BE BLESSED

Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 2

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

Beit She’an from the top of the tel mound. The most ancient area of the city, where Saul’s body was taken from the wall by the men of Jabesh Gilead, is under the mound. From antiquity to the present can be seen in this photograph.

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

Key Verse: 2 Samuel 2:5

So David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them, “You are blessed of the Lord, for you have shown this kindness to your lord, to Saul, and have buried him…”

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord God, thank You for the people You’ve placed in my life. Help me to always express my appreciation for them, never taking them for granted. Most of all, I’m determined to show my appreciation to You, Jesus, by thanking You for the ultimate favour to me: Your death, resurrection, and constant care. THANK YOU, JESUS! AMEN!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

My heart is filled with gratitude to God and to all those who faithfully pray for me and who support ministry in Jesus’ Name all over the world. During 2010 and 2011, I had the privilege to travel to 180 cities, towns, and villages across Canada to say “Thank You” to as many people as I could find who had supported the Crossroads/100 Huntley Street ministry throughout the years. Norma-Jean and I, along with the ministry team, and particularly all who’ve given their lives to Christ for many years now, say “Thank you! Thank You! Thank You!” Thank You for the past, present and future. I’ve just remembered that I promised yesterday to tell another story from Uganda.

It was just before Christmas, 26 years ago, President Museveni of Uganda had just assumed office and was determined to reverse the curse of the Idi Amin years. God put it on my heart to ask our viewers to send in a small Christmas gift for the orphans of Uganda. Canada did not have diplomatic representation from Uganda, so I called the Ugandan ambassador in Washington D.C. and asked if I could use the address of his embassy to which people could send these gifts, telling him we would pick them up just before Christmas and send them to Uganda. He said, “Yes.” One week later, he called to say that so many gifts had arrived that he could hardly get into his embassy because of them. The American Air Force volunteered a C-130 cargo plane to take the gifts to Entebbe. President and Mrs. Museveni arranged for the gifts to be taken to the TV station where, on Christmas Day, for five hours live, they distributed the gifts to thousands of the children who had been orphaned by Idi Amin’s atrocities and by the scourge of AIDS. On live TV, the President blessed “those Canadians who brought Christmas back to Uganda.” He also thanked the Americans for their help in the transportation of the gifts.

Yours for blessing others!

David

Ugandan children. How can we not do our best to bless them? My son and daughter-in-law, Reynold and Kathy, are now living in Uganda where their ministry, “World Embrace,” is sponsoring a unity movement among the church leaders. Please pray for the success of their mission.

“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!

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. HERE is a link to a playlist of many of these 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.

REACTIONS

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 30-31

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

Around 1100 BC, the Canaanite city of Beit She’an (modern name) was conquered by the Philistines, who used it as a base of operations for further penetrations into Israel. During a battle against King Saul at nearby Mount Gilboa, the Philistines prevailed. 1 Samuel 31:10 states that the victorious Philistines hung the body of King Saul on the walls of “Beth Shan.” Historians believe that event took place in 1004 BC. The ruins seen here are from the Greco Roman period. The hill in the background is the tel of Beth Shan. The fortified city centre was built on the highest ground, and the destruction of the city, again and again through the centuries, raised the hill as they rebuilt the cities many times on top of the ruins of the old cities.

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

Key Verses: 1 Samuel 30:6b, 24

But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God…For who will heed you in this matter? But as his part is who goes down to the battle, so shall his part be who stays by the supplies; they shall share alike.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord God, please guide me in my decisions. I need You so very much to show me how to react in a way that would please You and bless others. Holy Spirit, I ask for You to fill me for this new day with Your wisdom and with the manifestation of the character of Jesus, in whose Name I pray, Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

I’ve read several lines written by Hilda Schnell, which expresses how I’m feeling just now. Here are the last lines: “Your unfailing, unconditional love compels the eyes of my spirit to look up, beyond my faltering steps, and gross weakness, to Your indomitable strength.” I need God’s strength, not just for big challenges but for the little things as well. I was disturbed as I exited the parking lot, following the service at a large church we attended. While I was waiting to get in line, I heard a lady yelling at the man in the car in front of her. He was very patiently waiting for other cars to pass in front of him, and her reaction may have indicated that she needed to go back into church and pray a little longer. I should’t be so judgemental, I know. I’ve been tempted to do the same from time to time. She may have been under pressures that I know nothing about. As I sat there waiting, I prayed for her for the growth of that fruit of the Spirit known as “patience,” and then, thinking about my own reactions, I prayed for myself too.

