THE WITNESS/ADVOCATE
Suggested Reading: Job 16-17
Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).
The sun sets over Jerusalem and the Golden Gate, also known as the Eastern Gate. Jesus will one day return to the Temple Mount through this gate that is temporarily stoned-up in an attempt to prevent this majestic entrance.
GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.
Key Verses: Job 16:19
Surely even now my witness is in heaven, and my evidence is on high.
There is a growing emphasis by Job’s friends and by Job himself that God is the Source of these calamities. Job does not know of the existence of Satan, the destroyer. In 16:9 Job says of God, “He tears me in His wrath…” Yet in the midst of all this, Job has a prophetic glimpse beyond his present anguish. He sees with eyes of faith and states that his “Witness is in Heaven.” The New American Standard version says, “My Advocate (evidence) is on high.” We long to say to Job, “Now you’ve got it! You’ve just seen into Heaven. You’ve seen your Lawyer for your defence. You’ve seen Your Intercessor!” Hebrews 7:25 had yet to be written long after Job’s time, but it says, “Therefore, He (Jesus) is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He ever lives to make intercession for them.” Job, Jesus is there as you suffer. You can trust Him completely to bring you through these hard times. We may want to remind Job that he has three Persons on his side who are much more faithful and wise than Eliphaz, Bildad & Zophar. They are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit!
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Lord God, when I am called to minister to a hurting, grieving friend, may I allow God’s Comforter to minister through me. Holy Spirit, I pray that You will help me to join Jesus in His prayer meeting each day, participating in His prayer of intercession. Through Jesus Christ, my Saviour and Lord, Amen!!!
100 PERSONAL WORDS:
I’m interceding for the people of Egypt with fervent prayer. I recently received an email from my first cousin, Rev. Roy Kenny. The churches of El Minia are mentioned. My father and mother established congregations in that area. My sister, Willa Hodgins, was born in Minia. Please join me in intercession! Here is that email…
Friends:
This prayer request below comes from a missionary colleague from past days. He received this e-mail from Egypt. Please mention this situation in prayer in your churches this Sunday and following. I‘ve been to some of those same F.M. churches with Norman Cooke, my brother-in-law. He started a number of bookstores in Egypt–perhaps one of those that has been destroyed. The Church in Egypt has always been under pressure from the Moslems, but this is worse than anything I’ve known.
Blessings,
Roy C. Kenny
Email from Egypt…
I want to share this with you so you can pray for us. Today, the situation in Egypt has become very difficult. At 7 am, the police troops took over the square that the Muslim brotherhood supporters were camping at. As a result of that, all the Muslim fanatics all over the country got very angry and started attacking the police stations and the churches. Many churches were burnt down today in El Minia, Assyut, Suhag, Bani Suef, El Fayoum and Suez. Three of the churches are in my hometown and the villages surrounding us (especially Dalga, where our brother Fayez lives). They have also killed the father-in-law of brother Fadl, the church planter in Dalga. In Dirmawas, they have burnt and stolen 15 different shops owned by Christians. I can hear heavy gunfire in the streets right now, and it has been like that since the morning. I am imprisoned at my house and all the Christians in my hometown are the same way. We can’t go out into the streets because the Muslim fanatics are beating any Christian they see in the streets. I am not scared but I hope the situation will end soon, as it is getting worse every passing hour. They have burnt five different churches in El Minia city and a big Christian school until now. The riots are continuing. Our FM church in Assyut was attacked and they burnt its bus and bookstore as well as the Bible Society there. We need your prayers. Please, share this with everyone you know so we can all intercede for Egypt now.
Blessings,
Hany Salah
Yours for joining Jesus daily in His prayer meeting,
David
We are so insulated here in many ways. This is terrible news about our brothers and sisters in Egypt. I pray that God’s mighty hand would protect the innocent in Egypt, may He sustain those who are under house arrest and provide a calming assurance that ultimately He will guide and that He will have any final word. Lord, please use this difficult time to draw people to your side, many who may never even heard of You before. Please guide the people of Egypt to safety, draw to a close the violence and bring a renewed sense of peace to the land …. I pray in Your name, the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
I find the book of Job so fascinatiing. To think of the sheer wisdom this man held, and probably without any written scriptures. This man was a man of God without a doubt. This book really is deep speaking unto deep. May we all have an ear to hear what the Holy Spirit may be speaking to us personally through it’s words. God bless all blog-buddies and have a great day!
Wise words Scott and may I join your prayer as we bring our brothers and sister in Egypt before THE THRONE? Thank you
We don’t know where and when the fighting and destruction will end, Lord. But, we know you will protect and provide comfort, in this time of heated tension, by your word and our commitment to follow the paths you set before us. Grant wisdom and patience to fellow Christians in Egypt to seek and remain protected from violence until your mighty hand establishes peaceful governance, we pray in Jesus’ name! Amen!!!
my prayer for them is the same as yours Scott
Lianne
Dear heavenly father we are do grateful to wake up to peace in our country , but our hearts are heavy for our dear brothers and sisters in Egypt so we pray for the peace that only you can bring and we thank you for your love to all of your children equally so ee praise you for what you are doing and what you have yet to do in the presious name of Jesus Amen
Thank you for sharing the EMail from Egypt David.
