OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL... DATE : MONDAY 11th MAY 2015

THEME : PRESS INTO YOUR DAY OF FAVOUR.
Memorise :
For thou, LORD, wilt bless the righteous; with favour wilt thou
compass him as with a shield. Psalm 5:12
Read : Esther 5:1-3
1 NOW it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her
royal apparel, and stood in the inner court of the king's house,
over against the king's house: and the king sat upon his royal
throne in the royal house, over against the gate of the house.
2 And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in
the court, that she obtained favour in his sight: and the king
held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand. So
Esther drew near, and touched the top of the sceptre.
3 Then said the king unto her, What wilt thou, queen Esther?
and what is thy request? it shall be even given thee to the half of
the kingdom.
Message
Queen Esther is one person who pressed into her day of favour.
Her experience should serve as template for us all. She
obtained favour in the sight of the king because it was the day
of her favour. Be aware that the law of the land during this
period was that nobody could go into the king's inner court
uninvited. Disobeying this law was equivalent to a suicide
mission. But Esther went to the king in his inner court
uninvited, and she lived because of favour.
The first lesson to take note of from our template is that Queen
Esther did not go to the inner court of the king's house until
after three days of fasting and prayers were over.
Secondly, she went into the inner court in her royal apparel,
not in kitchen aprons. What does this suggest to us? It shows
us that righteousness must be the garment of any person who
desires God's favour, just as stated in our memory verse.
The third lesson to note is that the Queen was found standing
in the court. Are you still in good standing with God, or have
you for one reason or the other backslidden? To be favoured of
men, you must be in good standing with God.
Carefully consider the location of the king on the day of Esther's
favour. This is the fourth lesson to note. Esther 5:1 says that:
'...and the king sat upon his royal throne in the royal house,
over against the gate of the house.'
Is the King of kings on the throne of your life?
Do not expect the day of His favour to come if He is not. Note
that the king sat against the gate of the house, overseeing
everything.
What will God find in you when He looks towards your
direction today? Will He find filthy garments of sin or royal
garments of righteousness? Imagine Esther in a kind of attire
that was unbecoming, the story would have been different. A lot
of people go to the sanctuary of the King of kings half-Unclad in
the name of fashion. This they do in contrary to the Lord's
directive in Exodus 20:26: ' Neither shalt thou go up by steps
unto mine altar, that thy unclothedness be not discovered
thereon.'
The key message here is that your unclothedness must not be
seen by other woshippers,thereby distracting them. The
Almighty God is at the gate of your heart knocking ( Revelation
3:20 ). Will you open for Him to come in and show you His
favour today? You have agonised enough; surrender your life to
the One who can grant you favour today. I prophesy to your life
that today is your day of favour in Jesus' Name.
Prayer Point :
Father, let all men and all things work together for my favour
today in Jesus' Name.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR : 1 SAMUEL 17:1-54 and MARK 6:53-7:13
AUTHOR : Pst E. A ADEBOYE.