OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL. SUNDAY 14 SEPTEMBER 2014

THEME : CHAMPIONS AND GOALS.
MEMORISE : Looking unto Jesus the author
and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that
was set before him endured the cross,
despising the shame, and is set down at the
right hand of the throne of God. HEBREWS 12 :
2.
READ : 1 SAMUEL 17 : 32 - 37.
32 And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart
fail because of him; thy servant will go and
fight with this Philistine.
33 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able
to go against this Philistine to fight with him:
for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war
from his youth.

34 And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept
his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and
a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:
35 And I went out after him, and smote him,
and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he
arose against me, I caught him by his beard,
and smote him, and slew him.
36 Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear:
and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as
one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies
of the living God.
37 David said moreover, The LORD that
delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out
of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of
the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto
David, Go, and the LORD be with thee.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : JOSHUA 22 & JOB 38 :
12 - 24.
Champions are people of rugged
determination. Once they set their minds on
certain goals, nothing will make them change
their minds. They will pursue their goals
relentlessly until they arrive at their desired
destination. Divine champions see every
mountain as a potential testimony. David was
so sure that Goliath would end up like the lion
and the bear he had killed. In order words, the
present problem would become a testimony.
Many times when we go to battle, we expect to
come back without a scar. Divine champions
believe all their goals will be actualised, but
not without pain. They don’t bother about the
pain because they know that at the end they
will have their victory. They are people like
Paul who would say:
“I forget those things that are behind, and
press forward” ( Philippians 3 : 13 - 14 ).
A divine champion is like a river. A river will
always look for a way around an obstruction
to get to the ocean.
I suppose David would have said this to
himself: “Not one of the sheep given to me by
my father would get lost”. All of a sudden, a
lion came and grabbed one of the sheep. David
faced the lion that was the champion of the
forest and killed it. This was what gave David
the boldness to confront the champion of the
city. Your ability to achieve a particular goal is
a function of the ones you have achieved in
the past through the help of the Almighty God.
When the Lord decided to move us from the
first auditorium at the Redemption Camp, there
were many people who felt that the auditorium
we were moving from was the biggest they had
ever seen. Also, when the Lord decided to
move us away from the second auditorium to
the arena where we presently worship, many
said it was impossible, but it happened.
Today, the Lord is set to move us to a bigger
arena because the children need to occupy the
present one. Many of us have lost our
miracles because we stopped too soon. A
divine champion sets goals believing that with
God, nothing shall be impossible ( Luke 1 :
37 ). I have been challenged by people who
say what we want to do is impossible. The
moment you say it is impossible, I will want to
show you that it is possible. It could take
some sweating, fasting, night vigils and a little
extra effort, but whatever goals divine
champions set before God, they will get it. As
a divine champion, it is not all the time you
set a goal that you realise it at first instance.
Many times, you have to try and try over and
over again before you succeed. The important
thing is that as a child of God you will win at
the end.
KEY POINT :
In Christ alone lies the strength of a divine
champion.
AUTHOR : Pst. E .A ADEBOYE.