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Pathways of Life Devotionals The passage in parenthesis is where the lesson is taken from and will give you an overview of the entire Bible in a year, but you will not read through the Bible in a year. I pray that this is a blessing to you throughout the year. Each day has several scriptures listed in order to completely read the Bible through in a year.

May

May 1

1 Kings 14,15 Psalm 36 (1 K. 14:1-13)
"The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come."
Isaiah 57:1
When Jeroboam's son became sick, Jeroboam remembered the old prophet Ahijah and sent his wife to him to see what God had to say about his son. Even though she was disguised and Ahijah could not see well, Ahijah knew who she was. She tried to fool him, but no one can fool God, and God spoke to Ahijah. Why was she disguised? Jeroboam knew that his lifestyle could not be blessed by God, but he thought if his wife feigned to be someone else then possibly she might get a good word from the Lord. But no one can hide or pretend to be something they are not before the Lord.
God said that this son would die. The son's death was not a judgment upon his life, however, but an act of mercy. All the others in Jeroboam's house later were slain and eaten by the dogs and birds, but this son had a proper burial. This young boy was being rewarded because God found some good in him and didn't want him to grow up and be led away from the Lord by a wicked family. It was God's mercy to take him home before he was overwhelmed by wicked influence.
God is merciful in all His doings. Sometimes He takes the righteous to spare them from what May be ahead. If we don't always understand what God does, let us realize that we can trust Him because He is full of mercy and loving-kindness.
We are always so quick to judge others. But we must realize that God sees things differently than we do. Everyone thought that Jesus was being judged by God when He hung on the cross, when actually He was fulfilling what God had sent Him to earth to accomplish. Let us not judge by what we see, hear, and think, but let us judge only as God opens our eyes to see as He sees.

May 2

1 Kings 16,17 Psalm 77 (1 K. 16:20-33)

"And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works."
Hebrews 10:24
The first mention of the marriage of a king from the northern tribes of Israel is Ahab's marriage to Jezebel. The reason God includes this in Scripture is because of the effect that she had on Ahab. Ahab was a wicked king, but Jezebel moved him to do more evil than any of the kings that had come before him (21:25).
Jezebel introduced Baal worship to Israel. Before this, Israel had a paganized worship of Jehovah, but now Baal got the thanks for the rain, the harvest, and all that was good. Because of his wicked wife, Ahab began worshipping Baal and reared up an altar and a temple for Baal in the capital city of Samaria.
A wife can move a husband to acts of wickedness; but by an example of godliness she can cause him to be even more righteous than he already May be. Wives, begin to earnestly pray for your husbands. Men, pray that your wives would provide an extra encouragement to help you press on with the Lord.
When one is considering marriage, a most important question is, "Does this potential mate cause me to want to walk closer to the Lord, or does he/she cause me to neglect spiritual matters?" We need mates that will help encourage us in the Lord. If the one that you are dating does not benefit and motivate you to seek God, then

BEWARE

! Don't marry someone who will later turn out to be a Jezebel. Choose a godly mate and be a godly mate.
Let us today consider how we can encourage someone else to love, serve, and obey the Lord more than they did before.

May 3

1 Kings 18,19 Psalm 89 (1 K. 19:1-21)
"Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?"
Proverbs 20:6
When Elijah received his new commissioning from the Lord at Mt. Sinai, he was told to go anoint Elisha to be the national prophet after him. Most of us would have never even considered Elisha. We would have visited the school of the prophets and picked out a promising young man. But God looks at things differently. God is still looking for those ordinary people that He can use in extraordinary ways. What kind of person does it take? When we look at Elisha, we see several characteristics:

1. Elisha was plowing -

He was content to do whatever God called him to do. It didn't have to be glamorous, but he was content to be faithful with what God asked of him.

2. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen -

He could listen to those in authority, take and follow directions. He could work with other people in unity, without dissension or striving.

3. He was with the twelfth -

He was not afraid to be last and to have a job out of the spotlight and in the dust of the others before Him.

4. He was willing to change -

He was flexible enough to be absolutely obedient, therefore, he burnt all the bridges behind him and began to live by faith.

5. He was willing to serve -

Elisha spent the next ten years of his life being Elijah's servant, not as a national prophet. He learned to be a servant of all and was happy to be a servant if that pleased the Lord.
Elisha was just an ordinary man, yet God gave him a supernatural call because he was faithful in his little tasks. Are you willing to be faithful with what God is asking you to do now, or are you straining to get ahead of God?
God is looking for those who are called, chosen, and found faithful (Rev. 17:14). God will reward our faithfulness. Let us be those who will hear "Well done, my good and faithful servant," no matter how small a job May seem. If we are faithful in the little things, God will be able to entrust us with greater things. May we qualify as Elisha did, so we can be all that God wants us to be.

May 4

1 Kings 20-22 (1 K. 20:20-30)
"For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 8:38,39
When the Syrians came and fought against Israel in the mountains, the Syrians were defeated with a great slaughter. However, the Syrians claimed that Jehovah was a God of the hills, but not a God who was strong in the valley or plain. So the next year when Syria came to fight the Israelites in the plain, God proved that day that He was not just a God in charge of things on the mountains, but that He was in charge of things in the valleys as well.
Sometimes when we are having a mountain top experience with the Lord, it is easier to believe that He has everything in control than when we might be in the valley experience. God was just as much in charge when Elijah was on Mount Carmel calling fire down from heaven, as He was when Elijah was fleeing from Jezebel. From Elijah's perspective, however, it looked like Jezebel was in control.
When things look bleak, when there is a lack of finances, when everyone seems to be against us, and when all we have labored to do fails, let us remember that God is still on the throne. He is always the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. There is nothing that can separate us from the love of Christ, no matter how we feel or how the situation looks. Praise the Lord! He is the Lord of the valleys as well as the Lord of the mountain tops.

May 5

2 Kings 1,2 Psalm 147 (2 K. 2:1-15)
"While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal."
2 Corinthians 4:18
When Elijah was about ready to be translated to heaven, he tested Elisha to see if he really was persistent. In the Hebraic culture, someone would pronounce a blessing and give their inheritance to their successor before they died. Elijah had no natural children, but Elisha was his spiritual offspring. The eldest son would normally receive a double portion of land and possessions from the father.
Elisha knew that Elijah was going to leave him that day. They hiked over hills and mountains and as Elisha began to get worn out, Elijah gave Elisha several chances to settle for less than what God really wanted him to have. Yet Elisha knew that he was called to carry on Elijah's work, and to do that, he had to receive the impartation of the Spirit of God that was on Elijah. Elisha could have relaxed and waited at one of the school of the prophets, but he made sure that he obtained what God wanted him to have.
There are times when we must also lay aside all other things in life in order to build in the spiritual realm. We build in the spiritual realm by prayer, fasting, worship, praise, and acts of obedience to the Lord. Just as Elisha travelled for miles and saw no visible results, we must spend time building in the invisible so that the time will come that what we were pressing for can become a reality in our lives.
Elisha cashed in at the Jordan River. He had followed Elijah for years, but he finally received his mantle. We May have to build in the spiritual for months or even years before we really can see in the natural what has been accomplished. Let us not grow weary or apathetic, but let us keep building in the invisible so that we can see results in the visible natural realm.