Yours for becoming more like Jesus in our reactions,

David

THE IMPREGNABLE ROCK

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 28-29

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

Masada is an ancient fortification on top of an isolated rock plateau on the eastern edge of the Judean Desert, overlooking the Dead Sea. Herod the Great built a palace for himself on the mountain and fortified Masada between 37 and 31 BC. According to Josephus, the siege of Masada by troops of the Roman Empire ended in the mass suicide of the 960 Jewish rebels and their families holed up there (approximately 73 AD).

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

Key Verse: 1 Samuel 28:6

And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams or by Urim or by the prophets.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord, I am totally confident that You do speak to me through Your Word and by Your Spirit. Holy Spirit, please continue to guide me into all Truth as Jesus promised You would. Help me to know when You speak metaphorically and when You speak literally. I choose to believe with all my heart that the Bible is Your Word. You have expressed Your thoughts, and because You are God, You have given oversight to the content of Your book. As David prayed so I pray, “Teach me Thy Word, O God.” In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

I’m deeply concerned that we all get it right when it comes to God speaking to us. The Apostle Peter had this same concern (I’ve just taken the time to read all of Peter’s second and last recorded teaching). Peter, to whom Jesus gave instructions to “feed my sheep,” does just that. In 1 Peter 1:15-21, we read that we “have the prophetic word made more sure,” and that, “no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation.” Over the centuries, the private interpretation of Scripture has resulted in all kinds of cults, in self-deceived people who lead others astray. The opposite to “private” is “public.” Publicly throughout the centuries, the doctrines of our faith have been defined and published. The Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed, the writings of the early Church teachers, such as Augustine and others, the writings of the reformers, and yes, dare I say it, the teachings of hundreds of men and women of God who have appeared on the 100 Huntley Street and Crossroads telecasts over the past 50 plus years, who are as Paul wrote to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:14-19…”Rightly dividing the word of truth.” He even names two men who were at that very time perverting the truth because of their vanity. I’ve just read once again Paul’s warnings. He recognized that false teachings “spread like cancer.”

Yours for being careful — very, very careful — to stick close to the historical understanding of God’s Word, the Bible (I’ve also just read 2 Timothy 3:1-5),

David

P.S. Perhaps you can tell that I’m deeply concerned about a drift, sometimes without our knowing, away from the “faith once delivered” (Jude, verses 3-4). Please look up these words and remain faithful to and “contend (do battle) for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.” Please forgive me for being very much over my “100 Words” goal. The reason for more words is my deep concern that God’s children may be deceived in a major way as seems to happen at least once each century. Prime Minister Gladstone of Britain, when Canada negotiated its separation from direct British rule without war, wrote a book called, The Impregnable Rock of Holy Scripture. I believe this very wise man, with whom our Canadian representatives negotiated, got it right. Amen!!!

In front of the Crossroads Centre, which houses the ministry of Crossroads and the TV station, CTS, we placed a large Rock, symbolizing the Solid Rock of Christ and His Word.

JESUS CHANGES EVERYTHING

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 26-27

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

This photo is of the Jordan Valley wilderness (or Judean Desert) looking towards Jerusalem, which is just beyond the horizon.

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

Key Verse: 1 Samuel 26:23

May the Lord repay every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness; for the Lord delivered you into my hand today, but I would not stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord Jesus, in another resurrection chapter (1 Corinthians 15), Your servant, Paul, draws a conclusion from the fact that You are risen from the dead. I conclude with Paul that I am to be “steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.” I pray for Your resurrection power to be released more and more in me to produce in a greater way those results. In Your conquering Name, Jesus, I pray. Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

I’ve stood at the graves of my mother and father, one in Ruperts, Quebec, and the other in Elgin, Ontario. Mother died when I was 12 and Dad when I was 36. I heard the minister say the words of Jesus, “I am the resurrection and the life.” I thought, “It’s true! I believe it!” As I read the words on their grave stones, I’ve exclaimed, “O Lord, the resurrection could happen right now while I’m standing here!” But I walk away knowing that there’s still work to be done.

Bruce Stacey, my son-in-law, created animated video shows called God Rocks, where the rocks speak. Bruce was inspired by the words of Jesus on Palm Sunday, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out” (Luke 19:40). My favourite episode in the series is called “Rez, the Rock that Rolled.” The rock’s name had been “Tombstone,” an unhappy, pessimistic rock. But when he was rolled away by the angels and Jesus walked out of the tomb, his name was changed to “Rez!” His whole nature and outlook on life was transformed. Here is a link to some visuals from that episode (Unfortunately, I’m told that the DVDs of this episode are currently out of stock).

