WEEK 2: Our Spiritual Family – Our Church
During the 40 days of Christ in the wilderness, we see that He engages some key strategies that the Body of Christ MUST adopt in order to have the same impact He did. We, as the Oasis of Love family will not only adopt these strategies but execute them with precision with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Like Jesus, we enter into this fast FULL of the Holy Spirit, but expect to leave FULL of His POWER to impact the diverse communities we serve! (Luke 4:1,14 ESV).
Monday 10 March – Being Vision and Mission Focused
During His trial in the wilderness in Luke 4, Christ demonstrated a key attribute of success – being totally focused on the vision of the Father and the mission He was sent to accomplish. With this laser-sharp focus at the forefront of Christ’s Mind, even at His weakest point, it shaped His position and responses to every attack of the enemy. To overcome every attack and distraction of satan, we as the Oasis family will also remain laser-sharp focused on the vision and mission God has for us!
- Father, in the Name of Jesus we thank You for Your Vision and Mission of the Oasis of Love Family. Thank You for making this plain to us. (Habakkuk 2:2 ESV).
- Thank You for giving us apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers to fulfil Your vision – to equip us for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. (Ephesians 4:11-13 ESV) .
- Thank You that we fulfil Your Vision by completing Your Mission – being Fruitful on our Frontlines – making disciples of all peoples! (Mark 16:15 GNT).
- We declare that we will lead many souls to declare Jesus as their Lord and Saviour! (Proverbs 11:30 AMP, Matthew 4:19, 1 Corinthians 9:19, James 5:20 ESV).
Tuesday 11 March – Adopting the Mindset of Christ
When Christ was in the period of prayer and fasting, He was hungry. The devil came to tempt Christ with natural things of the world that He needed – food / sustenance. However, how did Christ respond – with the Word of God – citing “It is written”! Why did Christ choose to model this response for us? This could be to remind us that things may appear as natural needs, but the deeper need is spiritual.
Christ used the Word of God to cut to the root of the deeper spiritual issue – the devil’s plan of taking away Jesus’ s spiritual authority – by using the Word which is Spirit AND LIFE!
- Father, in the Name of Jesus, we thank You for giving us the mind of Christ! (1 Corinthians 2:16 ESV).
- Lord Jesus, thank You for leaving us the Holy Spirit in order to comprehend the thoughts of our Heavenly Father and the wiles and intents of the enemy! (1 Corinthians 2:11 ESV).
- Thank You Holy Spirit for helping us to judge all things. (1 Corinthians 2:15 ESV).
- We proclaim that in every trial or temptation that comes our way during this fast, we will stand united in faith as a community of believers and declare “Get thee behind me, satan: FOR IT IS WRITTEN Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. (Luke 4:8 KJV).
Wednesday 12 March – Accepting and Operating in the Power of The Holy Spirit
Looking deeper into the story of Christ in the wilderness, we see that His biggest challenge came at one of the weakest points of His earthly walk. What were Christ’s weapons to defeat the enemy – the Holy Spirit and the Word of God – the weapons of Power!
We, as the Oasis of Love Family must grasp and accept this truth – as the Word says in Zechariah 4:6: Not by power or by might, but by my Spirit says the Lord!
- Lord Jesus Christ, we thank You for becoming the power of God and the wisdom of God to us. (1 Corinthians 1:24 ESV) .
- Thank You for giving us access to this power through the baptism of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8a ESV) .
- Continue to grant us a deeper revelation of what is the immeasurable greatness of the Holy Spirit’s power toward us who believe, according to the working of Our Father’s great might that He worked in You when the Holy Spirit raised You from the dead and seated You at right hand of God in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come! (Ephesians 1:19-21 ESV).
- We thank You that Your Word is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword! We use it to penetrate and separate soul and spirit and to discern the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12 ESV).
- We utilise this power to be Your modern-day witnesses in our own Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria, and to the end of the earth until You return. (Acts 1:8b ESV).
Thursday 13 March – Knowing Who (and Whose) We Are and Operating in the Gifts of The Spirit – Part 1
As Christ continued to defeat satan’s tests, notice satan didn’t give up – he became more determined and more strategic:
Luke 4:9 -11 ESV
[9] And he took him to Jerusalem and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, [10] for it is written, “‘He will command his angels concerning you, to guard you,’ [11] and “‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”
Satan tries get Christ to prove who He is by using the written Word that Christ has been quoting! However, we see that Christ did not succumb to this challenge. We can see from His response that He must have engaged the gifts of the Spirit (e.g. the gifts of Discernment, Faith and the Word of Knowledge) to determine the true intent of satan and respond accordingly.
