John the Baptist

“But the angel reassured him, saying, “Don’t be afraid, Zechariah! God is showing grace to you. For I have come to tell you that your prayer for a child has been answered. Your wife, Elizabeth, will bear you a son and you are to name him John.”
‭‭Luke‬ ‭1‬:‭13‬ ‭TPT‬‬

Happy New Week my Yielded Family. I have a good feeling about this week but more than just feelings, l have the word of God which is better than any “feeling” because it is the sure word of prophecy! Have faith. Doors are about to open. Don’t give up by the finish line. Don’t turn back when the key is already in the door. Don’t you lose hope at dawn, the sun is about to come up. Don’t let go of the plough , there is sure harvest! We shall come rejoicing bringing in the sheaves.

The last two weeks we have been talking about rejection from the lenses of the life of Leah the daughter of Laban and the wife of Jacob. This week we are discussing the life of John the Baptist. I love John. I would’ve married him honestly lol . Firstly, because he was Jesus’ cousin. Secondly, he was a man of truth (mos these days Eii people are Ananias and Sapphira-ing like no man’s business). Thirdly, he was a revivalist and evangelist. Any man or let me say, anyone who takes evangelism seriously, is a person you want to be around. They are wise people.

Like that of our Lord Jesus Christ, the birth of John was foretold. This means there was prophecy about him before he was conceived and born. A priest and his wife were well beyond the years when it was possible to give birth to a child. While many of us always talk about Abraham and Sarah, they were not the only couple in the bible that received their miracle baby at an old age. Not only was this personally disappointing for Zechariah and Elizabeth, but others saw it as shameful. Jewish society at that time looked down on people who could not have children. You can now imagine why Rachel upon seeing that she was barren was always nagging and complaining to Jacob. You can now understand Hannah’s pain. To any woman in the world who is married , a child is a sort of completion. Although only God can complete a human being, there are things God Himself has structured to be a source of joy for us.

One day Zechariah is serving God and an Angel shows up and tells him about John. Due to unbelief, he is put on mute 😂😅 like my phone until the boy is born. Please refer to the gospel of Luke chapter 1. GOD does not only give this couple a son, He reveals the son’s prophetic destiny and even gives the son a name. It got me thinking , all these names we have , were they a revelation from God or just cute names. I know mine wasn’t 😂 my sister said she liked the name and she told my mom and the rest is history. I was named by my older sister. What about the names of my future children, did l not fetch them from google? “Cute baby girl/boy names” and even though the meanings may be good, what has GOD named the child? What if God named me Esther and then l was given Vanessa? 😂 Eii anyway let’s move.

John had a diet chosen for him. “And he will be one of the great ones in the sight of God. He will drink no wine or strong drink, but he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even while still in his mother’s womb.” Luke‬ ‭1‬:‭15‬ ‭TPT . God’s plan for John life was so great that He restricted him from somethings that others may engage in. One of those things is alcohol. I know some of you just shut down mentally from that point because you still love your glass of wine to “wind down” or a few sips of something but study the scripture with the intention or desire to yield rather than to read and look away only to be the same after years of beholding.

One of the things God will have you put away if you have a great destiny is alcohol. When we study the life of Samson, the angel said the same thing. Imagine a strong man who is to fight enemies but he comes to the battlefield drunk. Samson would’ve never fought and defeated his enemies if he was drunk or tipsy all the time. The Philistines would not have had to make plan after plan to capture him. The plan would be to give him a glass and they’d capture him or he’d confess in his tipsy state , the source of his power like many people who have sold themselves out because they were drunk. The number of things we could’ve avoided had we put down the glass. The number of encounters we could’ve had , drunk in the spirit and not with wine. The great things we could’ve achieved if only we were found sober enough to handle the assignment. John’s assignment had him keep away from somethings, what does your assignment require you to consecrate from? The fact that we don’t know or are not “sure” is already a tool the enemy can use to attack and disrupt us from fulfilling purpose.

I’m not in any way trying to dictate to you on how to live, even Holy Spirit does not do that but think of it. I mean really selah. For some of us Tv is not even part of our prophetic lives. I discovered that TikTok was a tool to a leak in my spirit. I would be so grieved and unable to pray. I had to do away with it . Now that’s my personal testament. Yours could be some kind of music. Others it could be alcohol. You drink as if there’s no tomorrow. For some it’s going to certain places. There’s a prophetic blueprint for your life that includes your spiritual name, your lifestyle and your purpose. We do well to pray and find out, lest we become a John the Baptist who womanises or is always found drunk. Correct name but the lifestyle is inconsistent with the prophecy. Imagine naming someone Aaron or Moses and the person is a thief. Or naming a serial killer Jesus. I meaaaaaaaaaan … Who would ever believe a drunk John? Our lifestyle could be what is stopping people from believing in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Pray and find out from God Himself what things He’d like you to do or not do to become the great person He ordained you to be. Stop choosing your diet based on canality. To become great, you must key in to what God has said about you in the volume of the book. You miss one thing, you have opened a window for the devil to blind and cripple you. John the Baptist , keep away from 123. Do 123. Pursue 123. Find out from Holy Spirit and live accordingly . See you tomorrow. I love you 💗