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Articles by Oke Chinye
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Master your emotions
Read: Galatians 5:16-26 Meditation verse: “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city (Proverbs 16:32). Emotions are powerful, but they are not always reliable. They are instinctive or intuitive responses—often not based on reason or truth. Emotions are fleeting, subjective, and contagious. The fact that you feel afraid doesn’t necessarily mean there is something fearful in your life.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: A second chance
Read: Acts 15:36-41 Meditation verse: “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as Christ forgave you.” — Ephesians 4:32. As humans, conflict is inevitable in our relationships. Even among faithful believers, disagreements will arise. The Bible does not gloss over this reality. In Acts 15, we see a sharp disagreement between two spiritual giants—Paul and Barnabas.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: God can save by a few
Read: 1 Samuel 14:1-52 Meditation verse: “For nothing restrains the Lord from saving by many or by few” (1 Samuel 14:6b). In the previous chapter, Israel faced a grim situation. The Philistines had launched an attack, and King Saul was left with only 600 men. To make matters worse, none of the soldiers had weapons—except Saul and his son Jonathan.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Divine setups
Read: Exodus 10:1–29 Meditation verse: “Now the Lord said to Moses, ‘Go into Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his servants, that I may show these signs of Mine before him.” — Exodus 10:1. Sometimes, God allows people to say no to you—not to harm you, but to set the stage for something greater.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Anatomy of a winning team
Read: 1 Corinthians 12:17–20 Meditation verse: “If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling?” — 1 Corinthians 12:17. A winning team is not made up of people who are alike—but of individuals with diverse skills, perspectives, and personalities, working in unity. As the Apostle Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 12, the body functions effectively because its parts are different yet complementary.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Stronger together
Read: Ecclesiastes 4:9–12 Meditation verse: “Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their labour.” — Ecclesiastes 4:9. God never designed us to live or work in isolation. From the beginning, He created humans for fellowship, partnership, communication, and collective productivity. Whether in marriage, ministry, business, or community, the principle remains the same: we are better together.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: You are not alone
Read: 1 Peter 5:6-11 Meditation verse: “But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.” — 1 Peter 5:10. There is nothing you’re going through that is entirely new or unique. Life’s trials may feel overwhelming, but they are not exclusive to you.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: In line with God’s design
Read: 2 Corinthians 6:14–18 Meditation verse: “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?” — Amos 3:3 (NKJV). For everything you do in life, there’s a way that feels natural—and a way that feels forced. To illustrate this, try a simple exercise: take a sheet of paper and write your full name with your dominant hand. Now, switch hands and do the same. Notice the difference? With your dominant hand, the process is smooth, the writing is clear, and you’re done in no time.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Rebuilding the broken walls
Read: Nehemiah 1 & 2 Meditation verse: “And they said to me, ‘The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.’” — Nehemiah 1:3 (NKJV). Nehemiah received devastating news: Jerusalem, the city of his fathers, lay in ruins. Its protective walls had been broken down, its gates reduced to ashes, and its people left vulnerable and disgraced.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Start where you are
Read: Ecclesiastes 11:1-6 Meditation verse: “Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest” (Ecclesiastes 11:1). The story is told of a single mother who longed to start a catering business to provide for her children. She had no startup capital, no business plan, no customers, and no professional kitchen—only a few old pots and pans in her tiny apartment. But she chose not to let what she lacked stop her.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Don’t look back
Read: Genesis 19:15-26 Meditation verse: “But his wife looked back behind him, and she became a pillar of salt” (Genesis 19:26). “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed” (Genesis 19:17). This was the warning given to Lot by the angels as they prepared to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah. Yet Lot’s wife looked back—and she became a pillar of salt.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: God calls the busy
Read: Mathew 4:18-22 Meditation verse: “And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen” (Mathew 4:18). When God needs a special task accomplished, He often looks for those who are already engaged in meaningful activity. A glance through the scriptures confirms this pattern. Simon Peter and his brother Andrew were busy fishing when Jesus called them to become His apostles.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Exposure Therapy: When fear feels overwhelming
