Triumphing Always | Rev. Abiodun Adesanya

Main Scriptures

• 2 Chronicles 20:1–4, 16–17, 20–26
• John 15:5–10
• Colossians 3:2
• Proverbs 20:19

Central Message

Fasting and prayer are not spiritual gifts; they require intentionality, discipline, perseverance and commitment. When we devote ourselves to God through fasting, prayer, study and meditation, we position ourselves to hear His instructions, follow His direction and access what He has already made available to us.

1. FASTING AND PRAYER REQUIRE INTENTIONAL EFFORT

Fasting and prayer are not gifts that some people possess while others do not. Every believer is called to pray and to seek God.

Fasting and prayer require:

• Time
• Effort
• Perseverance
• Consistency
• Commitment
• Intentionality

There may be moments when fasting and prayer become difficult, but we must remain committed.

There are situations that cannot be overcome casually. Jesus demonstrated that there are certain battles that require deeper spiritual engagement through fasting and prayer.

Key Principle

The purpose of fasting is not to bargain with God but to position ourselves to hear God.

God may give different instructions for different situations. In Scripture, Jesus healed people in different ways—sometimes through a spoken word, sometimes through an instruction, sometimes through physical contact and sometimes without direct contact.

Therefore, the question during this season should be:

“God, what are You saying to me, and what do You want me to do?”

As we seek Him, we should expect to receive divine instructions and direction.

2. EVERYONE IS CALLED TO PRAYER

There are no “professional prayer warriors” who have been given an exclusive ability to pray.

Every believer has been called to communicate with God.

This season should therefore be a time of personal communion with God. We should not depend entirely on someone else to hear God for us.

Practical Application

Be intentional about creating time for prayer.

Do not allow the demands of everyday life to consume every available moment. Make room for God.

God wants fellowship, not a transaction.

We are not fasting because God owes us something in exchange for our fasting. We fast because we want deeper fellowship with Him and greater sensitivity to His voice.

3. GUARD YOUR MIND

Colossians 3:2

“Set your mind on things above…”

What we expose our minds to matters.

During a season of fasting and prayer, we should be particularly careful about the information, conversations and entertainment we consume.

Social media can easily consume hours without us realising it. What begins as a few minutes can become several hours.

The issue is not necessarily that social media is inherently wrong. The issue is what we allow to occupy our minds.

Ask Yourself:

• What am I constantly watching?
• What am I constantly listening to?
• What thoughts am I feeding?
• Is what I consume helping me hear God?
• Am I creating enough quietness for God to speak?

Instruction

Reduce unnecessary distractions and make room for God’s voice.

Your mind is important in this season. Do not fill it with information that pollutes or distracts you from what God wants to communicate.

4. TIME IS CRUCIAL

Every person has 24 hours in a day.

No one has more time than another person.

The question is not whether we have enough time. The question is how we use the time we have been given.

This fasting season is limited. Therefore, we should not wait until the end before becoming serious.

Practical Application

Start now.

Do not reach the final days of the fast and begin rushing because you have not properly used the time available.

Use your time wisely for:

• Prayer
• Bible study
• Meditation
• Fellowship with God
• Personal reflection
• Following divine instructions

Time wasted cannot be recovered.

5. BEWARE OF GOSSIP AND VAIN WORDS

Proverbs 20:19

The Scripture warns against those who go about revealing the secrets of others and instructs us to have nothing to do with such behaviour.

During a sacred season of fasting and prayer, we must be careful about conversations that do not edify.

Avoid:

• Gossip
• Vain conversations
• Unnecessary arguments
• Conversations that destroy others
• Information that does not contribute to your spiritual growth

You cannot spend your time fasting and praying while simultaneously wasting that same season through destructive conversations.

Key Principle

Your spiritual season is too valuable to waste on gossip.

6. SPM — STUDY, PRAY AND MEDITATE

A practical framework for this season is:

S — STUDY

Spend time in God’s Word.

P — PRAY

Create intentional time to communicate with God.