Luke 4:12 ESV
[12] And Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
We, as the Oasis of Love Family will stand firm in the knowledge of who we are in Christ Jesus and operate in gifts of the Spirit to defeat satan EVERY TIME!!
- Father, in the Name of Jesus we thank You for making us the righteousness of You in Christ! (2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV).
- We thank You that Your righteousness makes us bold as lions! (Proverbs 28:1 ESV).
- We therefore declare that during and after this fast we will operate fully in the gifts of the Holy Spirit! We will discern every hidden intent of the enemy to kill, steal and destroy Your plans for the Oasis of Love Family! (1 Corinthians 12:7, ESV, John 10:10 ESV) .
- No longer will we be destroyed for lack of knowledge or power! (Hosea 4:6 ESV, Zechariah 4:6 ESV).
Friday 14 March – Operating in the Gifts of the Spirit – Part 2
Operating in the Gifts of the Spirit is key to us fulfilling the will of God both corporately and individually as a family of believers. However, none of these gifts matter, no prayer matters, no act of service matters unless it is done operating in the greatest gift – LOVE!
When this gift is in full operation in the Body of Christ, no weapon fashioned against us can succeed, as love is our true power.
That’s why the enemy brings about distractions in the form of competition between the brethren, rejections and schisms as Paul calls them in 1 Corinthians 12:25
Today, we uproot them from our midst and commit to operate in true power and fully manifest our Name, the Oasis of Love Christian Centre.
Remember, we see God changing the names of people to align with their destinies. Therefore, our name is not just a name – it is signposting our destiny as a community of believers, to be the House of Love for people who need God’s Love.
- Holy Spirit, thank You for showing us a more excellent way to operate in Your Power. We earnestly desire to operate in our higher calling (1 Corinthians 12:31 ESV) .
- We declare the Oasis of Love Family will walk in the love that You shed abroad in our hearts. We will walk in our destiny as a result of our name (Romans 5:5 ESV, Genesis 17:5 ESV).
- We will be patient and kind with each other and our families, friends and frontlines. We will not envy or boast as Your Love is not arrogant. We will not rejoice at wrongdoing but will rejoice with the truth. In Godly wisdom we will bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, endure all things. As for prophecies, tongues etc pass away; Your Love will never fail or pass away. (1 Corinthians 13:4, 6-8 ESV).
- We declare the Oasis of Love family is a powerhouse of Love! (Ephesians 3:16-17 ESV).
- We complete Your joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. (Philippians 2:2 ESV).
Saturday 15 March – Our Pastors and Leaders
We want to give God thanks for the Pastors and Leaders that He has given to the Oasis of Love family who help us to cultivate the Mind of Christ Jesus.
God knew exactly what He was doing in giving us these uniquely anointed and appointed Shepherds of His Flock.
- Father, in the Name of Jesus we give You heartfelt thanks for our Pastors, Reverend Bayo and Pastor Agatha. Thank You for placing pillars in our lives who are genuinely concerned for our welfare. (Philippians 2:20 ESV).
- We also thank You for our Church Leadership Team, our Prayer Band Leaders and Ministry Department Leaders. Thank You that they do not seek their own interests, as they are Your servants. You have proven their worth to us and the wider Body of Christ as they continue to serve with Holy Spirit in the furtherance of the Gospel. (Philippians 2:21-22 ESV).
- May they continue to transform the lives of all they encounter and bring You the glory (Acts 6:3, 5, 7 ESV).
May the labour of love of our Pastors and Leaders be richly rewarded in every season in Jesus Name! (1 Thessalonians 1:3, Hebrews 6:10 ESV).
Sunday 16 March – Ourselves: Expectations in Month of March
This is what we expect to see as a result of seeking the Kingdom of God first and His righteousness:
M – Manifestation of the Abrahamic Covenant – The favour, mercy, grace and favour bestowed on Abraham through Christ Jesus
Genesis 15:1 KJV
Genesis 24:1 ESV
Galatians 3:13 – 14, 26, 29 ESV
A – Appointments with Destiny Helpers
Exodus 18:6, 19, 21-23 ESV
Exodus 17:11-13 ESV
Hebrews 11:31 ESV
R – Restitution of everything lost or stolen
2 Chronicles 20:25-26 ESV
Deuteronomy 15:1, 4, 6 NIV
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24 MSG
Matthew 4:11 ESV
C – Connecting with the Holy Spirit on a deeper level
Philippians 3:8-10 ESV
Ephesians 1:17-18 TPT
Romans 8:15-16 TPT
H – Healing and Healthy Relationships
Isaiah 58:11 TPT
Romans 14:19 TPT
3 John 1:2 TPT
Donna Griffith-Sackey, March 2025.