Read: Isaiah 43:1-7 Meditation verse: “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you (Isaiah 43:2). Fear is one of the most crippling emotions we can experience. It has the power to paralyze potential, sabotage purpose, and keep us from living the life God has prepared for us.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: When the cheese moves
Read: ECCLESIASTES 11:1-8 Meditation verse: “But if a man lives many years and rejoices in them all, yet let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. All that is coming is vanity” (Ecclesiastes 11:8). In Spencer Johnson’s book “Who Moved My Cheese?” four characters go in search of cheese in a maze. The maze is a labyrinth of corridors and chambers— easy to get lost in. Eventually, they discover some cheese at Station C.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Press through the crowd
Read: LUKE 8:43-47 Meditation verse: “He who observes the wind will not sow. And he who regards the clouds will not reap” (Ecclesiastes 11:4). The crowd was thick as the multitude thronged Jesus. Yet the woman with the issue of blood pressed through. Coming from behind, she dragged her weak frame forward until she reached Jesus and touched the hem of His garment. Instantly her issue of blood dried up (Mark 5:25-34). Zacchaeus sought to see.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Comfortable dysfunction
Read: DEUTERONOMY 1:1-8 Meditation verse: “The Lord our God spoke to us in Horeb, saying: ‘You have dwelt long enough at this mountain” (Deuteronomy 1:6). Whilst in the wilderness, on the way to the promised land, the Israelites camped for a while in the land of Moab east of the Jordan River. Then Moses informed them that God wanted them to move on; “You have stayed at this mountain long enough. It is time to break camp and move on.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: It has to be homegrown
Read: 2 CORINTHIANS 4:17-18 Meditation verse: “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory”. (2 Corinthians 4:17). The things that are happening to you though challenging are working in you a perfect work. They are growing in you a wisdom that is so rich, deep and original. This is the kind of wisdom that comes from triumphing over affliction. It cannot be taught or learned in the best business schools in the world.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Lay aside the weight
Read: HEBREWS 12:1-2 Meditation verse: “Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 PETER 5:7) I had been feeling weighed down by a particular concern that had to do with a close family member and it was beginning to wear me out emotionally and physically. On this morning, my eyes fell on the above scripture, and it was like a heavy burden was lifted of my shoulders.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Maintain good works
Read: TITUS 3:8-14 Meditation verse: “And let our people also learn to maintain good works, to meet urgent needs, that they may not be unfruitful” (Titus 3:14). Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast”. Your salvation does not depend on your good works. But your salvation should produce a deep yearning for good works.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Change your wineskin
Read: Mathew 9:16-17 Meditation verse: “Nor do they put new wine into old wineskins, or else the wineskins break, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But they put new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved.” (Mathew 9:17) In today’s reading, Jesus told His disciples that new wine cannot be poured into old wine skin, else the wine skin will break and the wine will be spilled. He said new wine must be poured into new wine skin. . New one is fresh and strong.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Our “In Him” realities
Read: Colossians 1:12-15 Meditation verse: “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7). Colossians 1:12-15 says “giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Don’t let your pain distort your identity
Read: Jeremiah 1:4-5 Meditation verse: “But she said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me” (Ruth 1:20). Many people are operating from a place of pain. They have allowed the things they have passed through a life to change them. They have assumed an identity that is alien to who God created them to be. God created and shaped you specifically for the assignment He wants you to fulfil.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Walk through the door
Read: Romans 8:1-17 Meditation verse: “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:2). Jesus Christ opened the gates over 2000 years ago. By His death on the cross, burial and ressurection, He opened the portal to a life of abundance; free of sin, sickness, lack and eternal death. However, the devill does not want you to know this. He laughs when he sees you fearful and shut in behind an open door.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: It’s a heart matter
Read: Mathew 15:8-20 Meditation verse: “But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man” (Mathew 15:18). Today’s reading is very instructive. There is a high tendency as humans to focus on the outward man. We exercise, eat right, take care of our skin and ensure that we are well put together all the time. The big questions however are; How are we taking care of our inward man? Do we put in as much effort to take care of our heart or mind?
