NEW MERCIES DAILY!
DATE: Friday, Sept 5, 2025
SERIES THEME: Do Not Let Us into Temptation (1)
TITLE: When Opportunities Become Traps.
SCRIPTURE TEXT:
“Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man; which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.” — Psalm 140:1–2 (KJV)
BY: EFFIONG ETOK
Carrier of God’s Word
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Not every open door is from God; some opportunities are satanic traps dressed in human disguise.
MAIN MESSAGE
Beloved, our world has become more dangerous than ever. Evil no longer waits at the roadside; it advertises itself on social media, in job posts, in casual invitations, and in supposed “opportunities.” One painful example is of a young Nigerian graduate, awaiting her NYSC call-up letter. Hoping to earn a little income, she applied for a farm manager job advertised online. Unknown to her, the advert was fake. At the so-called interview, she was not only raped but murdered by a young man barely 22 years old.
This is the world Jesus foresaw when He taught us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6:13). Evil today wears the face of opportunity. It may look like a job, a friendship, a business proposal, or a social invite—but behind it lies danger and death.
David’s rooftop error (2 Samuel 11:2–4) shows how one step outside God’s covering can unleash sorrow. Peter’s boastful confidence (Matthew 26:33) teaches that no man is safe without watchfulness. And in our time, we are reminded daily that even the innocent—youths, students, jobseekers—can become victims of violent men (Psalm 140:1–2).
Hear this: vigilance is no longer optional. Prayer is not a religious routine; it is survival. We must cry daily, “Lord, close every door the devil has opened in disguise. Deliver me and my loved ones from violent men, and preserve our going out and coming in. In Jesus Mighty Name. Amen!
PRAYER POINTS
1. Lord, shield me and my family from satanic opportunities that look like blessings but are traps of death, in Jesus Mighty Name. Amen!
2. Father, expose every violent man and every evil plan around my life—deliver me from hidden snare,in Jesus Mighty Name. Amen!
3. O God, in these perilous times, let Your hand of preservation cover my steps daily; let no weapon formed against me prosper, in Jesus’ Mighty Name, Amen!
