DO NOT LEAVE THE PLACE OF FRUITFULNESS
By Bishop Mike Okonkwo
Wednesday 26th June 2024
“Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem-judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons.” Ruth 1:1 (KJV)
Elimelech left Bethlehem-Judah to sojourn in Moab. Bethlehem means the land of bread, and Judah means praise. As a matter of fact, when you read, you will find out that the people were described as Ephrathites of Bethlehem-Judah. Ephrathite means fruitful. So, it is a triple combination: a land of bread where praises are lifted to God that brings about fruitfulness.
When you access God’s presence through praise, worship, and adoration, evil automatically will bow because there can be no evil in the presence of the Lord. Sickness will go, disease will go, pressures will go, and the challenges of life will be over. These were the secrets of the saints of old. You can talk about David! How did he survive? It was because he was able to access God’s presence. Many have lost His presence. It has become a struggle, and it’s like we are doing God a favour to worship Him. Do not leave praise! It is in praise that you can access your bread. Your answers lie in praise.
Elimelech took his two sons, Mahlon and Chilon, and his wife, Naomi, and they left Bethlehem-Judah because there was a famine! The famine was just an event in their lives. The famine was just for a season in their lives, but they left Bethlehem-Judah. Many people have left the place of fruitfulness, the place of praise and the place of success simply because of an event in their lives. If that is your situation, you have got to return.
An event in your life is not a sum-total of your life. That, at the moment, you are passing through is not a sum-total of your life. That should not make you leave praise! It should not make you turn your back on the very weapon that will bring you out.
Further Reading: Ruth 1: 1-7
Daily Bible Reading: Morning- Job 5-7; Evening- Acts 8:1-25