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: What is the instruction?
Read: 2 Kings 3 & 4 Meditation verse: “And he said, “thus says the Lord, make this valley full of ditches” (2 kings 3:16). The King of Israel had gone to war against the Moabites, accompanied by the king of Judah, Jehoshaphat and the `king of Edom. After marching for seven days, there was no water for the army, nor for the animals that followed them. In their desparation, Jehoshaphat suggested they seek the face of God through the prophet, Elisha.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Positioning for the new
Read: ISAIAH 43: 18-21 Meditation verse: “Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:19). To receive the new, you must get rid of the old. Before God announced to the nation of Israel that He would do a new thing, He first instructed them to forget the former things and not consider it at all. You cannot open a new chapter of your life if you keep reliving the previous one.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Pursue, overtake and recover all
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: 1 Samuel 30:1-20 Meditation verse: “So, David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.” (1 Samuel 30:1-20). To pursue means to follow, chase, or go after something or someone. It also means to continue or proceed along a path or route.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: What is God saying to you?
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: HABAKKUK 2:1-4 Meditation verse: “I will stand my watch and set myself on the rampart and watch to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer when I am corrected” (Habakkuk 2:1). When God speaks to you, do you hear or listen? Although hearing and listening may sound like the same thing, truth is, there’s a world of difference between the two.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Your family altar
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: 2 CHRONICLES 20: 1-13 Meditation verse: “Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the Lord” (2 Chronicles 20:13). There was an emergency in Judah. The people of Moab, Ammon, and Mount Seir came to battle against Jehoshaphat, king of Judah.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Get out of that toxic environment
Read: GENESIS 19: 1-29 Meditation verse: “So, Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who had married his daughters, and said, “get up, get out of this place;” (Genesis 19:12). Every environment you find yourself in has its people, culture, systems, and practices. A toxic environment is one in which either the people or their culture systems or practices are out of sync with your core values.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Be sure to pass all your tests
Read: 1 Peter 5:8-11 Meditation verse: “But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you” (1 Peter 5:10). The movie “In pursuit of happyness” is an American biographical drama based on the life of Chris Gardner who went from being homeless to owning his own multi-million-dollar brokerage firm.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: A wise woman builds her home
Read: PROVERBS 31:10-31 Meditation verse: “that our daughters may be as pillars, sculptured in palace style (Psalm144:12). A pillar is a tall vertical structure of stone, wood, or iron, used as a support for a building. Without a pillar, a building will crumble. We started noticing cracks in the walls of our home about a year and a half after we moved in. The cracks increasingly got worse; we knew we had to do something.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: How deep are your roots?
Read: MARK 4:1-9 Meditation verse: “But the plant soon wilted under the hot sun, and since it didn’t have deep roots, it died” (Mark 4:6, NLT). The oak is a very tall tree between 40 and 80 feet and is said to surpass 300 years. A very interesting feature of the oak tree is the root system. It pushes downwards as deep as the height of the tree and branching out wide. It can withstand very strong storms like tornados.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Once God speaks, it is as good as done
Read: MARK 4:35-41 Meditation verse: “On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” (Mark 4:35). Jesus had informed His disciples that they were crossing to the other side of the sea. On their way, a storm arose and threatened to overturn the boat. Meanwhile, Jesus was sleeping soundly on a cushion on the lower deck of the boat, obviously undisturbed by what was going on. Jesus hadn’t given them any details about their journey.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Make peace with your younger self
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: Hebrews 5:12-14 Meditation verse: “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things” (1 Corinthians 13:11). The transition to middle life is a major season that throws up a lot of emotional challenges. It is a rude awakening for many people.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Living the life
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: Romans 12:1-21 Meditation verse: “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect” (Romans 12:2).
