30/09/2024
OPEN HEAVENS DEVOTIONAL
DATE: MONDAY SEPTEMBER 30TH 2024
THEME: THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH
MEMORISE: Who satisfies thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.Psalms 103:5
READ: oshua 14:6-15:
6 Then the children of Judah came unto Joshua in Gilgal: and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said unto him, Thou knowest the thing that the Lord said unto Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadeshbarnea.
7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadeshbarnea to espy out the land; and I brought him word again as it was in mine heart.
8 Nevertheless, my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt: but I wholly followed the Lord my God.
9 And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine inheritance, and thy children’s for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the Lord my God.
10 And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he said, these forty and five years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses, while the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness: and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old.
11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me: as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in.
12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the Lord spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the Lord will be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the Lord said.
13 And Joshua blessed him, and gave unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance.
14 Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the Lord God of Israel.
15 And the name of Hebron before was Kirjatharba; which Arba was a great man among the Anakims. And the land had rest from war.
MESSAGE
Some people do not want to grow old; it is as if they are seeking the ‘fountain of youth’ that can keep them young forever. While it is impossible to remain young forever, you can still have the strength and vigour of a youth no matter how old you become.
I told some friends sometime ago that since Joel 2:28 says that young men see visions, if you still have visions that you are pursuing, you are young. God will give you visions when you wait on Him in His presence (Habakkuk 2:1-2). Those who spend quality time with God are visionaries; they come out of His presence loaded with visions that they want to accomplish. Before I became born again, my biggest vision was to be the youngest vice chancellor in Africa, but after I got saved and started spending time with God, I began to have bigger visions. There is always a transfer from God to you when you spend quality time with Him. In Exodus 34:30-35, when Moses returned after he had been with God, the Israelites could not look at his face because God’s glory was all over him. Moses spent quality time with God; he once went to a mountain and stayed there with God for 40 days (Exodus 24:18). No wonder when he was 120 years old, his strength had not reduced, and his eyes were still very sharp (Deuteronomy 34:7). Abraham was over 80 years old when he went to war to rescue his nephew, Lot (Genesis 14:13-16). He could do so because he was a man of altars, always spending time with God. Spending quality time with God keeps you strong and youthful. With the little sleep that l often get because of my tight schedules, I should be looking older than my age, but by God’s grace, I am still strong enough at 82 to go on long walks, and my eyes are not dim. It is not because I am special; it is because I am always in contact with God’s glory in His presence.
Beloved, you can retain the vitality of youth even until your old age by being addicted to His presence. However, you shouldn’t live an unhealthy lifestyle and expect God to keep you young because you spend hours in His presence. Anyone who is irresponsible with his or her health will face the consequences.
Spend quality time with God; His glory will rub off on you, and your youth will be renewed as the eagle’s.
KEY POINT
Spending quality time with God will help you retain the vigour of youth.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Malachi 1-4