May 6

2 Kings 3,4 Psalm 135 (2 K. 3:4-20)
" And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him."
2 Kings 3:15
When Jehoram and Jehoshaphat went to war against Moab, they walked in circles for seven days in the wilderness. After seven days there was no water for the army or for the cattle. Jehoshaphat asked for a prophet of Jehovah, and they brought Elisha to him. When Elisha came, he first asked for some music to be played. As the musician played, the Spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he heard what the Lord had to say to the kings.
Here we see the power of music.

Music can bring the presence of the Lord, or it can carry with it the presence of evil spirits.

Have you ever been discouraged and listened to some anointed Christian music and in a short while been completely transformed? The opposite can happen with music that isn't from the Lord. It can make us depressed, can cause us to think evil thoughts, can loosen our moral standards, and cause us to forget about God.
The music we listen to affects our life and actions. Let us never settle for anything but the best--music that brings us into the presence and anointing of God, which is the criteria for all who want God's best. We need to listen to music that draws us into a deeper relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to surround ourselves with music that causes praise and adoration of Jesus to come from our hearts.
Music has great power. Let us carefully screen out all that doesn't draw us closer to the Lord and replace it with music that invites us to worship Him.

May 7

2 Kings 5,6 Psalm 124 (2 K. 6:8-23)
" If God be for us, who can be against us?"
Romans 8:31
When the king of Samaria found out that his planned attacks on Israel were foiled by Elisha, he decided to attack Elisha. When the armies of Samaria surrounded Elisha, his servant was frightened. But Elisha knew that God was on his side, and he prayed for his servant to see that as well.
How many times do we feel overwhelmed by our circumstances and situations? Yet, if we just stop and realize that if we are walking with God, then He is on our side, we will have a peace beyond our natural comprehension. Many times we just look at the natural aspect and forget that God is is control of all the areas of our life.
If God be for us, who can be against us? There is only one security in life: not a bank account, not a house, not a job, not anything except a living relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. What are you trusting in for security? Or to put it another way, do you spend more time striving to heap up a bank account or cultivating an intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ?
Let us continually align our lives with the Lord Jesus and His Word. May our life center around Him, not our job, money, etc. He is the only real security available in the world.

May 8

2 Kings 7,8 Psalm 126 (2 K. 7:1-16)
"Turn again our captivity, O Lord, as the streams in the south."
Psalm 126:4
While Syria was besieging Samaria, there was a great famine in Samaria. Women were eating their children, and a donkey's head sold for eighty pieces of silver. Yet Elisha said that in twenty-four hours the situation would be completely reversed. He said that on the following day two measures of barley would be sold for a shekel, and a measure of fine meal would be sold for the same. There was one man, the king's right hand man, who did not believe that God could completely reverse the situation around in one day. Therefore, Elisha told him that he would see it, but not eat of it.
Today many of us may be in a financial, emotional, or spiritual famine. We need to believe that God can change our situation around with just a phone call, a knock on the door, or a letter in the mail. God is a God who can turn a famine into a feast in a moment. He delights in doing that which no man can do.
Are you in a spiritual famine? Just one meeting with God can open up the windows of heaven. The Psalmist asked the Lord to turn his captivity as the streams in the South. The southern streams in Israel are desert streams; they only flow when Jerusalem gets rain in the winter. Then the water flows down towards the Dead Sea at a tremendous speed forming high walls of water that rush down over the hills in the South.
The Lord can turn our captivity as quickly as the dry desert riverbed becomes a mighty torrent. "Yes, Lord, come and turn our captivity, whether natural, emotional, or spiritual, as the streams in the South."

May 9

2 Kings 9,10 (2 K. 10:11-32)
" if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee ."
Deuteronomy 28:1,2
Jehu was a man full of zeal for the Lord. He was anointed by one of Elisha's prophets and commissioned to smite Ahab's household. Jehu obeyed the word of the Lord and killed Ahaziah, enacting God's judgment on him. He also killed Ahab's seventy sons as he was told to do.
After this, Jehu, pretending to be a Baal worshipper, invited all the prophets of Baal to a feast. When all the worshippers of Baal were in the temple, he sent his soldiers in to judge them, leaving none alive. Jehu then turned the house of Baal into a public toilet, thus desecrating the idolatrous worship. However, Jehu did not depart from the sins of Jereboam, for he did not depart from worshipping Jehovah in the form of golden calves.
God spoke to Jehu and gave him a blessing for executing judgment against Ahab. but it was only a limited blessing--to the fourth generation. God had given David an eternal blessing because David followed the Lord in all his ways. As a consequence of his actions, Jehu limited the amount of blessing God could give him.
Many of us have only a limited blessing in our lives because we obey part of God's Word, but not all of it. We serve the Lord, but not wholeheartedly. God commands us to walk in all His ways so that we might have His blessing. Let us not limit God's blessing in our lives by clinging to certain areas of our lives that God desires to deal with. God wants to give His children a full blessing. Let us not limit it by a half-hearted commitment.

May 10

2 Kings 11,12 Psalm 146 (2 K. 12:7-18)
"Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy."
1 Timothy 6:17
It is interesting to note how different kings of Israel responded when attacked by the enemy. Some sent money to hire another nation to come help them. Some kings, like Jehoshaphat and Hezekiah, went and sought the Lord's help. Whenever a king sought Him, the Lord always gave them a great victory, and then He was glorified.
When you come up against a difficult situation, where do you turn for help and deliverance? Do you immediately try to figure out what you can do or buy with your money, or do you begin to cry out to the Lord for help and deliverance? There are some who always wait to turn to the Lord as the last resort.
In today's reading, Joash sent the money and the holy things in the house of God to the king of Syria when he was set to attack Jerusalem. That was responding to a situation without God. He would not have had to have given the gold and silver to Hazael, for God was always faithful to help His people when they called out to Him. Yes, Hazael did turn away from attacking Jerusalem, but there was a better way available.
We need to learn to respond to situations by first seeking the Lord for deliverance and help, instead of always trusting in our finances, friends, or popularity. Let us always turn to the Lord even if we can change things ourselves. We don't want to settle for anything less than the best that God has for us. Joash only appeased the enemy for a time. He did not have that lasting solution. When we take things into our own hands, we can be sure that we will get a second rate solution, and the situation will appear once again.

May 11

2 Kings 13-15 (2 K. 14:13; 15:23,24)
"And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works."
Revelation 20:12
In giving the list of the kings of Israel and Judah, the kings were compared to other kings before them. The kings of Israel were compared to Jereboam, for Jereboam caused Israel to sin. None of the kings of Israel departed from the sins of Jereboam. The kings of Judah, however, were compared to their predecessors in Judah. If they were evil kings, they were compared with evil kings. If they were godly kings, they were compared with David or Uzziah, who were righteous kings.
In Second Kings 14:3, we are told that Amaziah did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord, yet not like David did. Here was a king who wanted to obey God, but he only served the Lord half-heartedly.
What will people remember us for? Will they say we were righteous in all we did, or will the general consensus be that we loved God but did not really follow God's ways with all our heart? Each day that we live we are writing our epitaph for eternity. Let us make sure that all we say, do, and think will leave a record that we can rejoice in, not one that will leave us in tears. We must begin to live with eternity in mind so that when the books are opened (Rev. 20:12), we have nothing to be ashamed of.

