HAPPY BIRTHDAY CANADA!!!
Today’s Reading: 2 Chronicles 19-20
Click scripture link to read online or HERE to listen online (then click the symbol of the audio speaker above the scripture portion).
A westerly view of Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. This was Jehoshaphat’s “Parliament Hill.”
GOOGLE MAPS – To see where the photo was taken, click HERE.
Key Verse: 2 Chronicles 20:3
And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.
Jehoshaphat had learned a very hard lesson! When the next crisis came, he began to pray with fasting before he made his plans for battle. After his bad experience with King Ahab, the attack of the Moabites and the Ammonites sent him straight to God. Prior to this he traveled throughout his kingdom and into some territories of the northern kingdom as well, teaching the things of God and bringing the people “back to the Lord God of their fathers” (19:4). Imagine, a political leader who was also a teacher/evangelist. Here in Canada (today is Canada’s birthday) we’ve come close to this model with several of our leaders. Our second Prime Minister, Alexander MacKenzie, was a man of God who not only taught the things of God, but it is recorded that he prayed three times a day, out loud, on his knees with his office door open. The staff crowded around the door to listen in and say “amen” at the conclusion of his prayers. According to the Ottawa Citizen newspaper, our first Prime Minister, Sir John A. MacDonald, found Jesus later in life. Of course, who can forget the longest serving Premier of any Canadian Province, The Hon. Ernest C. Manning, who preached the Word of God on Radio across Canada for 40 years every Sunday morning on what he called “Canada’s National Back to the Bible Hour.” God blessed the leadership of Jehoshaphat, and He promises to bless us too as we learn the lessons for Godly leadership.
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Lord God, I pray on this, the birthday of our country, for Your blessing on our land. Have Your way Lord! Keep this land glorious and free! Please raise up men and women in whose lives You are Lord! Put it in their hearts and minds to lead in “paths of righteousness for Your Name’s sake.” Please forgive me for my failure to stand more firmly for Your will to be done in my country as it is in Heaven. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen!!!
100 PERSONAL WORDS:
On the eve of Canada Day, 2013, Norma-Jean and I had the honour of riding in the landau (carriage) as guests of honour of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police at their Musical Ride (photos below). The magnificent horses performed in an arena with God providing a glorious sunset there in Ottawa. We were the guests of the Chief Superintendent Commanding Officer, National Headquarters of the RCMP, Ronald Mostrey. We were celebrating in this event 50 years of achievement of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award in Canada. This award encourages young people ages 14 to 25, including youth at risk, to make a difference while exploring their potential, taking on new challenges and finding success. The fund raises money to help in the transformation of the lives of youth at risk by developing local community programs in support of child safety, drug awareness, crime prevention, literacy, internet safety, anti-bullying, and victim assistance. I encourage all blog readers to make a donation to the RCMP Foundation, a charity established for this purpose. The RCMP fund and more information can be found at WWW.rcmp-f.ca. I’m so impressed with the good works of this charity that Norma-Jean and I are sending a gift. This could be considered a birthday gift to Canada on her 150th birthday. Happy Birthday Canada!!!
Yours for God to bless the lands where we live and the lands of our births all over the world, Amen!!!
David
P.S. Here are some pictures that the official RCMP photographer took just before and during the Musical Ride. Norma-Jean and I were honoured to ride in the landau (carriage) and sit at the front of the viewing stand four years ago. This was part of the Canada Day celebrations in Canada’s capitol city of Ottawa.
JULY
THE LORD IS SURE
By BESSIE PORTER
“The Lord is sure to accomplish those things
A loving heart has waited long to see;
Those words will be fulfilled to which she clings;
Because her God has promised faithfully;
And, knowing Him, she never can doubt His word;
He speaks and it is done. The might Lord!
“The Lord is sure to accomplish those things;
A burdened heart, rest ever in His care;
In quietness beneath His shadowing wings
Await the answer to your longing prayer;
When you ‘cast your cares’ the heart then sings,
The Lord is sure to accomplish those things.