Yours in complete confidence that the stone was rolled away and “He is risen!”

David

The Garden Tomb, Jerusalem.

Many believe that it was inside this “Garden Tomb” in Jerusalem that Jesus’ body was laid. This tomb was originally made for a shorter man, perhaps Joseph of Arimathea, but as you can see on the right, the end was dug out to fit a taller man’s body.

GUIDE ME

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 25

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

The impressive, beautifully preserved Greco-Roman ruins of ancient Jerash, located 80 miles north of Amman, Jordan. This is one of the ten cities of “The Decapolis.” According to Mark 5:20, Jesus was proclaimed here by the man who was delivered from many demons.

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

Key Verse: 1 Samuel 25:32-33

Then David said to Abigail: “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! And blessed is your advice and blessed are you, because you have kept me this day from coming to bloodshed and from avenging myself with my own hand.”

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord God, I need Your guidance constantly. Help me to watch for Your leading in the happenings of my life every day. Help me to listen carefully to Your still small voice within. You said, Lord Jesus, “My sheep hear My voice and I know them, and they will follow Me” (John 10:27). I pray that I will spend sufficient time in reading Your Word and in prayer so I am conscious of the fact that I am in Your presence. I pray this through the Cross of the Lord Jesus. Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

My wife has a life verse from the Bible. It’s Proverbs 3:5 & 6, which tells her, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Over our almost 59 years of marriage, she has quoted that to me hundreds of times. She even wrote a song about it, “He Shall Direct Thy Paths,” which was published by The Gospel Publishing House in Springfield, Missouri. I got the message! I’ve heard solos, trios, and at least one choir sing her song. Even before we were married, Norma-Jean and I agreed together to claim this promise as from God. On her first letter to me, the following Scripture was printed across the top of the page by the printer who had created the stationery: “Rejoice evermore, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). I got the message from God. I knew that Norma-Jean was God’s choice of a wife for me!

Yours for reading and following the directions, God’s Directions,

David

P.S. Here is another 100 Huntley Street “Flashback” segment by my son Ron, which he recorded a while back, leading up to program 10,000. The interview guest was someone who used to be like David in today’s reading…a quick-tempered warrior (click HERE).

THE ROCK OF SALVATION

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 23-24

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

This is En Gedi where David hid from Saul among the rocks and in the caves.

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

Key Verses: 1 Samuel 23:14b, 23:26, 24:12

Saul sought him every day, but God did not deliver him into his hand…Then Saul went on one side of the mountain, and David and his men on the other side of the mountain. So David made haste to get away from Saul, for Saul and his men were encircling David and his men to take them…”Let the Lord judge between you and me, and let the Lord avenge me on you. But my hand shall not be against you.”

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord Jesus, You revealed to David an amazing knowledge of Your suffering and death by crucifixion. I pray that as I wait before You today, You will reveal Yourself to me. May I, by the work of Your Spirit, identify so closely with Your sufferings that I can say with Paul, “I am crucified with Christ,” and “Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

I’m meditating often on the time leading up to Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection during these days leading up to Easter. Think about the following.

At the last meal shared by Jesus and the disciples, only three of the four cups of wine which normally accompany the Passover meal were served. Jesus prayed in the garden, “If it be Your will, let this cup pass from Me, nevertheless not My will but Your will be done.” That fourth cup was received by Jesus as He hung on the Cross. In John 19:29 we read, “Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop, and put it to His mouth. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, ‘It is finished!’ And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.” “Hyssop” was used at the first passover in Egypt to put the blood of the sacrificial lamb on the lintels and door posts. At the very start of Jesus’ public ministry three years earlier, John the Baptist declared that Jesus is “the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). I’ll attach a worship song in my P.S. so that all of us can worship “The Lamb.” I just read Revelation 5:9-14.

Yours for a constant confidence that we, like King David, are in a secure hiding place in Christ, where no enemy can draw us from that ultimate safety,

David

P.S. Worship along with the Hillsong choir as they sing about The Lamb!  (click here for “Worthy is the Lamb”).