May 12

2 Kings 16,17 Psalm 130 (2 K. 17:1-18)
"And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?"
Matthew 7:3
We all tend to compare ourselves with others. If we think we are "better" than others, we try to justify our actions as not being as bad as others'. Hoshea was the last king of the northern kingdom of Israel. He did evil in the sight of the Lord, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him. He, like us, probably would have been tempted to compare himself to the other kings that had ruled before him. He May have thought that the judgment of God would not come upon him because he was not as bad as the others. But God judged Israel during Hoshea's reign by having the king of Assyria carry Israel away captive into Assyria.
Hoshea did not compare his life with God's Word. If he had done that he would have realized that God does not ask us to be a little better than the others, but He requires that we completely repent and forsake all of our sin. All sin will be completely judged. We dare not justify ourselves nor appease our conscience by comparing ourselves to each other.
Do you put others down? Do you ridicule and attack the sin of others while neglecting the areas in your own life that are causing the Lord grief? We will be judged for our sins, not someone else's sins. May we learn to go to God in repentance, confessing and forsaking our sins, in order that we May appear spotless before the Lord at His coming. Do not try to fool yourself as Hoshea did by thinking that God will compare us with others instead of His holy commandments.

May 13

2 Kings 18-20 (2 K. 19:35 - 20:18)
"In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."
1 Thessalonians 5:18
There are many lessons that one can learn from the lives of the kings of Judah and Israel. In today's reading, we see the struggle that Hezekiah had with Assyria. This was a struggle that lasted for years, but it finally ended in a single night as God smote 185,000 in the camp of the Assyrians. Praise the Lord; He can turn around a long bitter trial in a moment by His miracle working power.
After Hezekiah's great victory, he was healed of a deathly sickness, and God granted him fifteen more years to live. God also gave him a sign by moving the sun backwards across the sky. God had shown him His power, but after these great victories a test came (2 Chr. 32:31). Ambassadors from Babylon came to ask about the great wonders that God had performed in the land. Hezekiah's heart was lifted up, and he did not give God the glory (2 Chr. 32:25,31).
It is easy to become proud after God uses us in a mighty way or after God does a notable miracle in our lives. After great victories, let us always give all the glory to the Lord and lift up Jesus. After a victory, we must be on guard. A test of humility will soon follow.
Let us not be proud and unthankful and cause the anger of God to arise against us. But let us always give the glory to Jesus Christ who is the giver of every good gift that we May ever have.

May 14

2 Kings 21-23 (2 K. 21:1-16)
"Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your fallow ground: for it is time to seek the Lord, till he come and rain righteousness upon you."
Hosea 10:12
Manasseh, one of the kings of Judah, was known for his wickedness. Manasseh built altars to Baal, worshipped the sun, moon, and stars, practiced witchcraft, and set up idols in the Lord's house. Manasseh also shed much innocent blood in Jerusalem, in fact, tradition says that he was responsible for Isaiah's death. Second Chronicles 33:10-20 gives us more detail into Manasseh's life.
Because of his great wickedness, Manasseh was bound with fetters and carried to Babylon by the king of Assyria. But when Manasseh was in affliction, he sought the Lord and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers. God heard him and brought him again to Jerusalem, and Manasseh tried to undo what he had done earlier. He took away the strange gods and the idols out of the house of the Lord and repaired the altar of the Lord. When he had done that, he commanded Judah to serve the Lord God.
Yet the damage had been done. A crop had been sown, and it was yet to be reaped. Idolatry had filled the hearts of the people, and they did not wholeheartedly repent as Manasseh did. Thus, God would have to remove them out of their land.
Here are two lessons that we can learn from Manasseh's life. First,

no matter how bad we might sin, there is forgiveness with God.

You cannot be too wicked for God to change your life. Just humble yourself before the Lord, confess and forsake your sin, and He will give you a new life.
The second lesson from Manasseh's life is summed up in the law of sowing and reaping.

What we sow in people's lives is impossible to retrieve.

Manasseh returned and began sowing good, and he caused Josiah to have a righteous reign, but something else had been released that would come out in the years to come.
When we sin, we affect others. We can sow evil, or we can sow righteousness. Each will yield a crop in our lives and a crop in the lives of those that know us. Let us sow good that we May reap a harvest of mercy.

May 15

2 Kings 24,25 Psalm 64 (2 K. 25:27-30)
"If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?"
Hebrews 12:7
King Jehoiachin was taken captive into Babylon. For thirty years he sat in the prison house, but one day Evilmerodach opened the prison and released Jehoiachin. Not only did he release him from prison, but he gave him a throne above the throne of the kings with him in Babylon.
Thirty-seven years is a long time to stay in prison, and Jehoiachin must have given up all hope of being released. During those years of loneliness, cold, and hunger, God must have done a work in his heart that caused God to have him rescued from a dark, miserable life.
Are you locked into a circumstance or situation that is "just killing you?" God May be trying to get at some bent towards evil in your life. You don't have to stay in prison for thirty-seven years but begin to expose your heart to the Lord daily, cry out for Him to change you. Then, your day will come when you graduate just as Jehoiachin did.
Joseph was another man that was placed in a prison for a time. Yet when he came out of the prison, he went right to the throne. God wants to so work in our hearts that we who suffer will also reign with Him. May we learn the lessons that God wants us to learn in the midst of the trial that when we come out of our prison, we can truly reign with Christ in this life and in the life to come.

May 16

1 Chronicles 1-4 (1 Chr. 4:9,10)

" let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us ."
Hebrews 12:1

Tucked away in the midst of seemingly endless genealogies, we find a Biblical character named Jabez. Jabez rises out of obscurity to be given special attention among the genealogical records. Scripture says that he was more honorable than his brethren. What made him stand out from the rest of the crowd?
The Bible says that his mother named him Jabez (meaning pain, grief, or sorrow) because she bore him with sorrow. In other words, Jabez was born during troublesome times, and he was just another problem. He was an unwanted child. His mother had enough problems without a screaming baby coming along.
But Jabez became more honorable than his brethren, for he cried out for the Lord to bless him indeed, to enlarge his coast, and to be with Him. He also asked God to keep him from harm that it (evil and harm) might not grieve or pain (literally "Jabez") him. He was more honorable because he cried out to God to change him from what everyone called him from his birth. Jabez got ahold of God and would not let Him go until all the bondages were gone from his life.
Do you desire to be honorable in God's eyes? Ask God to change that character trait that has always plagued you. What is your name? Is it "filthy thoughts," "rebellious," "stubborn," "coveteous," "immoral," or something else? Let us be like Jabez who was not satisfied to stay the same, but he cried out to God, and God granted him that which he requested.

