ARISE (01-04-2026)

“In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.” (Matthew 28: 1)

That is the Focal Scripture of Streams of Joy Devotional today.

Our Focal Scripture speaks of how the women arose at the end of the Sabbath, to go to see the tomb where Jesus was interred. Sabbath was a day of rest in bible times. So, after the day of rest, the women arose to go to the sepulcher. The day of rest was over, and they did not extend their rest; they arose and went to work. The day of rest was over, and they dusted themselves off the rest and went to see things for themselves.

Friend, there comes a time when you must arise from your rest and go towards your assignment. Set aside your rest and go for your goals. Set aside your rest and do what must be done. Set aside your rest and step out to hit your targets. Set aside your rest and go forward for the accomplishments you have had in mind since the year began. Set aside your rest and go towards the assignment God gave you. Set aside your rest already.

Rest comes with relaxation. Rest comes with leaving all that needs to be done, so that there can be a state of no activity. To rest is to relax. You may have rested enough in the first quarter of the year, but now is the time to arise and do the needful. Now is the time to arise and take steps that will enable your progress. Now is the time to leave complacency and roll up your sleeves for work to be done. Now is the time to arise.

If you fail to arise, you will become a victim of those who arose. If you fail to arise, you may end up playing second fiddle to those who have arisen. If you fail to arise, you will look back in time to come and regret not arising when you should have. If you fail to arise, you may end up telling the tales of what could have been, but never was, because you failed to act. If you fail to arise, you may not see that Jesus has ‘arisen’.

It is your season of rising. Let go of rest and get to work. Roll up your sleeves, be done with rest. There is a journey to begin and targets to hit.

Philippians 3: 13 says: “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,”

Declare With Me: I arise and press towards my goals; I will not rest when I should be moving, in Jesus’ name!