The view from the Garden Tomb area towards what many believe to be Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, where Jesus was crucified. This is the north side of the ancient quarry dug into Mount Moriah, the same mountain where Abraham, about to offer Isaac, was told, “God will provide a sacrifice.”  Stones were taken from here to build the Temple. A Muslim graveyard is on top of the hill.

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

THE SWORD OF GOLIATH

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 21-22

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

This sword is on display in the Archaeological Museum of Ancient Corinth in Greece. Here you can see the blade and the guard.

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

Key Verse: 1 Samuel 22:2

And everyone who was in distress, everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented gathered to him. So he became captain over them. And there were about four hundred men with him.

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord Jesus, I choose You as my King. Grant that I may humbly follow You, whatever it takes. I’m Yours! Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

I have watched, from time to time, a very interesting man on the Fox News Channel whose name is Bill O’Reilly. He has written several books, among which are, Killing Lincoln and Killing Kennedy, detailing the historical events leading up to their assassinations. More recently he has written a new book…Killing Jesus. This got my attention. I’m reading the accounts of Jesus’ death from the four Gospels leading up to Good Friday. I feel compelled to pray for Bill. He’s touching the very heart of God in this new book. He’s also touching God’s ancient people, the Jews. I’m putting a copy of my email to him below.

Yours for giving allegiance to Jesus,

David

P.S. Here is my letter I e-mailed to Bill O’Reilly…

Dear Mr. O’Reilly,

Mel Gibson was made out to be anti-Semitic because of the way he portrayed the events leading up to the death of Jesus. I’ve done national TV across Canada for over 50 years. Before the release of “The Passion of the Christ,” I wrote Mel a letter like this one. After the release of the movie I was on TV with three Rabbis discussing their concerns of anti-Semitism. I pointed out that I believed that Mel was ill-informed in some respects, and that this was the reason for the anti-Jewish charges. I consider this to be an open letter which I’ve placed on my daily blog, 100words.ca.

First of all, Pilate’s judgment hall would’ve held a maximum of about 300 people. Jesus was brought before Pilate shortly after the 6.a.m. sacrifices. Almost all those present would have been on the payroll of the High Priest. In no way did they represent the average Jewish person when they cried,”Crucify Him” and when they said, “His blood be upon us and upon our children.” They were under instructions from the High Priest whose office was highly political as well as religious. This has been twisted by anti-Semites in the church and beyond to indict all the Jewish people. What a tragedy!

Secondly, Mel Gibson had only three women weeping when Jesus was carrying His cross to Golgotha. Yes they were weeping, but so was a great multitude. Again this represents the blame some want to put on all the Jews. The facts are found in the Gospel of Luke 23:27 which says, “A great multitude of the people followed Him and women who ALSO mourned and lamented Him.” “Also” shows that thousands of the Jewish people, who were now up and in the city for 9 a.m. from a night in their tents outside the city, were mourning for Jesus.These were the pilgrims there for “Passover.” They had been exposed to the ministry of Jesus in Jerusalem, in Galilee and elsewhere. These people represented the Jewish people, not the paid lackeys of the High Priest. This fact is backed up in Luke 23:48 & 49, “And the whole crowd who came together to that site (Golgotha) seeing what had been done, beat their breasts and returned. But all His acquaintances, and the women who followed Him from Galilee, stood nearby.

I pray that you will have this passed on to you by your team members. I can hope for your eyes to see this. As you can tell I think this is very important for you, the “No Spin” man. The Jewish people are suffering because of the “Spin” of the 3rd and 4th centuries.

I watch you often and have read several of your books. I respect highly all you are trying to accomplish.

David Mainse

“I LOVE YOU!” – Jesus

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 20

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

Dubbed the “Pompeii of the East,” Jerash is an ancient Greco-Roman city located 80 miles north of Amman Jordan. The impressive, beautifully preserved ruins of Jerash include places of worship and other buildings from the Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine and early Muslim periods.

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

Key Verse: 1 Samuel 20:3b & 20:17

But truly, as the Lord lives and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death…And Jonathan again caused David to vow, because he loved him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul.