May 17

1 Chronicles 5,6 Psalm 149 (1 Chr. 6:31-33)
"God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
John 4:24
Did you ever notice how many Psalms talk of praising the Lord? Time after time we are commanded to praise the Lord. In fact, the most quoted commands all throughout Scripture are to praise, bless, worship, magnify, glorify, or exalt the Lord. If worship and praise is so important, we must find out how God wants us to perform this task.
John 4:24 says that we must worship in spirit and in truth. This has several aspects. To worship in spirit means that our worship must come from our innermost being, not just from our mind. God wants worship that gushes from the heart, not mental affirmation. To worship in truth means that we must worship God without hypocrisy, but it also means that we must worship God the way His Word says, for His Word is Truth.
Psalm 149 tells us different ways we are to worship the Lord. Note the different ways: by singing a new song, by dancing, by praising, and by playing the timbrel (tambourine) and the harp.

There is great power in spiritual worship.

Psalm 149:8 says it binds kings with chains. Worship is so powerful that it can bind demons and fallen angels, referred to as kings and nobles.
Worship is not just sitting in a church service and singing two hymns. Read through God's Word and find out what kind of worship He wants, and then begin to delight the heart of God as you worship His way instead of your way.

May 18

1 Chronicles 7-9 (1 Chr. 7:2-11,40)

"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds."
2 Corinthians 10:4
The register in First Chronicles 1-8 is a register of those who were able to go to war and to battle. The Scripture says that they were mighty men of valor, apt to war, archers, fit to go out for war and battle, and valiant men of might. They were warriors.
God calls us to war as well. Although we don't fight flesh and blood, we do battle spiritual forces of darkness and wickedness. Because of this, we are called to fight battles with spiritual weapons, not with carnal weapons. The weapons of our warfare are mighty and able to pull down the strongholds of the devil. God calls us to use spiritual weapons--prayer, faith, the Word of God, fasting, acts of obedience, righteousness, praise, and worship--to battle wicked spiritual forces.
We must be careful that we don't try to use carnal means to reach a spiritual end. The end does not justify the means (that philosophy is humanism). We must build the way God designates, not the way we desire. Let us be careful that we do not take the world's music and programs and try to add spiritual words to them to appeal to the lost.
God has called us to war with spiritual weapons, not carnal weapons. A church or ministry built on a program that adopts the world's ways of success will not be one that is pleasing to God. Let us fight with spiritual weapons, so we will get spiritual results. No matter how attractive the carnal weapons of the world May be, let us stay away from them.

May 19

1 Chronicles 10-12 (1 Chr. 12:23-38)
"Teach me thy way, O Lord; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name."
Psalm 86:11
After the death of Saul, various tribes of Israel came to make David king. They all came as a group with a united heart to make him their king. In Chapter 12, God specifically pointed out the tribe of Zebulun by saying that they were not of a double heart (v. 33).

What does it mean when someone has a double heart?

He tries to serve two masters, and a conflict results. On one hand, he May want to serve God, yet, he also has a love for many other things as well. Therefore, the double-hearted person vacillates as his emotions are moved. At a moving altar service, he will leave one commitment and serve the other. In Psalm 86:11, David asked God to unite his heart so that he would fear God and would not be double-hearted.
James 1:6-8 says a double minded man is unstable in all his ways and will not receive anything of the Lord. As our hearts are set on one purpose, so also our minds must be set on one purpose. When we ask God for wisdom, let us not waver in unbelief, being tossed like the waves of the sea, but let us be men and women of faith. Jesus said that a house divided against itself will fall.
Let us ask God to give us a united heart and a single mind so that we cannot be shaken from that which God has for us. Are you one that vacillates? Ask the Lord Jesus to give you a unity and a faith within you that will stand against any attack of the enemy.

May 20

1 Chronicles 13,14 Psalm 44 (1 Chr. 14:8-17)
"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God."
Romans 8:14
We are all people who like formulas. If someone could give us step one, two, and three to solve a problem, we would be glad to use that formula. But God is not interested in giving us formulas for success, rather He is interested in developing a relationship with us. He desires that we come to Him in every area of our lives, not just having us use a principle or formula without asking Him for guidance.
When David went to battle against the Philistines, he inquired of the Lord and He said to go up against them. As David did that, he was overwhelmingly successful. However, the Philistines came up against Israel a second time in the same valley. There would have been a great temptation to say: "I know how this works. I have been in this same situation before. The formula worked last time, therefore I'll just plunge ahead again in the same manner." But God had a different plan for David the second time. As David asked God for His plan, God told him to circle behind the Philistines and just wait. As David obeyed the Lord, he again smote the Philistines.
God wants to lead us by His Holy Spirit. Many times we try to apply a scriptural principle to a situation without asking God. The result is that we apply the wrong principle and miss God. He wants to develop a relationship with us, not just give us a set of principles to use without His direction. Let us use His principles under the direction of the Holy Spirit.

May 21

1 Chronicles 15,16 Psalm 100 (1 Chr. 15:1-29)
"Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit."
Psalm 51:12
When David brought the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem, it was a time for rejoicing. The manifest presence of God was coming to dwell with them. Chapter 15 says that the ark was brought back with joy (v. 16) and in due order (v. 13). Accompanying the ark were singers and instrumentalists on psalteries, harps, trumpets, and cymbals. The Israelites had a celebration of worship and joy. They brought the ark up with shouting and with great noise. During this time, David began leaping and dancing for joy as he praised and worshipped the Lord with all his might.
What a contrast from the way many of us were brought up to worship the Lord. We would probably be disgusted with all the noise and commotion. After all, isn't quietness next to godliness? How can someone worship the Lord with all that noise?
The people were much too noisy and demonstrative for Michal as well, and she despised David in her heart. She thought David had made a fool of himself and had embarrassed her with his actions. The problem was that God was not nervous or embarrassed with David's exuberance. Michal was barren for the rest of her life (2 Sam. 6:20-23), because she despised David in her heart.
Do you despise shouting, dancing, joyous singing, and clapping? God has promised to rebuild the tabernacle of David in the last days as it was built in the days of old (Amos 9:11). He's not rebuilding a physical tent, but a spiritual one. How will He rebuild it? You can be sure that the kind of worship in Second Chronicles 15 will be involved.
Let us not be like Michal and hide behind a window, despising freedom in worship, but let us join in, asking God to give us a freedom in the Spirit that we have not had in the past.

May 22

1 Chronicles 17-19 (1 Chr. 17:1-15)
"And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own?"
Luke 16:12
David had accomplished many things in his short reign as king. He had defeated the Philistines and had brought the ark of the covenant back to Jerusalem. Saul had not cared about God's presence, but David longed to daily live in God's holy presence. All that David did, God blessed, for he was pleasing to God. In today's reading, David desired to build the Lord a house (temple). God had always dwelt in a tent, and David wanted to honor God by building Him a house.
However, God told Nathan that David was not to build a house, but Solomon would build it. God had given a desire and a vision to David for a house of God, but he was not to build it.

A limitation was placed upon David's life.

