enemy’s weapon becomes an instrument of defeat.

And the Psalm concludes:

“I removed reproach from the children of Israel.”

The victory wasn’t presented as David glorifying himself.

The purpose was to remove reproach from Israel.

That distinction is important.

David’s victory was connected to God’s people.

His calling was bigger than himself.

⸻
THE FIVE GREAT LESSONS OF PSALM 151

1. God sees the overlooked.

David was the youngest and was working in the field.

Yet God saw him.

Your location does not determine your value.

⸻
2. The hidden season is preparation.

The sheepfold wasn’t wasted time.

The wilderness wasn’t wasted time.

The harp wasn’t wasted time.

The battles with the lion and bear weren’t wasted time.

Preparation often happens before promotion.

⸻
3. Worship prepares the warrior.

David’s hands first learned music before they became accustomed to warfare.

This gives us a beautiful ministry principle:

Build the altar before you face the battle.

⸻
4. God’s anointing precedes God’s assignment.

David was anointed before he faced Goliath.

The anointing did not mean there would be no battle.

It meant David would not face the battle alone.

⸻
5. The victory belongs to God’s purpose.

David’s victory removed reproach from Israel.

Therefore:

The gift is not merely for the gifted person.

Your calling is ultimately intended to bless God’s people.

AN IMPORTANT TEACHING ABOUT CANON

This is especially important if you are teaching Psalm 151 in a church or Bible class.

Do not teach that Psalm 151 is simply “the 151st Psalm in every Bible.”

It isn’t.

The Masoretic Hebrew Psalter contains 150 Psalms, and Protestant Bibles follow that tradition.

The Septuagint contains Psalm 151, and it is received as part of the Psalter in the Eastern Orthodox tradition. Catholic and Protestant Bibles generally do not include it among the canonical 150 Psalms.

But there is a fascinating discovery:

The Dead Sea Scrolls.

A Hebrew version of Psalm 151 was found in 11Q5 (the Great Psalms Scroll) at Qumran. The Hebrew material is actually somewhat different from the Greek Psalm 151 and preserves two compositions commonly designated 151A and 151B.

That discovery is extremely important.

It means we should not dismiss Psalm 151 as something invented by Christians centuries later.

There was an ancient Jewish Hebrew tradition behind it.

At the same time, the Dead Sea Scroll evidence does not automatically mean that every Christian tradition must regard Psalm 151 as canonical Scripture.

Those are two different questions:

“Is it ancient?”

and

“Is it canonical?”

Psalm 151 is clearly ancient.

Its canonical status differs among Christian traditions.

06/09/2026

TYPES OF BISHOPS
Understanding the Different Episcopal Roles in the Catholic Church

Have you ever wondered why the Catholic Church has diocesan bishops, auxiliary bishops, coadjutor bishops, archbishops, titular bishops and even bishops emeritus?

They are all bishops, but they do not all serve in exactly the same way.

And here is where things can become confusing: these titles do not simply represent different “levels” of bishop. Some describe the bishop’s responsibility, some describe the particular Church he serves, and some describe his relationship to another bishop.

So, what exactly is the difference?

A bishop is a successor of the Apostles. Through episcopal ordination, he receives the fullness of the Sacrament of Holy Orders and is entrusted with teaching, sanctifying and governing the People of God. But the Church assigns bishops different offices and responsibilities according to the needs of the Church.

1. DIOCESAN BISHOP
The diocesan bishop is the bishop who is entrusted with the pastoral care and governance of a particular diocese.

He is the principal shepherd of that local Church, responsible for teaching the faith, overseeing the celebration of the sacraments and governing the diocese in communion with the Pope and the universal Church.

When Catholics normally say, “our bishop,” this is usually the person they mean.

2. AUXILIARY BISHOP
An auxiliary bishop is appointed to assist a diocesan bishop in the pastoral care and administration of a diocese.

Large dioceses, for example, may require additional episcopal assistance because of their size, population or pastoral needs.

