WEEK 3: Our Earthly Families

February 21, 2024

Monday February 26 – Thanksgiving & Family Salvation

Colossians 3:15-17 – And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
3 John 4 NET – I have no greater joy than this: to hear that my children are living according to the truth.
John 4:53 NKJV – So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives.” And he himself believed, and his whole household.
Jeremiah 31:34 NLT – And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says the Lord. “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”
Jeremiah 32:39-41 NLT – 39 And I will give them one heart and one purpose: to worship me forever, for their own good and for the good of all their descendants. 40 And I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never stop doing good for them. I will put a desire in their hearts to worship me, and they will never leave me. 41 I will find joy doing good for them and will faithfully and wholeheartedly replant them in this land.“
Jeremiah 32:27 NLT – I am the Lord, the God of all the peoples of the world. Is anything too hard for me?

Please use the above scriptures during your personal prayer and meditation in giving thanks to God for the wonderful gift of family. And in praying for the salvation of all our family members.

Tuesday February 27 – Loving, United, Peaceful Homes

Psalm 127:1 NIV – Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.
Philippians 4:6-7 NKJV – 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Colossians 3:14 ESV – And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.
Isaiah 32:17-18 – The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in peaceful dwelling places; in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest.
Ephesians 4:1-4 NLT – 1 Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. 2 Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. 3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. 4 For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future.

Please use the above scriptures during your personal meditation and prayer for the love of God to fill our hearts and unite our families so that we can experience His peace in our lives.

Wednesday February 28 – Single & Satisfied, Single & Seeking, Wedded & Wonderful

Jeremiah 32:17– Ah, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.
1 Corinthians 7:8,32-34 NLT – 8 So I say to those who aren’t married and to widows—it’s better to stay unmarried, just as I am… 32 I want you to be free from the concerns of this life. An unmarried man can spend his time doing the Lord’s work and thinking how to please him. 33 But a married man has to think about his earthly responsibilities and how to please his wife. 34 His interests are divided…
Genesis 2:18 ESV – Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”
Isaiah 34:16 ESV – Seek and read from the book of the Lord: Not one of these shall be missing; none shall be without her mate. For the mouth of the Lord has commanded, and his Spirit has gathered them.
1 Peter 3:3-4,7-9 NLT – 3 Don’t be concerned about the outward beauty of fancy hairstyles, expensive jewelry, or beautiful clothes. 4 You should clothe yourselves instead with the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God… 7 In the same way, you husbands must give honor to your wives. Treat your wife with understanding as you live together. She may be weaker than you are, but she is your equal partner in God’s gift of new life. Treat her as you should so your prayers will not be hindered. 8 Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. 9 Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will grant you his blessing.
Jeremiah 32:39 NIV – I will give them singleness of heart and action, so that they will always fear me and that all will then go well for them and for their children after them.

Please use the above scriptures during your personal meditation and prayer so that regardless of our current marital status, we can live fulfilled and blessed lives and receive all that the Lord has made available to us.

Thursday February 29 – Parental, Sibling & Extended Family Relationships

Philippians 2:3-4 –Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but to the interests of others.
1 Timothy 5:8 ESV – But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
Psalm 127:3-5 ESV – Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.
Ephesians 6:1-4 ESV – Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Isaiah 65:23-24 Composite NKJV, NLT – 23 We will not labour in vain, neither have we brought forth children for trouble; our work is not in vain and our children are not doomed to misfortune. For we are people blessed by the Lord, and our children, too, are blessed. 24 You answer me before I even call to you. While I am still speaking, you hear me and go ahead and answer my prayers!
Psalm 37:25 MSG – I once was young, now I’m a graybeard— not once have I seen an abandoned believer, or his kids out roaming the streets. Every day he’s out giving and lending, his children making him proud.
Isaiah 49:25 NLT – But the Lord says, “The captives of warriors will be released, and the plunder of tyrants will be retrieved. For I will fight those who fight you, and I will save your children.”
Jeremiah 31:15-17 GNT – 16 Stop your crying and wipe away your tears. All that you have done for your children will not go unrewarded; they will return from the enemy’s land. 17 There is hope for your future; your children will come back home. I, the Lord, have spoken.

Please use the above scriptures during your personal meditation and prayer to enforce the will of God in our lives and different family relationships.

Friday March 1 – Forgiveness, Healing and Reconciliation in the Family

1 Peter 4:8 ESV – Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.
Colossians 3:13 ESV – Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.
Ephesians 4:26-27 – In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.
Ephesians 4:31-32 – Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as Christ forgave you.
2 Corinthians 2:10-11 NLT – 10 When you forgive this man, I forgive him, too. And when I forgive whatever needs to be forgiven, I do so with Christ’s authority for your benefit, 11 so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes.
Luke 1:37 – For with God nothing shall be impossible.
Mark 9:23-24 – 23 Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” 24 …Lord I believe.

Please use the above scriptures during your personal meditation and prayer for tender, yielded hearts so that we can thwart the enemy’s plans for our families and experience healing and restoration in all our broken relationships.

Saturday March 2 – Preservation, Protection & Provision for the Family

3 John 1:2 – I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.
Psalm 91:9-12 NET – 9 For you have taken refuge in the Lord, my shelter, the Most High. 10 No harm will overtake you; no illness will come near your home. 11 For he will order his angels to protect you in all you do.12 They will lift you up in their hands, so you will not slip and fall on a stone.
Ezra 8:21-23,31 NIV – 21 There, by the Ahava Canal, I proclaimed a fast, so that we might humble ourselves before our God and ask him for a safe journey for us and our children, with all our possessions. 22 I was ashamed to ask the king for soldiers and horsemen to protect us from enemies on the road, because we had told the king, “The gracious hand of our God is on everyone who looks to him, but his great anger is against all who forsake him.” 23 So we fasted and petitioned our God about this, and he answered our prayer… 31 On the twelfth day of the first month we set out from the Ahava Canal to go to Jerusalem. The hand of our God was on us, and he protected us from enemies and bandits along the way.
2 Corinthians 9:8 AMPC – And God is able to make all grace (every favor and earthly blessing) come to you in abundance, so that you may always and under all circumstances and whatever the need be self-sufficient [possessing enough to require no aid or support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation].
Job 5:8-9 MSG – 8 If I were in your shoes, I’d go straight to God, I’d throw myself on the mercy of God. 9 After all, he’s famous for great and unexpected acts; there’s no end to his surprises.

Please use the above scriptures during your personal meditation and prayer so that we can experience and receive every blessing of health, protection and provision that Jesus has already made available to our families.

Sunday March 3 – My Family, My Witness

Joshua 24:15 – As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
Jeremiah 33:9 NLT – Then this city will bring me joy, glory, and honor before all the nations of the earth! The people of the world will see all the good I do for my people, and they will tremble with awe at the peace and prosperity I provide for them.
Luke 1:58 NKJV – When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they rejoiced with her.
Psalm 112:1-3 NLT – 1 Praise the Lord! How joyful are those who fear the Lord and delight in obeying his commands. 2 Their children will be successful everywhere; an entire generation of godly people will be blessed. 3 They themselves will be wealthy, and their good deeds will last forever.
Deuteronomy 28:1-4 NIV – 1 If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. 2 All these blessings will come on you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God: 3 You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. 4 The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The LORD bless you and keep you, the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; The LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace.

Please use the above scriptures during your personal meditation and prayer, that we and our families will serve the Lord wholeheartedly and be strong witnesses of His love to all who know us. May our lives and families cause praise and thanksgiving to abound to God!

Rev. Toyin OkutInyang, February 2024.

OLCC Admin