21/11/2012
Samuel was one of the greatest prophet of his time....'And Samuel grew, and the lord was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Be'ershe'ba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the lord' 1 Sam 3:19-20. Now, we must be careful to know how he became such a great prophet of his time and from where he drew his strength..When Hannah, Samuel's mother, went to God seeking for a child, she made a vow...' And she vowed a vow, and said, O lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine hand, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then i will give him unto the lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.' 1 Sam 1:11..... So Samuel was drawing his strength from the vow his mother made. Samson was the strongest man of his time but we must know where he was drawing his strength from......it was
still from a vow..' For lo, thou shall conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come upon his head.....' Judges 13:5....Many people loose strength to go forward or remain relevant because we constantly fail to pay our vows. Now, someone might be thinking,,could it be that financial vow i made in church? No. ' So will i sing praise unto thy name for ever, that i may daily perform my vows ' Ps 61:8. Praising God is a vow we draw our strength from.. David was a great king and a man after Gods own heart. He was just too relevant as a king..Even when saul was on the throne, David was just so relevant that he outshone Saul...'And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.' 1 Sam 18:7. Now,we must ask ourselves this one question. Where was David drawing his strength from? This was David's secret..' Seven times a day do i praise thee because of thy righteous judgements ' Ps 119:164. Remember Praising God is a vow...Now, lets see what made Saul so irrelevant as a king and why he was not sustained on the throne....' But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the lord commanded thee..' 1 Sam 13:14. He failed to do what God commanded him......' And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you. If you will not hear, and if you will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the lord of hosts, i will even send a curse upon you................' Mal 2:1-3. Giving glory to God remains a commandment we must obey if we must remain relevant and strengthened. But, someone may ask. How does praise and giving glory to God mean same thing? See ' Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me..........' Ps 50:23. Remember if you fail in the days of adversity, it is because your strength is small. So, gather strength daily as you engage in praise. PRAISE IS A VOW. Remain blessed
