Monday, April 3, 2017

“THE BEAUTY OF ISRAEL”

Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 1

Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).

 

Barren mountains rise above the ruins of Delphi in central Greece.

GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.

 

Key Verse: 2 Samuel 1:19

The beauty of Israel is slain on your high places! How the mighty have fallen!

There are several ways to read the Bible: (1) critically (2) historically (3) devotionally. In the first consideration, we could abhor the rough “frontier justice” or lack thereof. We can condemn or justify certain acts of which we read. In the second way, we have no reason to believe that the recording of events are not historically correct. Finally, in the third way, devotionally, our hearts can be deeply moved with the spiritual inspiration found in these writings. When we say that the Bible is “inerrant,” we are not saying everything said or done by men such as David is right, nor are the human witnesses to events 100% accurate in what they have recorded, but we are saying that they recorded what they believe they saw accurately. It’s like witnesses in our courts today. If they see everything exactly the same, then you know that they have conspired to change their stories to match each other. When we say that we believe the “verbal inspiration” of the Bible, we are saying that what we read is correct in recording accurately the thoughts of each individual. God oversaw the writing of Holy Scripture. He did not take away the free wills of the writers to express their thoughts as they chose.
We should be inspired by today’s reading to consider the beautiful tribute the poet of Israel, David, gave as a eulogy for King Saul, whom he called, “The Beauty of Israel.”

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord God, please grant that I may respond, as Jesus did, to those who have wronged me. Jesus said, as He hung on the cross, “Father forgive them for they know not what they are doing.” David’s response to the death of Saul, the man who sought to kill him, is a challenge to me. I pray for grace and power to be more gracious in my words. In Jesus’ Name, Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

As I read today of David’s order to kill the Amalekite who brought Saul’s crown to David and lied about his role in Saul’s death, a story that no doubt he thought would curry favour for himself with David, I thought of the tribal societies in parts of Africa today. For example, the brutal, bloody terror of the regime of Idi Amin in Uganda was overturned by the present leader, Museveni. His strong rule has reduced the incidence of AIDS more than in any other country in Africa. The story is told that in his first cabinet meeting, Museveni took out his revolver, pointed it at each of his cabinet members, and said, “If any of you are unfaithful to your wives, I will personally shoot you dead.” He took other measures also, but the point I want to make is that in our culture here in most of the rest of the world, this kind of action is so foreign that I find it hard to understand that the cabinet members actually believed that they would be shot if they were unfaithful. I try to think back 3,000 years and the culture and practises are far more foreign to me than that of modern Uganda. Our son, David Reynold (blog photographer), and his wife, Kathy, are missionaries there. I know that I cannot do anything to help change the ancient cultures, but I’m working in my small way on the modern cultures. I must do my part to share the grace and mercy revealed in Jesus. God willing, tomorrow I’ll share more about the Ugandan leader.

Yours, trying my best to communicate information that is helpful,

David

P.S. Have you watched my video version of 100 Words lately? My son, Ron, has been filling in a lot lately, as I have not been well enough to record them. However, I felt strong enough to tape some with Ron last week, and you can see them online as of April 1st. HERE is the link to access the videos.

This Ugandan grandmother would have lived through the brutal regime of Idi Amin. The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) ravaged Northern Uganda for the last 20 years, causing the population of the north to live in IDP (internally displaced persons) Camps. In the last few years, people have begun returning to their villages.

18 thoughts on “Monday, April 3, 2017

  1. I so enjoyed see Ron and you David doing the vlog together! God bless all grandmothers! Lord I am just overwhelmed with stories of horror, of people hating and fighting. Forgive us Lord this is not he way You wanted us to live!
    I feel very small in this big world Lord, I need Your unconditional love every day Lord.
    I AM IN NEED OF PRAYER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PRAY FOR A LIFEGUARD AT THE POOL HE IS VERY NEGATIVE, PLEASE PRAY THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL ENTER THE HEART OF THIS PERSON AND CHANGE THIS TROUBLED HEART TO A LOVING HEART,. REMOVE THE NEGATIVE SPIRIT MAY THIS PERSON BE KIND, CARING, THOUGHTFUL,
    THANK YOU LORD IN JESUS NAME WE PRAY

