[MFM Devotional 27 October 2021] Topic: Spiritual Retreat (I)
TOPIC: Spiritual Retreat (I) (Mountain Of Fire and Miracle Ministries, MFM Devotional 27 October 2021)
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Matthew 20-21
FIRE SCRIPTURE: 1 Kings 17:1-6; 1 Kings 18:1-3; 1 Kings 18:17-39 (KJV)
1 Kings 17:1-6
1 And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
2 And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying,
3 Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
4 And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
5 So he went and did according unto the word of the Lord: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
6 And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
1 Kings 18:1-3
1 And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.
2 And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
3 And Ahab called Obadiah, which was the governor of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly:
1 Kings 18:17-39
17 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
18 And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.
19 Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel’s table.
20 So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.
21 And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.
22 Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the Lord; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.
23 Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under:
24 And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.
25 And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.
26 And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.
27 And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.
28 And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.
29 And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.
30 And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down.
31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the Lord came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:
32 And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord: and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.
33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood.
34 And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time.
35 And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.
36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.
37 Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
38 Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The Lord, he is the God; the Lord, he is the God.
MEMORY VERSE: “And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.” – Mark 6:31
MOTIVATIONAL QUOTE:
There is nothing intelligent about not standing up for yourself. Within you, there is stillness and a sanctuary you can retreat. At anytime, be yourself.
PRAISE WORSHIP: Take a worship song as led by the Holy Spirit
PROPHETIC WORD FOR TODAY:
THE ALMIGHTY GOD WILL REPAIR YOUR BROKEN ALTARS, IN THE NAME OF JESUS.
The MESSAGE:
Spiritual retreat can be different from each individual, but the common thing or practice about retreat is prayer petition or intercession as the case may be. Many of us are familiar with rest and relaxation, but spiritual retreat can be said to be a time to regroup, re-access and re-focus on things yet to come. It is also an expected time for quiet reflection like reading the Scripture, time of group sharing by encouraging, consoling and inspiring others.
In our text today, Elijah was one of the first in a long time of important prophets God sent to Israel and Judah. God told him to hide himself by the Brook Cherith and He would send ravens to feed him there. God hid him in a lonely and quiet place to commune with Him. In that place he was able to focus on God, and the messages God was giving him at the time was accurate without mincing words. When he came out, the power of God filled him to the brim, that he could face Ahab the king, Jezebel his wife, and the prophets of Baal.
Anytime you go for a quiet reflection in the presence of God, you come out refreshed, powerful and fulfilled. This is what prophet Elijah enjoyed. He was able to disgrace the prophets of Baal by calling down the fire of God. All the Baal prophets were killed. Prophet Elijah caused revival in the land of Israel.
Our Lord Jesus Christ was just completing a forty-day fast and time alone with God. The devil came to tempt Him but He was able to defeat satan because the power of God was with Him. If there is no time of retreat in your life, forget about revival. The result of personal, group or corporate retreat is revival, whether personal revival, group or corporate revival.
The problem we have is procrastination. That is, I will do it tomorrow, and tomorrow will never come. Do it today and the power of revival will enter into your life, in Jesus’ name. When you tarry in the Lord’s presence, as Elijah did, your life will never be the same again.
PRAYER POINTS:
MORNING
I arrest every spiritual serpent waging war on my spirit man, in the name of Jesus.
I shut off every internal voice speaking against my spirit man, in the name of Jesus.
O Lord, empower me to be a fire brand man, in the name of Jesus.
EVENING
My Eagle, receive fire, in the name of Jesus.
O Lord, teach me how to pray and get result, in the name of Jesus.
I shall not be a fire quencher, in the name of Jesus.
O Lord, break me and remould me, in the name of Jesus.
MOUNTAIN TOP LIFE is a daily devotional by Dr. D.K Olukoya (General Overseer, Mountain of Fire and Miracle Ministries, Worldwide)
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