Did David complain and pout? No! He spent the rest of his years gathering materials for the structure, and he received from God the plans for the temple as well. He was content to labor for another man's project and calling.
God has placed limitations on every person's life. Will we rebel and pout, or will we accept the limitation and build from there? God May not have called you to be a pastor, but are you willing to pour in your time, money, and strength to fulfill another man's calling? May we learn to pour out our lives so that another can fulfill what we May have a burden for, but are not called to perform.

May 23

1 Chronicles 20,21 Psalm 144 (1 Chr. 20:1-8)
"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it."
Proverbs 22:6
One thing that David is noted for is the slaying of the giant Goliath. When just sixteen years old, he went against Goliath and slew him by cutting off his head. Now, years later, we see other men that are slaying giants. David made a breakthrough in warfare and faith, and then he trained others to follow. He raised up an army of giant slayers. No longer did giants cause fear and trembling in Israel like Goliath had. Although the giants May have been just as powerful as Goliath, they were not looked at as an unconquerable enemy.
Likewise in our lives when we have breakthroughs in righteousness, our children will have the faith to overcome the same problem. Our children (spiritual and natural) will be like us. May we let God deal with those problems that we have never overcome so that our children will be overcomers in that area as well.
The more that we have breakthroughs, the higher our children will reach in the Lord. David raised up an army of giant-slayers. What kind of army are we raising? The victories that we have in God will be areas that we can help others to have victory as well. Let us fight the fight of faith, overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil so that those that follow us can live in victory too.

May 24

1 Chronicles 22-24 (1 Chr. 22:1-5)
"A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished."
Proverbs 22:3
In David's last years, he prepared abundantly for that which was going to take place after his death--the building of the temple by Solomon. Although David did not get to see the temple, he prepared for it. He acted with prudence. Prudence is being cautious and wise in conduct, discreet, and dictated by forethought. He put wisdom into practice.
Do you use foresight to govern your actions? Proverbs 22:3 shows us that the prudent man can look ahead and see the danger of certain actions so that he can stay away from them.

A prudent man plans with the future in mind.

Matthew 6:19,20 tells us that we are not to lay up treasures on earth, but we are to lay up treasures in heaven. Only heavenly treasures are secure. Proverbs 6:6-8 instructs us to learn from the ant, for the ant gathers her food in the summer and in the harvest so that she will not starve in the winter months. She looks ahead and makes provision for the future. The ant cannot save for eternity, but we can.
Today, let us ask God to help us do the things that will be of benefit from a long-range vantage point. Let us store up treasures of kindness towards others, loving deeds, prayer, and praise. We can be sure that God will reward all that we do. We know that if God judges every idle word (Mt. 12:36), He will also reward every smile or cup of water given in His name. Let us be prudent and live with eternity in mind.

May 25

1 Chronicles 25-27 (1 Chr. 27:25-34)
"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."
Matthew 6:6
In the midst of a tedious list of unfamiliar names, we find a man named Joash who was over the cellars of oil. In this little sentence, we find a valuable spiritual truth. The cellar speaks of the place where no one sees you. It is a damp, dark, musty place, not a glamorous, inviting, attractive ministry. Oil speaks of the anointing of the Holy Spirit and the joy that results from the Holy Spirit moving in our lives (Isa. 61:1-3; Ps. 45:7; Rom. 14:17).
This is a picture of those in the church who are willing to take jobs that have no glamour, yet they are a vital part of the ongoing operation of the church of Jesus Christ.

Too many Christians only work if they get proper recognition.

But God is desirous of those who labor for Him and His kingdom, not for the recognition of man.
Without the cellar ministry of prayer, there will be no oil to burn in the church of God. In Old Testament times, the keepers of the oil supplied the means to light up all of Zion. Without this ministry there would have been no candlestick to burn in the Holy Place.
Are you willing to be a Joash? Will you be one who takes this prayer ministry even though no one ever recognizes you? Let us learn to labor for God and not for man, then God who sees in secret will be able to reward us openly.

May 26

1 Chronicles 28,29 Psalm 39 (1 Chr. 28:11-21)
"Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days ."
Psalm 39:4
As David was preparing for the building the temple, God gave him the pattern of how to build it. As he would spend time worshipping and waiting on the Lord, God showed him the plan for the temple. In the end, David had the pattern for the whole structure, for the Lord made him understand by the Holy Spirit all the works of the pattern. Because David had the plan, he knew how to prepare, what materials to gather, and how much of each to lay up in store. His knowledge gave him direction for preparation.
First Corinthians 6:19 tells us that our body is the temple of the Holy Ghost. We have each been born for a specific purpose. Each of us is a unique member of the Body of Christ. It is important for us to know what God has called us to do and what gifts He wants to develop in our lives. Just as David received the pattern by the Spirit, so we must spend time waiting on God to find out what He has in store for us.
Maybe God has called you to be a pastor, evangelist, youth worker, or business man.

We must begin to seek God for the pattern He has for our life.

He will not show us every detail, but He will show us enough to direct us in preparing for what He has planned for us. Just as there were different aspects to the building of the temple, so also there will be different progressions in our lives.
May we make sure we know what God wants us to do now, and use the time that we have to prepare for the future. Let us, like Moses cried, ask the Lord to " teach us to number our days, that we May apply our hearts unto wisdom" Psalm 90:12.

May 27

2 Chronicles 1,2 Psalm 123 (2 Chr. 1:7-12)
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."
Matthew 6:33
After Solomon's kingdom was secured, the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him to ask whatever he wanted. Solomon asked for wisdom and knowledge in order that he might be able to rightly rule those in God's kingdom. He didn't ask for riches, honor, or long life. Because he asked for wisdom, God said that He would also give Solomon riches, wealth, and honor like no other king in Israel had ever had.
Jesus said that if we seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, He will take care of all our other needs. Many times we get so caught up with the cares of ourselves that we leave out God and others. Solomon asked for a gift that would benefit others and would provide security for them. His eyes were not on personal gain.
If the Lord appeared to you and asked you to state any request, what would you ask for? Be honest! When many of us pray,

we pray only for our needs and wants

leaving out what God wants us to pray for and neglecting the needs of others. May we begin to pray, asking God what He wants us to ask for, interceding for others, and yet bringing our needs to the throne as well. Let us be kingdom conscious, concerned with our Father's kingdom, not just with our own little world.

May 28

2 Chronicles 3-5 (2 Chr. 5:1-14)
"The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts ."
Haggai 2:9
Solomon finished the temple in the seventh month--the time of the feast of tabernacles. When the temple was completed, 120 trumpets sounded, and everyone lifted up their voice making one sound praising God. As they did this, the glory of God filled the house in such a way that the priests could not stand up to minister.
The feast of tabernacles is the last feast of the year for the nation of Israel. This feast is typical of the end times for spiritual Israel, the church. We see at the end of the church age that Jesus will have a church that is complete, without spot or wrinkle (Eph. 5:27), a church built of living stones--the saints of God.
Also, God is leading the church into a spiritual celebration of the feast of tabernacles. God is causing the people to be as one (5:13). Great joy is being brought back into the church. In verse thirteen, we find the congregation lifting up their voice to be heard as one sound. The renewing of the Holy Spirit has caused thousands of congregations to begin to worship in the Spirit, lifting up their voices in spontaneous praise so that it sounds like one sound to anyone who is listening. The glory of God was manifested at the feast of tabernacles like never before. In these last days, the church will see the glory of God like they have not seen in the past.
Are you moving in God towards the feast of tabernacles? Are you entering into worship in the Spirit and living in unity and love towards other believers? When the church is one as Jesus prayed in John 15, the glory of God will be evident to all. Let us make sure that we partake of the feast of tabernacles that the church is about to fulfill in these last days.