When death stares us in the face, we tend to focus our minds on the most important issues of life. Loving one another becomes a top priority. Jonathan and David understood this. Their affection was demonstrated in commitment, in keeping their promises, and in their willingness to sacrifice their own lives for each other if necessary. Jonathan, although he was heir to the throne, was willing to give up his own rights because of love for David. The story of David and Jonathan provide a picture of Jesus. Jesus, in fulfilling His destiny, loved so much that He was willing to die. As we approach the time of year when we celebrate the sacrifice of Jesus, we may want to read the Gospel stories. John chapters 13 to 17 is the dialogue between Jesus and His loved ones during the Passover meal. Jesus begins by washing the feet of these whom He loved and ends with His prayer for them in these Words, “That the love with which You [the Father] loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” In these chapters the words love, loves, and loved are spoken by Jesus more than 20 times. Jesus then led His loved ones to the Garden of Gethsemane, where He would be betrayed by one of those He loved, Judas. First John 4:19 reads, “We love Him because He first loved us” (click here for 1 John 4:7-21).

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord Jesus, may my heart be filled with Your love, and may that love be expressed in my love for others. Thank You! Thank You! Thank You! Amen! Amen! Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

In my prayer time I pray for my immediate family by name, and I name before God many others for whom I’m committed to pray. As a boy, I remember at our family altar hearing this prayer and praying it out loud myself: “I pray for those for whom we should pray.” This would include people whose names we did not mention. I thought at the time that if we should pray for them, why not name them. Then I realized that it’s humanly impossible. However, “With God all things are possible!” There is a 24/7 family altar in Heaven where Jesus leads the prayers and in which we participate every time we pray. He knows every one of us by name. He knows us better than we could ever know ourselves, and He prays for us. He prays, not just a general prayer, but prays for me by my name. “Therefore He is able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He ever lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25). He knows us by our names. I’ve just read John 10:1-16. I don’t have any idea how He does it, but I know that every day I put at least 50 names into His prayer meeting. My Father and Mother are right now in that prayer meeting above. I believe they put my name regularly before God’s Throne of Grace. I desire intensely to love others. One of the primary ways I have found to love others is to take the time to pray for them.

Yours for loving one another,

David

P.S. [Originally written on March 27, 2017] Yesterday, Norma-Jean and I attended a Sunday morning service where our son Ron and his wife Ann were preaching together. It was at the New Credit Fellowship Centre on the Six Nations Reserve near Brantford, Ontario. Pastor Ken Sault felt led to honour Norma-Jean and me for our years of TV ministry and the impact it has had on First Nations communities across Canada. He had several of their leaders speak, and then their young people performed a worship “rain dance” as a prayer for God to pour out revival in Canada! (HERE is a short video that Ron shot with his iPhone). They also presented me with a ceremonial eagle feather (see photo below). The Lord gave me the strength to say a few words of encouragement and thanks to these very special people!

Holding my new eagle feather presented by the First Nations people at the New Credit Fellowship Centre.

Norma-Jean and I with Pastor Ken & Sonya Sault and Ron & Ann.

A TRUE FRIEND

Today’s Reading: 1 Samuel 19

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

These are marble heads in the Archaeological Museum of Ancient Corinth in Greece.

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

Key Verse: 1 Samuel 19:4

Thus Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father, and said to him, “Let not the king sin against his servant, against David, because he has not sinned against you, and because his works have been very good toward you.”

PRAYER FOR TODAY:

Lord God, I give my whole life to You for this new day. I’m in Your Word daily. I’m in prayer daily. Please protect me by Your Word, Your Spirit, and by the solid Bible-based teaching of my local church. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen!

100 PERSONAL WORDS:

I’ve given a great deal of thought to what is called “prophesying” in the New Testament Church. Philip, a deacon of the first church, had four daughters who were “prophetesses” (Acts 21:9). I believe that we need to let the Bible interpret the Bible. Revelation 19:10 tells us that, “The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” I also believe that these Philip’s daughters were winning souls to Jesus on the streets of Samaria, where their Dad had a revival (Acts 8). The “Testimony of Jesus” happened on the streets of Jerusalem as recorded in Acts 2. Peter said on that occasion, quoting the prophet Joel, that “Your sons and daughters shall prophesy.” These girls were not foretelling the future. They were not lying naked on the ground like Saul in today’s reading (verse 24). They were telling everyone about Jesus! Witnessing for and about Jesus is the continuing evidence of keeping filled with the Holy Spirit. I don’t think that anyone should claim to be keeping filled with God’s Spirit if they fail to give the “Testimony of Jesus” consistently. Prophecy, one of the gifts of the Spirit, referred to in 1 Corinthians 12:10 and also in 1 Corinthians 14, is for the edification and comfort of believers. I need this gift. Prophesying, as it happened on the birthday of the Church, is something different which continues to happen every time we testify, in order to win a precious never-dying soul to Jesus.

Yours for New Testament prophecy,

David