“The Lord is sure to accomplish those things
O tired heart, believe and wait and pray;
Peacefully, the evening chime still rings.
Though cloud and rain and storm have filled the day,
Faith pierces through the mist and doubt that bars
The coming night sometimes, and finds the stars.
“The Lord is sure to accomplish those things.
O trusting heart, the Lord to you has told;
Let Faith and Hope arise, and lift their wings,
To soar toward the sunrise clouds of gold;
The doorways of the rosy dawn swing wide.
Revealing joys the darkness of night did hide.”
Psalm 19 The Law of the Lord is Perfect w Lyrics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-ykfw3-i7s
Amen Beverlee .
Happy Canada Day! 🍁
This is amazing about the Atlantic Puffins, The Nature of Things:
https://gem.cbc.ca/media/the-nature-of-things/season-55/episode-6/38e815a-009a18f42d6
Thank you Beverlee for a beautiful poem.
Praying for Edward and Eleanor. Praying also for Doreen. Your heart is understandably broken. May God bring you His comfort and peace. He is the healer of broken hearts. You’re also missing your friend Christiana for whom I have prayed also.
Wishing everyone a happy and blessed Canada day. I agree with the comments from yesterday. So much has happened in this country that should never have taken place . However, there is still very much to be thankful for and we should give thanks to Almighty God for the blessings we have enjoyed living in this beautiful country. Let us remember who the enemy is. We are not each other’s enemy but the enemy of our souls would love to bring dissension and divide us.
“God keep our land”! God bless our country!
Praying in agreement with you- all- yesterday, and today: for those suffering with ongoing illness, (including heat wave in BC)🙏🏽; the horrific abuses/ deaths 🇨🇦; and in thankfulness for our Blessings☝🏼
GOD hears our prayers and knows our hearts. To HIM alone, we give honour and praise and glory.
Luisa thank you for your prayers, thinking of and praying for your situation as well, we all need each other. God bless everyone today, happy birthday Canada 🍁
Praise the Lord. His mercy endures forever. Wonderful honour for David & Norma Jean. Blessings on the family and, especially, Norma Jean today. Blessings on all the blog buddies also. His mercy endures forever. Amen
Amen and amen. Thank you for encouraging words and prayers.
Well said Luisa it is Satan that keeps trying to divide our nation
May the Lord bless each and everyone and bring peace for all
Amen. HJR 🇨🇦
I am in agreement with the prayers of yesterday and today! These sins of the past have to be dealt with so God can heal our land . I feel so bad that this is our past history and I can’t even believe that it happened but it did, We must ask the Lord to help us to mend the brokenness. I am praying for revival in all nations . There is so much evil throughout the world, I love Canada. I thank God for the beautiful land I live in. We must pray for forgiveness and healing. Satin is hard at work but our God is stronger. Love to all and Happy Canada Day to all!
Thank You, Lord God, for this day You made. Thank You for all the countless blessings You have given, one of which is living in a country with so many opportunities. Help people to be realistic about themselves and about Life in general. Also help people to learn the lessons from the past, one of which is the wisdom of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, who wrote in “The Gulag Archipelago”:
”If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?”
Help us all, Lord, to recognize and turn from our own wickedness. Help us to seek You with all our hearts and strive to be people who honour You in word and in deed. In Jesus’s great name, amen
Amen to the thoughts and the prayers from yesterday’s post and also for today yet again this has been a different Canada Day as we reflect on the history of our country involving the indigenous people it is really sad that what has happened and I feel for those people they need our prayer and God’s healing 🙏🇨🇦
Amen happy Canada Day 2021
🇨🇦
From the documentary I am watching now, Nahanni River of Forgiveness, these figures are startling:
“From the 1880’s to 1996, 150,000 Indigenous children were sent to church-run government funded “Residential Schools” across Canada. It is estimated 6,000 died from mistreatment, abuse, neglect or starvation.” Truth and Reconciliation Commission 2015