May 29

2 Chronicles 6,7 Psalm 22 (2 Chr. 6:1-11)
"And I will give thee the treasures of darkness that thou Mayest know that I, the Lord, which call thee by thy name, am the God of Israel."
Isaiah 45:3
In Solomon's prayer, he mentioned that the Lord said that He would dwell in the thick darkness (6:1). One thing that darkness symbolizes in Scripture is a time when circumstances or situations look hopeless with no way of escape. The situation May appear as if God has forsaken you and left you to be consumed by the enemy. Yet, God has said that even in situations where you don't feel or see God's hand on your life, or sense His direction, He is still there.
Jesus said, " lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world" (Mt. 28:20). Then why do we go through these times of spiritual, financial, or emotional darkness? One reason is so we obtain the "treasures of darkness." When one goes through dark times and comes out on the other side victoriously, something is implanted in his heart. A faith in God's faithfulness and a stability in God is worked into one's heart.
It is important to know who initiates a time of darkness. If Satan initiates the darkness, then we need to fight it with all our strength. But, if God is the one who initiates it, then we must respond with a heart of trust and praise, and we must submit to the Lord while we go through the trial.
Isaiah 50:10,11 tells us that when we are in darkness, we are not to try to light our own torch, but we are to trust in God. For example, if you are in a financial time of darkness, don't do something to relieve the pressure that is not God's will. You May get out of the darkness, but you will miss what God was trying to do in your heart. You will miss the treasures of darkness.
Are you in darkness? Trust in God. He will reveal His light if you patiently trust and wait expectantly on Him.

May 30

2 Chronicles 8,9 Psalm 102 (2 Chr. 9:1-28)
"A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold."
Proverbs 22:1
When one reads today's Scripture reading, one cannot help but be impressed by the wisdom, wealth, prestige, and fame that God granted to Solomon. With all the blessing that God bestowed upon Solomon, one would readily want to follow in his footsteps.
But Solomon was not a man that you would want to pattern your life after. Even though he had great wealth, he did not have the "true riches" that endure. He May have impressed many other kings, but he never impressed God with his many wives and his idolatry of later years. Even though he was the wisest man to ever live, in some respects, he was also the most foolish, for he did not practice the truths that God had shown him. He fell into the very traps that he warned others to escape from in the book of Proverbs. In Second Chronicles 9:13, he is associated with the number of the antichrist--666.
The truth is this: just because someone can preach well and has tremendous insight, fame, and blessing from God does not mean that you can pattern your life after him. We can only pattern our lives after God's Word, and those who keep and obey God's commands.

Character is more important than a great ministry.

God will reward us according to the extent that we have allowed Him to work His character into our lives. May we consider His love and character as our number one pursuit, not popularity, wealth, or knowledge.

May 31

2 Chronicles 10-12 (2 Chr. 10:1-17)
" thy gentleness hath made me great."
Psalm 18:35
In today's society of "macho" men, we get a distorted picture of how to be great. David said that having the Lord's gentleness made him great, not by being overbearing or domineering. Jesus said that the greatest shall be a servant of all.
When Rehoboam became king, the people asked him to ease the yoke put upon them by his father Solomon. Rehoboam went to the elderly counsellors of Solomon, and they said that if he would be gentle and kind to them, he would win their hearts forever. But when Rehoboam went to his young men that he had grown up with, they told him that the way to be great was to impress the people by being harder and more severe than his father. Rehoboam followed the "macho men" counsellors and lost the ten northern tribes of Israel.
The way to greatness is the way that David and Jesus took--gentleness and meekness. As men, we must learn to reject the male role portrayed by our peers and the media. We need to look to the Lord and to the Bible to find out what makes a man truly great. Men, let us learn to be servants in our home, job, and church, instead of someone who always has to dominate and boss someone else around.

June

June 1

2 Chronicles 13, 14 Psalm 54 (2 Chr. 13:1-20)
" the children of Judah prevailed, because they relied upon the Lord God of their fathers."
2 Chronicles 13:18
When Jeroboam came against Abijah, Abijah stood up and tried to reason with the backslidden northern kingdom but to no avail. Jeroboam caused an ambushment to come behind the army of Judah, consequently the army of Judah was surrounded. But, Judah cried out to the Lord, and He smote Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. Judah won a great victory because they relied on the Lord God. They even captured some of Jeroboam's cities as they pursued after them.
At times in our Christian lives we feel like Abijah did when surrounded by Jeroboam's army. We have held fast and not forsaken the Lord; we have faithfully worshipped and obeyed Him, but now all circumstances cause us to feel that we are doomed. Yet, God has said when the enemy comes in like a flood, then the Spirit of the Lord will raise up a standard against Him. Then, not only is the enemy stopped, but also God gives us some spoils of our warfare.
Let us rely on God in "hopeless" situations so that He will fight for us and so that we will get the spoils. Here the spoils were new cities that they could influence for righteousness. Let us stand strong in the Lord so that when the enemy is defeated, we are able to extend the kingdom of God by taking the spoils of the enemy--salvation of souls, finances, a greater influence, etc.

June 2

2 Chronicles 15, 16 Psalm 92 (2 Chr. 16:1-3)
" he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved."
Mark 13:13
Asa was a king that got off to a tremendous start. The Scripture says that he did that which was good and right in God's eyes. He tore down idols and commanded Judah to serve Jehovah and to obey His law. When the vast army of the Ethiopians came against him, he trusted in the Lord, and the Lord fought for him.
Azariah the prophet came to Asa and told him that as long as he sought God that God would be with him. So Asa gathered the nation together and made a covenant to serve the Lord. Asa then removed his mother from being queen because she had made an idol. Here is truly a king living in faith and obeying and trusting God.
However, after Asa had reigned for thirty-six years, Baasha, the king of Israel, came against him, and Asa hired the king of Syria to fight against Israel. He didn't bother to trust in God, but he chose to rely on man.
The end of Asa is sad, for after thirty-six good years of living by faith,

he got tired of having to trust God

and tried to buy his security. In the end he got a disease in his feet, and he still didn't seek the Lord. Instead, he sought healing from the physicians.
Do you ever get tired of having to trust in Jesus Christ?

Remember Asa!

He stopped seeking God and sought man's ability to deliver and heal. The end result was death.
Let us never get weary of living by faith and of having to trust God for our needs and situations.