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Changing unhelpful habits (2) | TheNewsGuru
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: ROMANS 8:1-11 Meditation verse: “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11). Focus on changing one specific habit or behavior at a time. Trying to change multiple habits at once is setting yourself up for failure.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Changing unhelpful habits (1) | TheNewsGuru
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: ROMANS 7:13-25 Meditation verse: “For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice” (Romans 7:19). There are perhaps two main reasons why changing a habit is difficult for many of us. Firstly, we do not truly see why we need to change. Secondly, we do not know how to change.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Growing unto maturity
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: 1 peter 1:5-11 Meditation verse: “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things” (1 Cor 13:11). You are not yet perfected. You are a work in progress. Your confession and acceptance of Jesus as Lord and Saviour is just the beginning of your walk with the Lord. You must grow unto maturity.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: The stirring of the pool
Read: John 5:1-8 Meditation verse: “For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had” (John 5:4). Your heart is a pool of ideas and dreams. There are visions that need to be birthed, businesses that need to be created, books that need to be written as well as souls that need to be saved.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: The power to create wealth
Read: 1 Kings 10:14-29 Meditation verse: “And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth” (Deuteronomy 8:18). There is something of value that God has deposited inside you that you can use to create value for others such that they give you their riches in return. This is your power to get wealth.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: What is your ‘but’?
Read: 1 Kings 10:14-11:1-25 Meditation verse: “But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter ofPharoah: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians andHittites” (1 Kings 11:1). King Solomon had great wisdom and wealth. “All his drinking vessels were gold,and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were pure gold. Not onewas silver, for this was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon. For the king had merchant[e] ships at sea with the fleet of Hiram.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Prepare for the new thing
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: ISAIAH 43: 18-21 Meditation verse: “Behold, I will do a new thing, now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:19). “No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; or else the new piece pulls away from the old, and the tear is made worse.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Winning the battles of life
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: 2 CHRONICLES 20: 1-30 Meditation verse: “And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah” (2 Chronicles 20:3). Life is a lively process of becoming; change is therefore one thing you should expect. Some of these changes will be in the form of battles that you will need to surmount every now and then.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: His grace is sufficient for you
Read: 2 CORINTHIANS 12:7-10 Meditation verse: “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness…” (2 Corinthians 12:9a). The bible does not specifically state what Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” was. But whatever it was, it must have been uncomfortable because he pleaded with God on three occasions to take it away. He seemed desperate to get rid of.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: What will your faith move you to do?
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: HEBREWS 11:1-40 Meditation verse: “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (James 2:26). “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony” (Hebrews 11:1-2). In today’s reading, we see the mighty acts of some biblical characters.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Be a Barnabas to someone
Read: ACTS 15:36-41 Meditation verse: “And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32). It is impossible for any relationship to exist, devoid of offenses. Luke 17:1 says, “it is impossible that no offenses should come”. It comes with little surprise therefore to see great preachers like Paul and Barnabas disagree to the point of going their separate ways.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Biblical insights for the new month
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: 2 timothy 3:16-17 Meditation verse: “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Each day is a gift from God. Be grateful to Him and expect the best (Psalm 118:24). Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Rebuilding the broken walls
EXCITING NEWS: TNG WhatsApp Channel is LIVE… Subscribe for FREE to get LIVE NEWS UPDATE. Click here to subscribe! Read: NEHEMIAH 1 & 2 Meditation verse: “And they said to me, “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and its gates are burned with fire.” (Nehemiah 1:30). Nehemiah had just received a disheartening news; the city of Jerusalem was in ruins.
[Devotional] IN HIS PRESENCE: Train them in the way they should go
Read: Deuteronomy 6:1-9 Meditation verse: “You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up (Deuteronomy 6:7). Every parent has a God ordained responsibility to raise his or her child in a godly environment in which the knowledge of Christ is evident.
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