Hard for us to imagine what our dear brothers and sisters
in Christ are suffering .
In today’s reading, 16:20-21 jumped out as a beautiful
description of Job’s intimacy with God. It is my prayer.
V20. My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out
tears to God on behalf of all those who are suffering
horrendous persecution in Egypt. V21 I plead with
God on their behalf as one pleads for a friend. Amen.
Blessings and God’s favor on all today!!!
Faith
What I read about Job and Egypt today makes my own troubles look small. Can’t imagine the suffering our dear fellow Christians are having today in Egypt. I join my heart in prayer with David and fellow bloggers for their peace, safety and deliverance there. Yesterday morning we started a pre-service prayer time and I was praying for Egypt and now I see through this e-mail that is really awful. When I went out to another church last night, I heard that four other churches in the area were having an interdenominational prayer rally for household salvation. Thank you for sharing this blog and the e-mail, David.
Last night before going to bed I felt an overwhelming need to write a poem based on a sermon I heard on television yesterday by Charles Price on Living Truth
For This I Have Jesus.
When night’s embrace holds no comfort
When tears bring no release
When my life is in a shambles
and I am feeling lower than dust
For this– I have Jesus
When no prayer escapes my lips
When praise is lead upon my tongue
When my faith lies in ruins
and I do because I must.
For this– I have Jesus.
When my body is weaken with illness.
When pain is my constant ache
When age steals my health
and I lose the zeal of youthful lust
For this– I have Jesus.
When the terror of my enemies attack me
When friends can no longer be found
When I am lost, afraid and lonely
and I doubt who I can trust
For this—I have Jesus.
And when the grave stands before me
When death awaits my return with glee
When all hope is behind me
and I am facing my Maker–holy and just
For this– I have Jesus.
Never a need forgotten
Never a promise not kept
Love given for all of us
For this– We have Jesus.
Beautiful truth! Thank you, Donna!
I too saw this broadcast and am holing on to this truth FOR THIS…..I HAVE JESUS.
Beautifully written Donna… God has truly gifted you.
Beautiful, Donna–for this, we have Jesus!!
Thank you Donna, your words are a blessing. I stand with all of you in prayer for the people of Egypt, may God send his Holy angels to protect his people, may they be strengthened by the presence of His Holy Spirit. May the scales fall from the eyes of those who are commiting such violence so that they may see the evil and devastation they are causing.
I recently discovered there is a song using the same title so in order to avoid confusion and not to infringe on the title, I am changing the title of my poem.so if anyone copies this and further reference the title will be For This I Have Jesus- One Woman’s Poem.
My heart was heavy as I started in Job ‘s reading today but Jesus lifted my spirits as the example of Job’s life is truly an amazing testament to His trust in God.
Thank you once again Pastor David and fellow blog buddies for your input. We are so very blessed to wake up in safety and let us NEVER take it for granted. Thanks for sharing the email, which I have already sent forward. Standing in prayer for Egypt with all if you. Have a blessed day.
P.S. Missing some of you these last few days.
Thank you one and all God bless you !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Satan is a murderer, thief, and, lier (from the beginning). In the mighty Name of Jesus, I command him to take his hands off of God’s children – he has no right to harm them. Father, in the name of Jesus, I ask that you place your Holy Angels around your children, – protect, provide, direct, bless, and help them. May Your Perfect Will be accomplished. Thank You Lord. Amen
Sounds to me that the unbelievers think that possibly there is SOMEONE who may come through the Eastern Gate – that’s why they blocked it up. May their eyes be opened in Jesus Name.
Yesterday was a difficult day for me. The devil set out to attack me on every level. I was reminded how vulnerable I am as a Christian and that I always need keep my full armor on. I was rekindled with hope at the altar when I heard God’s words in my ears: ‘I love you, my child. I love you, so.’ I shared my thoughts of despair and pain with a trusted friend and she prayed with me. When I returned home, I napped in the sun, then spent the rest of the day working on a lighthouse painting. It is one I have struggled and toyed with all summer. With the blessing of the Holy Spirit painting through me, it is done. I wish I could share it with you. As I look at it, now, I am in tears at the splendor of His love and gentleness of His grace.
I was really struck by Job, today. His words were so poetically majestic, and wise beyond imagination. The faith he held to in God was a knowing; an internal connection with God’s Spirit, which I believe is the transcending power of love. It is a deep knowing and embrace with the Spirit that is felt, on every sense, and level of our being. It goes beyond the senses of sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch; and envelops the “feeling” ability, which many of us share.