M — MEDITATE

After studying and praying, create quietness to reflect and listen.

Do not fill every moment of silence with your phone or social media.

Sometimes you need to put everything aside, become quiet and allow God to speak to you.

SPM

Study. Pray. Meditate.

This should become part of our spiritual discipline.

7. GOD HAS ALREADY MADE PROVISION

Fasting is not a transaction where we exchange our fasting for God’s blessings.

God has already made provision for His children.

The purpose of seeking God is to access what He has made available and to receive the wisdom and direction necessary to walk in it.

Therefore:

We do not fast to make God love us.

We fast because we desire deeper fellowship with Him.

We do not pray because God is unaware of our needs.

We pray because prayer brings us into alignment with Him and His purposes.

8. JEHOSHAPHAT: WHEN THE BATTLE IS TOO GREAT

2 Chronicles 20:1–4

Jehoshaphat faced a situation that was beyond his natural ability.

A great multitude came against Judah.

Humanly speaking, the situation was overwhelming.

Jehoshaphat recognised:

“I do not have the capacity to handle this.”

His response was not panic. He sought the Lord and proclaimed a fast throughout Judah.

The people gathered together to seek God for help.

Lesson

Sometimes the greatest expression of faith is recognising that we cannot do it by ourselves.

When our human capacity ends, we must turn to God.

9. FASTING POSITIONS US TO RECEIVE DIVINE INSTRUCTION

After seeking God, Jehoshaphat received specific instructions.

God told him where the enemy would be and what he should do.

But God also gave him a remarkable instruction:

“You shall not need to fight in this battle.”

Jehoshaphat was told to:

• Position himself
• Stand still
• Go out against the enemy
• Watch God deliver them

The battle belonged to God.

Key Principle

When God gives you an instruction, obedience is more important than human effort.

Sometimes we struggle because we are trying to fight battles God has already taken responsibility for.

10. THE LORD IS WITH YOU

God’s instruction to Judah was accompanied by a powerful assurance:

The Lord is with you.

That is the believer’s confidence.

If God is with you, you do not have to live in fear.

The presence of God is greater than the size of the opposition.

Declaration

Because the Lord is with me, I cannot fail.

Because the Lord is with me, I will succeed.

Because the Lord is with me, what is impossible naturally can become possible through His power.

11. BELIEVE GOD AND HIS WORD

2 Chronicles 20:20

Jehoshaphat encouraged the people to believe in the Lord their God and to believe His prophets so that they could prosper.

When you have received God’s instruction, you must believe it.

The situation may not immediately look different.

The circumstances may appear to contradict what God has said.

But faith does not depend entirely on what the eyes can see.

Declaration

I will succeed.

My circumstances do not determine my destiny.

My current situation does not cancel God’s Word.

12. PRAISE CAN PRECEDE THE VICTORY

Jehoshaphat appointed singers to go before the army.

Instead of leading with weapons, they led with praise.

Their declaration was centred on the faithfulness and enduring love of God.

2 Chronicles 20:21–22

As they began to sing and praise God, the Lord caused confusion among their enemies, and they began to destroy one another.

The people of Judah did not have to fight the battle themselves.

Key Principle

Praise acknowledges God’s faithfulness before the manifestation of the victory.

The battle was won because God intervened.

13. GOD CAN TURN YOUR BATTLE INTO A TESTIMONY

When Judah arrived at the appointed location, they found that the enemy had already been defeated.

They had not fought the battle.

They had obeyed God’s instruction.

And what appeared to be a battlefield became a place of abundance.

They gathered so much plunder that it took them three days to collect it.

What began as a terrifying battle ended as a season of great abundance.

Your Battle Can Become Your Blessing

The place where you expected defeat can become the place where you experience God’s provision.

The situation that caused fear can become the testimony you share.

14. THE VALLEY OF BLESSING

2 Chronicles 20:26

On the fourth day, Judah gathered in the Valley of Blessing and praised the Lord.

The place received its name because the people praised and thanked God there.