June 3

2 Chronicles 17-20 (2 Chr. 20:1-24)
"For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds."
2 Corinthians 10:4
When the armies of Moab, Ammon, and others came against Jehoshaphat and all of Judah, Jehoshaphat, who was a righteous king, did something about the situation. However, he didn't do what many of us try to do when things come against us, for he didn't try to muster up all his strength. Instead, he sought the Lord.
We all have various things against which we battle. Ephesians tells us we don't fight flesh and blood, which is people. But, we fight principalities, powers, and evil forces of wickedness. It is so easy to get caught up fighting superficially against another person, instead of doing real battle against satanic powers.
Jehoshaphat battled in the invisible realm first, then he saw the victory in the visible realm. The weapons he used are still powerful and pull down enemy strongholds today. Let's look at these weapons:

1) seeking the Lord (20:3)

2) corporate fasting and prayer (20:3,4)

3) prophecy (20:14-17)

4) worship and praise (20:18-21)

5) faith (20:20)

6) specific acts of obedience (20:21)

Let us make sure we use spiritual weapons to defeat the real enemy. When the body of Christ uses these weapons, they will continually have victory after victory. AMEN!

June 4

2 Chronicles 21, 22 Psalm 58 (2 Chr. 21:1-20)
"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?"
2 Corinthians 6:14
Jehoram was a wicked king who walked in the ways of Ahab, the wicked king of Israel who worshipped Baal. Why did Jehoram do evil when he had a Jehoshaphat for example? The answer is in Second Chronicles 21:6. His wife was the daughter of Ahab, and she influenced him to follow the idolatrous ways of her father instead of the good reigns of Jehoram's father and grandfather.

Whom we marry is very important.

God says a believer should not be unequally yoked with an unbeliever. This is the reason: an unbelieving mate will often turn the heart of the believing mate from the Lord.
In the end, Jehoram was smitten with an incurable disease and died when his bowels fell out because of his sickness. Jehoram's end wasn't pretty, but it serves as a warning to all who want to enter into marriage with one who does not want to serve the Lord with all his heart. Jehoram departed without anyone missing him. He had chosen the wrong way. May we choose God's ways that our end would not be as Jehoram's.

June 5

2 Chronicles 23, 24 Psalm 78 (2 Chr. 24:1-25)
"And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest."
2 Chronicles 24:2
Joash was only seven years old when he began to reign. Jehoiada, the priest, was his advisor and counselor. While Jehoiada was alive, Joash repaired the temple and restored scriptural worship in Jerusalem. This continued as long as Jehoiada's good influence was on Joash's life. But when Jehoiada died, Joash began to try to please the princes and served idols. Joash even had the son of Jehoiada, who prophesied to him about his transgression, killed.
How could one who had done so much for God completely turn on the Lord? We see that although Joash followed Jehoiada's example, he never allowed God to really do a work of righteousness in his own heart. When taken out of his protective environment, he turned. Consequently, parents must make sure that they place in their children the awareness that they must have a deep, personal commitment to the Lord that will be able to stand in an offensive society. Teens must press into the Lord personally so that their life story won't end up like Joash.
We all need a Jehoiada to teach us when we are young in the Lord and to be an example to us. But even more, we need a personal conviction that will last when our Jehoiada is no longer around.

June 6

2 Chronicles 25-28 (2 Chr. 26:1-21)
"Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?"
Galatians 5:7
In the lives of the kings of Judah, we see how human nature often works in the lives of God's people. There is a certain kind of Christian that corresponds to each king. What is sad to see is how many kings get off to a good start, but somewhere along the way, they begin to cool off and become distant towards the Lord. Abijah, Asa, Joash, Amaziah, and Uzziah were all guilty of starting well, but then going sour.
Both Amaziah and Uzziah fell when they became prosperous and secure. Pride crept in the door, and whenever pride comes, destruction follows. As long as Uzziah sought the Lord, he prospered. But when he was strong, he transgressed against the Lord (25:5,16).
Many people serve the Lord with all their heart when they are poor and needy, but as soon as they prosper, they forget their great need for Jesus Christ. Prosperity and success are greater tests of our character and faithfulness than failure and hardship. Many, who pass the hard times with their faith intact fall when their porsperity turns their herts away from the Lord. We will always have a great need to depend on Him. For without Him we are nothing.
May we never lose the awareness of our need for the Lord. May our hearts not be lifted up like Uzziah's. Let us rather thank God for all our needs and problems that cause us to draw near to Him. For it is better to be poor and needy, yet close to Jesus than to feel secure, needing nothing, and not have an intimate relationship with Him.
May all who begin well be like Paul, who would never ease up, but he ran the race of life in order to win Jesus Christ.

June 7

2 Chronicles 29, 30 Psalm 148 (2 Chr. 29:20-36)
"And he set the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, with psalteries, and with harps, according to the commandment of David...for so was the commandment of the Lord by his prophets."
2 Chronicles 29:25
When David brought the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem, he established a new order of worship. Because there was no altar at the tabernacle of David, he could not offer sacrifices of bulls and goats. But David had learned that sacrifices of bull and goats were not really what God desired. But God desired and still desires those who have the law of God in their heart and who delight to do His will. He desires those who will praise Him in the beauty of holiness.
When Hezekiah restored the temple worship, he also restored the continual praise and worship established by David. When they began to worship the Lord and to offer up the burnt offering, the song of the Lord began with the trumpets and instruments ordained by David.
What was the song of the Lord? The trumpets of those days did not have valves but only played notes in one key that harmonized with each other. So as this chord was being played, people began singing praises as the Lord moved upon them. There was no particular melody, but everyone was just worshipping the Lord in one accord. This type of worship was in the early church, where they called it singing in the spirit or spiritual songs (1 Cor. 14:15, Eph. 5:19). In the New Testament, however, singing in other tongues was added to this spontaneous worship as well as singing with words we understand.
God has promised to restore the tabernacle of David (Acts 3:21, 15:16, Amos 9:11). Part of that restoration is the spontaneous worship that David enjoyed under the anointing of God. May we let the song of the Lord be a part of our daily worship to our blessed Lord Jesus Christ.

June 8

2 Chronicles 32-34 Psalm 93 (2 Chr. 34:1-28)
" there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus."
Galatians 3:28
Josiah began to make reforms during the eighth year of his reign. These reforms began a time of revival in Israel. In the thirteenth year of Josiah's reign, Jeremiah began prophesying (Jer. 1:2) to the people. Also, Zephaniah began to prophesy during Josiah's reign (Zeph. 1:1).
During this period of revival, the book of the law was found in the house of the Lord, for God always uses His word in a new way to add stability and strength to a revival. When Josiah heard the curses upon the nation for their fathers' wickedness, he tore his clothes and commanded his servants to go inquire of the Lord.
In this time of revival, with such men as Jeremiah and Zephaniah prophesying, they went to Huldah, the prophetess, not the men. Huldah then prophesied to them the Word of the Lord. God bypassed the men with anointed ministries for this godly woman because God wanted to speak through her. Many in these days look down on woman ministry, or feel it is second-rate. Here, however, we see Huldah's ministry over the men's.
Philip had daughters who were prophetesses. Aquilla's wife was the one who apparently had the more dominant ministry. Do you consider women ministry second rate? If you do, you May miss your Huldah, that is, the one God wants to use to speak to you. In Christ, there is no male or female (Gal.3:28).
May we ask God to overcome our prejudice and to balance the Word of God with all Scripture, not just our own feelings and opinions.