An auxiliary bishop does not ordinarily become the diocesan bishop automatically when the diocesan bishop leaves office.

3. COADJUTOR BISHOP
A coadjutor bishop is also appointed to assist a diocesan bishop, but there is one major difference:
The coadjutor has the right of succession.

This means that when the diocesan bishop’s office becomes vacant, the coadjutor normally succeeds him as diocesan bishop.

So, while both an auxiliary and a coadjutor assist the diocesan bishop, the coadjutor is specifically appointed with succession in view.

4. TITULAR BISHOP
A titular bishop is a bishop who is given the title of an ancient diocese that no longer exists as a functioning diocese.
He therefore does not govern that historical diocese.

Titular sees are commonly associated with bishops who hold certain positions or who assist in the Church without being the diocesan bishop of a particular current diocese.

Interestingly, many auxiliary bishops and bishops serving in certain Church offices are titular bishops.

5. ARCHBISHOP
An archbishop is a bishop who ordinarily presides over an archdiocese, which is generally a diocese of particular importance within an ecclesiastical province.

But an archbishop is not a different sacramental grade from a bishop.
An archbishop is still a bishop.

When an archbishop is the metropolitan of an ecclesiastical province, he is called a metropolitan archbishop. He has particular responsibilities toward the other dioceses—the suffragan dioceses—within that province, while each diocesan bishop retains his own authority over his diocese.

6. SUFFRAGAN BISHOP
A suffragan bishop is a diocesan bishop whose diocese belongs to an ecclesiastical province headed by a metropolitan archbishop.
This is therefore not a separate sacramental kind of bishop.

It describes the bishop’s relationship to the metropolitan and the ecclesiastical province in which his diocese is located.

For example, if several dioceses belong to one ecclesiastical province, the diocesan bishops of those dioceses are suffragan bishops, while the bishop of the metropolitan archdiocese is the metropolitan archbishop.

7. BISHOP EMERITUS
When a diocesan bishop resigns from the governance of his diocese, normally upon reaching the canonical retirement age, the Pope may accept his resignation and he becomes Bishop Emeritus of that diocese.

He remains a bishop because episcopal ordination is permanent, but he is no longer the bishop governing that diocese.

This is why you may hear the expression, “Bishop Emeritus of…”
It means he formerly governed that diocese but no longer does.

And now, there is an important clarification that can prevent a very common misunderstanding....
WHAT ABOUT A CARDINAL?
A cardinal is not a separate sacramental grade above a bishop.
Cardinal is a dignity and ecclesiastical office connected principally with membership in the College of Cardinals and the particular responsibilities entrusted to cardinals.

Most cardinals are bishops, but being a cardinal does not mean receiving another level of Holy Orders.

In fact, the Pope can appoint someone who is not yet a bishop as a cardinal and, in certain circumstances, dispense him from the requirement of episcopal ordination.

So don’t think of the hierarchy as:
Bishop → Archbishop → Cardinal → Pope.

That is not how it works.

The Pope himself is the Bishop of Rome, and the Pope’s universal authority comes from his office as Bishop of Rome and his role as successor of Saint Peter, not from being a higher “degree” of Holy Orders.

Ultimately, all bishops share the same fullness of the Sacrament of Holy Orders. What differs is the office they are entrusted with, the Church they serve, and the responsibilities attached to that office.

So the next time you hear “Auxiliary Bishop,” “Coadjutor,” “Titular Bishop,” “Archbishop,” or “Bishop Emeritus,” you will know that these titles are telling you something about where that bishop serves and what responsibility he has, not that he possesses a different kind of episcopal ordination.

One episcopal ministry. Different ecclesiastical roles. One Church.

And perhaps the most important thing to remember is this:
Every Catholic bishop serves as a successor of the Apostles, in communion with the Pope and the universal Church, for the sanctification and shepherding of God’s people.

Be Prayerful. Be Inspired.
©Catholic Dailies

04/09/2026

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02/09/2026

HOW CHRISTIANS CAME TO READ THE BIBLE