Like Donna, I am feeling poetic in the moment; though, it is not a new one:
I cannot say for certain, why the world is,
So colourful on some shores, then so grey.
Why some of us are blessed, with so much comfort,
And others struggle, just to live the day.
I cannot say for certain of misfortune,
Or why some lessons, seem to speak in pain.
I can only place my faith, in my Lord Jesus.
To follow His path, is the only way.
Beverlee Kay, c. 2004
Praying for all our Christian brothers and sisters in Egypt to be protected by God’s Holy Sword and the precious blood of Jesus.
Wisdom born from experience deepens the soul’s understanding. I add my Amen to your prayer.
Great to hear you finished your lighthouse painting. You sound truly inspired in its creation … I can only imagine how beautiful it is. Your prose about His Path was also an inspiration. Well written!
My prayers go up toour Lord for our dear christian friends in Egypt , may the Lord
cover them with His wings and keep them safe from all evil amen…R…
Dear Rev. David M.
Thankyou for sharing with us Pastor Haneh Saleh s email . Will be sharing this email in my facebook and with my church .
Like Beverlee I have also been attacked by satan from every angle possible these past few days . But all is well in Jesus Precious Arms and He especially blessed me yesterday with the best adapted sailing conditions ,perfect winds and a perfect sunshine and having an oppurtunity to witness of Jesus to a young skipper who doesnt know him .
Keeping you all in my prayers .
Have a blessed day to all my fellow saints.
xxxx Carole.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Please pour out your mercy and compassion on your servants and children in Egypt!! Please don’t delay!! Please according to your grace and love, look upon their suffering and deliver them, defend their cause and redeem them, preserve their lives according to your promise, preserve their lives according to your love. We wait for you to act, O LORD. When your children call with all their hearts, please answer them, O LORD. When your children call out to you, please save them. When your children rise before dawn and cry for help, and have put their hope in your word, and their eyes had stayed open through the watches of the night and meditated on your promises, please hear their voices in accordance with your love and preserve their lives. Because you are near! We have faith in you, LORD! May our cries and the cries of your children and servants in Egypt come before you, O LORD!! May our supplications come before you, May you deliver your loved ones in distress in Egypt according to your promise! May your hand be ready to help them for they have chosen your precepts. They long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is their delight! May you restore peace and stability and allow your ministry in Egypt be multiplied even in persecution.
In our precious Lord Jesus’ name, Amen.
Amen Janet, joining your prayer for the people in Egypt.
How are you these days? Always in my prayers and for our other blog buddies.
I have sent this prayer request to my Pastors and friends
Jesus thank you…you are faithful…
Irene
They are removing the righteous from among them and do not understand what this means (Isaiah 57:1).
I just lost my entire blog comment. I left my Droid and when I returned from a phone call. All that was left to do was push send, in stead. I was on my home page. How strange …I had and interesting storey to share about a woman named Susan Lindar. She worked under Pres. Bush during 911 . She is a Christian . Her self published book is called Extreme Prejudice. A must read.
It is very relivent to the events in Egypt and every country involved in the Arab conflicts world wide.
Let me just quickly say she had a Job moment in her life. That lasted for about (off and on ) five years.
She never blamed God for the injustus perpatrated against her bythe people who betrayed her in the US Government.
I will post the link to her storey later. It will SHOCK and AW! you.
And Dido! on your wonderful comments
Blessings to all
M. 🙂
What fools!!! Do they really think that sealing up the Eastern Gate will stop Jesus from getting through? He is a man who can move mountains!!!
I really fervently hope He comes through very soon!!
This world really needs help very soon!! I am very concerned about all the infiltrating going on in the Americas, north and south!! It may be like Germany all over again, unless the gov’t wakes up soon!!
Nancy
Jesus said that if a man tells you that Christ is in one place or in another place, as a man would be, don’t believe him: for he will come even as lightning does come from one place and seen in another. He will also be seen in the clouds of heaven. Knowing this, we can not be deceived by men pretending to be Jesus. The Lord will fight to protect His betrothed bride. He, the Lamb of God, will stand upon Mount Zion for all who believe in Him and for his Father.
Nancy that was my thought to when I was in the holy land.
And yes the infiltration into our nations is astounding , but it has been a slow progression to get to this point. The percentage is in creaseing and that’s why it is becoming evident to even people who normaly don’t or havn’t given that possibility a thought.
Brad so true.
If I don’t hear come up hither or see Jesus appearing in the cloudsthen
it couldn’t possibly be Him.. It has been reported that here are a few imosters on the planet to date, which again demonstrates the truth of the written word.
Beverly ….beautiful words . You and Donna express your inner thoughts and feelings so well.
In response to your grandson,God is using this to make him a MIGHTY man of God.