    URGENT, NEED MORE PRAYER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    OWNERS ARE PUTTING ON PRESSURE TO INCREASE RENT BY 4 FOLD, BLESS MS AS HE IS PUTTING A CASE TOGETHER TO FIGHT THIS SITUATION PLEASE PRAY THAT THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL ALSO ENTER THE HEARTS OF THE OWNERS AND THAT THEY MAY COMPLETELY FORGET WHAT THEY ARE DOING
    THIS SITUATION IS PUTTING A LOT OF PRESSURE ON TENANTS AS WE ARE ALL LOW INCOME LORD GOD WE NEED YOUR HELP TO DIVERT THIS INCREASE TO NEVER HAPPEN AND THAT THE OWNERS WILL COMPLETELY FORGET THE WHOLE SITUATION
    THANK YOU LORD IN JESUS NAME WE PRAY AMEN
    Reply ↓

  2. “Do not fear for I am with you. Do not be afraid for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you. I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. “(Isaiah 41:10)
    David, I send you this scripture this morning with the prayer that you find comfort in these words today. It has become my daily spiritual food which carries me through all troubles. God be with you.

  3. Sah, I’m so sorry to hear of your rental situation. I’m praying God will work the situation for good.
    How wonderful to see you and Ron doing the videos together. It’s your health has improved. A great father-son team! Ron looks so pleased.

  4. Wonderful to see Ron and your David. Praying for strength and health – so thankful for your daily blog. I am up early every morning to get feed with God’s word before starting my day. I appreciate and thank you God Bless

  5. Great vlog team, Ron and David 🙂 –so inspiring, as is the Word of God, and prayer, this morning. Praying for forgiveness in all hearts and the needs of all saints.

    “Not by might not by power, but by My Spirit,” says the Lord of hosts.
    Zech 4:6 NKJV

    The Stand – Hillsong United (Lyrics)
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4_kaiegpSo

  6. I am praying for you Sah and the tenants of your building . It is good to see you David and Ron sitting together reading the word . It is very encouraging even when the scriptures sometimes can be hard to read.
    I hope that you , and your families have a good day it is nice , and sunny outside even though it is cold the sun warms me.

    • Amen Lianne to your comments for Sah and Pastor David.
      Hope you have a very special day HAPPY BIRTHDAY , May God bless you and all blog friends. Eleanor M.

    • Amen! to your message Lianne.
      Hope you have a very Happy Birthday today.
      May God bless you and all the blog friends.

  7. What a blessing to see father and son together! We thank the Lord for both of you and for your renewed strength Pastor David. After a few quite challenging days with family and community situations, my spirit was so lifted to watch all three vlogs this morning. Ron, you do so well in your fathers stead, we thank you for that. Next week I will visit my 96 year old mother, whom I haven’t seen since November. I know the joy of seeing a parent recover from serious health issues- we can surely sense the delight Ron is feeling to be with his dad on set. I so look forward to seeing mom again, she is doing very well now. Thank you Lord.

  8. Ps Still not getting my blog in my inbox for almost a month now. I am still able to get in on 100 Words sonInsm able to keep up.

    • I finally got one blog yesterday, the first since March 20th. Today, it is missing again. I am just wondering why this is happening…and who can remedy it…even though I can access it through other means….
      Samuel

  9. I too was excited to see you Pastor David with Ron. Praying God will continue to strengthen you each day.
    Praying for your rental situation Sah that God will intervene and change the hearts and minds of the owners. Also for the lifeguard at the pool. So many dark things happening in our world but God is sovereign. I put my trust in Him. Praying for those who need a fresh touch today.
    Our reading today was hard to imagine but thank you Pastor for your insight and clarity.

    Blessings dear saints.

  10. Yes, Lord, forgive them for they know not what they do. I was in Kenya when Ugandans were crossing over into Kenya and telling their testimonies about how they escaped death under Idi Amin’s rule. Yes good to see you have increased strength to be back on the vlog, Pastor David. Good to see the sun here but we still have lots of snow in NB. Believe they are getting more snow today in NFLD. Happy Birthday Lianne! Trust God will answer your prayers Sah! Blessings everyone.

  11. To see you and Ron together, and the joy revealed in each of you, encourages our hearts; and I believe that the Lord will complete that which He began in you, including complete healing, Pastor David!!

    Once again, the wisdom and caring that the David is revealed in today’s Word!!
    Thank you for the photos Rev. Reynold; looking forward to what you will share with us tomorrow about Uganda, Pastor David!

  12. I was great to see Ron and, his dad, David, share in the vlog. May God continue to touch David’s life with his ongoing healing love, renewing him in body, soul and spirit – all through the Name of Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit. That same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead..dwell in you, shall quicken your mortal, physical body. by the Spirit that dwells in you. (Romans 8:11) the verse I always claim for Pastor David.
    The Lord will bless His people with “Strength” and “Peace” (Psalm 29:11)

Leave a Reply to anna Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.