Declaration

I am in my valley of blessing.

I will not miss what God has prepared for me.

The goodness and mercy of God will follow me.

I will see the manifestation of God’s promises in my life.

15. ABIDE IN CHRIST

John 15:5–10

Jesus said:

“I am the vine; you are the branches.”

The branch cannot produce fruit independently of the vine.

Our connection with Christ is therefore essential.

When we remain connected to Him, we become fruitful.

The Secret Is Abiding

Jesus demonstrated the power of remaining in the Father’s love and keeping His commands.

He made Himself at home in the Father’s love.

The same invitation is extended to us:

Make yourself at home in God’s love.

Do not merely visit God’s presence occasionally.

Develop an intimate relationship with Him.

16. YOUR FRUITFULNESS COMES FROM YOUR CONNECTION TO CHRIST

A branch separated from the vine cannot produce fruit.

In the same way, we cannot live the life God has called us to live through human strength alone.

Therefore:

• Stay connected to Christ.
• Stay in His Word.
• Stay in prayer.
• Obey His instructions.
• Remain in His love.
• Produce spiritual fruit.

When we abide in Him, our lives begin to reflect His nature and His power.

17. THE LOVE OF GOD IS THE FOUNDATION

The victory of Judah was connected to God’s enduring love.

God’s love is not temporary.

He loves His children and protects what belongs to Him.

If human beings naturally protect what they love, how much more does God protect those He loves?

God demonstrated His love by giving His Son so that we could have life—and not merely life, but abundant life.

Key Truth

God’s love is the foundation of our confidence.

We are not fighting for God’s love.

We are responding to the love He has already demonstrated towards us.

18. DECLARATIONS OF FAITH

I am God’s powerhouse.

I have authority.

I am not an underdog.

I am above only and not beneath.

I cannot fail.

I will succeed.

The Lord is with me.

No weapon formed against me shall prosper.

Every tongue that rises against me in judgment is condemned.

Goodness and mercy follow me.

I am connected to Christ.

I will produce fruit.

I will hear God’s voice.

I will receive divine instruction.

I will obey what God tells me to do.

I will see the manifestation of God’s promises.

I am in my valley of blessing.

19. PRAYER POINTS

Prayer 1 — Divine Direction

Father, give me the grace to hear You clearly and understand Your instructions during this season.

Prayer 2 — Spiritual Discipline

Lord, help me to create time for prayer, study and meditation. Help me to remain consistent.

Prayer 3 — Protection of the Mind

Father, help me to guard my mind and remove every distraction that prevents me from hearing You.

Prayer 4 — Victory

Lord, fight every battle that is beyond my capacity and give me victory according to Your will.

Prayer 5 — Divine Exposure

Father, expose anything and anyone around me that is not of You and may work against Your purpose for my life. Give me the courage and wisdom to remove what must be removed.

Prayer 6 — Peace

Father, terminate everything that seeks to disturb or destroy the peace of Your children.

Prayer 7 — Release

Every power holding me back or keeping me bound, let there be a divine release in the name of Jesus.

Prayer 8 — Blessing

Father, let every blessing You have prepared for me become visible and accessible. Let me not miss what You have ordained for my life.

20. CONCLUSION

This season of fasting is an opportunity to draw closer to God.

It is not simply about abstaining from food.

It is about:

Seeking God.
Hearing God.
Receiving His instruction.
Obeying His Word.
Abiding in His love.
Walking in His direction.
Experiencing His victory.

Jehoshaphat’s story reminds us that a battle can be too great for us but never too great for God.

When we seek Him, He can give us the instruction we need.

When we obey Him, He can fight battles we cannot fight.

When we praise Him, we acknowledge that the victory belongs to Him.

And when we remain connected to Christ, we can produce lasting fruit.

Final Declaration

This month, my result will be different.

I will hear God.

I will receive divine instruction.

I will obey His Word.

I will experience victory.

I will not miss my blessing.

I am in my valley of blessing.

The Lord is with me, and I will succeed.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.