Saturday, May 13, 2023

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IDENTIFY

Today’s Reading: 2 Kings 4-5

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

 

Seen in this photo is the Jordan River as it enters the northern part of the Sea of Galilee. In our reading, General Naaman, a leper from Syria, dipped his body seven times in the Jordan and was completely healed. This part of the Jordan Valley is a tangle of dense thorn bushes and tropical vegetation. In the Hebrew Bible it is called the “jungle of the Jordan” (Jeremiah 12:5; 49:19).

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

 

Key Verse: 2 Kings 4:34

And he went up and lay on the child, and put his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands; and he stretched himself out on the child, and the flesh of the child became warm.

Elisha identifies totally with this child. There had been an intervention of God in the child’s birth, and now in his return to life. God, in Jesus, has been involved with all of us, right from the beginning. We died spiritually. Christ, on the Cross, identified with us in our separation from life. He breathed into us the breath of life (John 20:19-22). This may have been a prophetic act by Jesus, predicting the time, seven weeks later, when the breath of God, as a rushing mighty wind, would fill the Upper Room (Acts 2:1-4). The sign of life for the child was to sneeze seven times and open his eyes. The sign of life at Pentecost, which continued throughout the history book of the early Church, was speaking in tongues, and life surged back into those who believed and received.
In today’s reading, the miracle of the oil teaches us that God provides according to our capacity to receive. The miracle of the flour in the pot and the supernatural provision of bread illustrate the power of Jesus, the Bread (flour) of Life, who removes the poison of sin which brings death. The cleansing of Naaman from leprosy is a powerful story of God’s grace when this proud Syrian General humbled himself. The greed of Gehazi, who became a leper, is a strong lesson for us all.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord God, I pray that I will learn from my daily readings. The child in today’s reading opened his eyes as another sign of life. Please open the eyes of my understanding so that I may see with insight all that You would reveal to me. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

God, who healed Naaman, is our God! In the Fall of 1955, Doctors Gamble and Flak of Peterborough, Ontario, told the President and Dean of the Bible College where I was a student in residence that they did not expect me to survive. The students identified with me in fasting and prayer. In my perception it seemed that the school officials were swimming into my dorm room. I was delirious with a fever of 105 degrees. They identified with me in the laying on of hands. I felt immediately like I was under a cooling shower. The fever departed and I got up and dressed, got into my 1947 Plymouth car, drove to the hospital, and asked Emergency to call the doctor. I experienced a miracle! God had one or two things for me to do.

Yours for God’s miracles,

David

P.S. I promised the other day that I would share with you a March, 2000 newspaper article from The Ottawa Citizen about the conversion of Canada’s first Prime Minister. It’s a poor photo of part of the article, but the headline says it all (click on the photo to enlarge it)…

Sir John A

14 thoughts on “Saturday, May 13, 2023”

  1. Good morning saints
    It is good to know that our first and second prime ministers of this great country were born again Christians.
    We need to pray for our current prime minister The Honorable Justin Trudeau from what I understand he’s Catholic.
    We need to pray that God will give him wisdom guidance and direction
    I thank God that our first two prime ministers were godly men and that they serve Jesus they were born again Christians our first prime minister would be for he would start the day he would be on his knees in his office at Parliament Hill
    What a testimony
    We need more prime ministers like those two men to serve lead this great country of Canada
    I would ask for your prayers I’m going to the hospital today I’ve been having chest pain discomfort last few days a time back I developed a cold it lasted for quite a long time and this past week I began to have pains in my chest I don’t think it’s my heart but I think it’s in my lungs
    So I would ask you please to remember me in my prayers
    I mean that you would remember me in your prayers something isn’t right and I need to get it checked out
    Blessings to all today amen 🙏✝️

    Reply ↓

  2. Hi this is Marilyn again I just want to say I need to clarify something when I said I developed a cold a few a few days back I mean it’s it started back in in March I believe it was like March the 20th and it’s I had a really bad cough and cold and but have not just been able to to shake it so I’ve been on well you could say the last 7 weeks to be exact so I just thought I would explain that a little bit further and it’s just hanging on I can’t seem to shake it and so that’s why I need to see a doctor at the hospital at the ER so hopefully I will go well and I will find out exactly what’s going on thank you again for hearing me out amen 🙏✝️♥️

    Reply ↓

  3. Marilyn,
    It is good that you are going to check what is the cause of your chest pain. I pray that God will go before you and lead you to the right medical team who will do the necessary testing to get to the root cause of the pain. May you be at peace during your visit and may there be an easy solution to your concern.

    I am praying also for our Prime Minister and those in authority over our great country. May God be Sovereign over Canada!

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  4. Praying for you Marilyn, that God would touch you and reveal to the Drs the situation. May you be strengthened and released from anything that may be lingering. In Jesus Name, Amen.

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    • Thank you Doreen for your prayers and your thoughts thoughts of comfort lots of face words of faith and comfort
      Bless you 🙏✝️♥️

      Reply ↓

  6. Beautiful, Truthful, and Praiseworthy is the Lord. Thank you for the song, Laur.

    Amen to all the prayers. May God bless and keep You, Marilyn, in Jesus’s name, amen

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  7. Amen to above comments and prayer requests ,Praying your appointment goes well Marilyn , also praying for our present Prime Minister and I am praying for a world wide revival, In Jesus Name Amen .

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  8. Joining with all bloggers in prayer for Marilyn and for our prime minister. And a much needed world wide revival. There is so much evil in the world today. Praying for Godly leadership in our country, in all levels of government.

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  9. May God answer all prayers, comments and requests by the dear saints.
    May God’s Will be done.
    Blessings abundant on all bloggers.

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  10. Thank you my dear brothers and sisters for your prayers I went to the hospital and the cause for my chest pain was I have a viral infection so I was given antibiotics I was given two different kinds of puffers to help me breathe
    So that is my praise report and all I can say is thank you thank you Jesus amen 🙏😊☀️

    Reply ↓

  11. That is such good news Marilyn, praise God from whom all blessings flow!

    I am joining everyone in prayer for our leaders and for our country, and for our world.
    Lord, may we cry out to You, may we hunger for you and seek Your will….in Jesus name.

    Reply ↓

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