June 9

2 Chronicles 35, 36 Psalm 29 (2 Chr. 36:11-23)
"For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him [Jesus Christ] Amen, unto the glory of God by us."
2 Corinthians 1:20
Leviticus 26 tells of the judgment that would come upon the land if the Israelites did not walk in God's laws. The Scripture said that their cities would be destroyed; the people would be scattered among the heathen, and the land would be left desolate because the sabbath rest had not been practiced. In today's reading, we find the exact punishment that was prophesied come to pass. God's Word is sure!
Ecclesiastes 8:11 says that because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, the hearts of men are fully set in them to do evil. In other words, men think they are getting away with sin because God is not judging them on the spot. Others see them and think God will not judge their wickedness either; therefore, their hearts are set on doing evil for they think that they are escaping the judgment written in God's Word. But, God's Word is sure!
In Second Chronicles 36:22, we also find that after seventy years of captivity in Babylon, the new king Cyrus made an edict that Israel should return to their land. This was done to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah the prophet. Again we find that God's Word is faithful to come to pass. His promises as well as His judgments are ours if we fit the conditions.

Think back over the promises God has quickened to your heart.

Write them down and believe that what He has said will come to pass. "God is not a man, that he should lie; hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" (Num. 23:19).
Let us trust in the Lord and commit our way to Him, and then He'll bring to pass all that He has spoken for our lives.

June 10

Ezra 1-3 Psalm 114 (Ezra 3:1-13)
"Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion."
Isaiah 52:2
The books of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther were written during the restoration of Israel between 536 B.C. and 400 B.C. Israel had been taken captive into Babylon in 606 B.C. and now after seventy years, God began to restore His people and His way of worship. Many of the truths in these books relate directly to our day. The church, like Israel, backslid and went through the Dark Ages until Luther, Wesley, and others began the path of restoration towards the truth, power, and glory of the first century church.
In Acts 3:21, God said that all must be restored before the Lord Jesus Christ would return. At the turn of the century, God restored the Spirit under the Pentecostal revival. In the 1940's, God began restoring the truths of faith and healing in the latter rain healing revivals. The charismatic movement brought a beginning of unity in the Spirit across denominational barriers. Then in the 60's and 70's, God began restoring spiritual worship and praise in His church.
Of all the millions of Israelites, less than 500,000 took part in the restoration of the temple. Many were too comfortable where they were. They were content to live in bondage.
Let us arise and make sure that we take part in every aspect of the present day restoration. Don't stay in Babylon, but be willing to inconvenience yourself so that you might have all that God has to offer in these last days. For Haggai 2:9 tells us that "The glory of this latter house [church] shall be greater than of the former [early church] ."

June 11

Ezra 4-6 Psalm 48 (Ezra 4:1-5; 6:14)
"Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you."
James 4:7
When Israel began to rebuild the house of God, opposition soon came. Those around Israel sent a letter to King Artaxerxes calling the Jews a rebellious people. The king then stopped the work on God's house for sixteen years. For those sixteen years, God's people were put down under the oppression of the enemy instead of rising up against him and seeing him defeated.
In Ezra 5:1, we find that the prophets Haggai and Zechariah were instrumental in getting the rebuilding going again. A word from God brought faith and stirred up the people to resist the enemy instead of being subdued by him. Ezra 6:14 says that the Jews prospered through the prophecying of Haggai and Zechariah.
In Zechariah 3, Zechariah saw Satan resisting the high priest. In chapter 4, he saw that Zerubbabel would finish the temple that he had started by the Spirit of God. Such visions encouraged the people to move ahead with what they had started. This shows the importance of the gifts of the Spirit; they impart faith to the listeners so that they will rise up and resist Satan.

Every true work of God will be resisted by Satan.

Let us not quit for sixteen years, but let us ask God to impart His faith to us so that He can finish all that He desires to do in our life and church. Don't quit when discouraged, but let the faith of God empower you. Draw near to God, resist the devil, and victory will follow.

June 12

Ezra 7, 8 Psalm 142 (Ezra 8:21-23)
" men ought always to pray, and not to faint."
Luke 18:1
One characteristic of Ezra was that he was a man who had learned how to pray and how to seek the Lord. Before setting out on the nine hundred mile trek to Jerusalem, he proclaimed a public fast to secure from God a safe trip. To take the king's soldiers might have appeared easier, but Ezra didn't want the Lord's name to be reproached. He had stated that God could protect them and now sought God for the assurance of that protection.
Ezra 8:23 says God was entreated by the Israelites. They didn't just pray about it, but they prayed and sought the Lord till they had assurance from Him that their prayers had prevailed.

Many times we pray, but we don't always pray through

until we know that something has been accomplished in the spiritual realm. We can stop praying too soon. Jesus told us to be like the widow who before the unrighteous judge would not stop till her request was granted (Lk. 18).
May we learn to prevail in prayer until the powers of darkness have been broken and until we have an assurance that our requests have been granted. Then, we can begin thanking the Lord instead of asking.

June 13

Ezra 9, 10 Psalm 79 (Ezra 9:1-15)
"And when he [Holy Spirit] is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment."
John 16:8
When Ezra arrived at Jerusalem, he was immediately confronted with a problem. The people of Israel and the priests had not separated themselves from the heathen in the land, and they had intermarried with them. This was in direct disobedience to God's Word, and this was one of the reasons Israel had been banished from the land about 150 years earlier by the Babylonians.
When Ezra heard this, he rent his garment and mantle, plucked off his hair and beard, sat astonished before the Lord, and began to pray. The sins of God's people had left Ezra with a burden that caused him to cry out to God. In Ezra 9:8, 9, we see that they were in a time of revival and restoration, yet this area of their lives had been neglected.
True revival is a time of weeping, of godly sorrow, and of repentance, not just building a building, as they had previously done. Although they had returned to scriptural worship, God didn't want them to stop there. There must always be a constant adjusting of our ways before God. We are aware that God has done much in our lives, even as He had done in Ezra 1-8. But, we must never stop until every area has come under the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
When was the last time we responded to the conviction of the Holy Spirit? If it was some time ago, we better ask the Lord to give us a little reviving, a fresh conviction of the Holy Ghost, that we May be constantly cleansing our ways. Let us be as Ezra who wouldn't live with sin, but wept, mourned, and cast himself before the Lord till it was taken care of.
"O Lord, grant me a reviving in my own heart today."

June 14

Nehemiah 1, 2 Psalm 45 (Neh. 1:1 - 2:5)
" Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."
Matthew 25:40
When Nehemiah's brother returned from Judah to Persia, Nehemiah asked how the Jews that had left captivity were doing. He found out that they were in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem was broken down, and the gates were burned with fire. In essence, the Jews were in great poverty and without protection from their enemies.
Nehemiah's reaction is an example to us all. Though he had a high position in the government, his heart went out to his fellow Jews going through hardship. His heart broke, and he sat down and wept, mourned, fasted, and prayed. This went on for four months until the king noticed Nehemiah's concern for his fellow Jews and granted him permission to go back and help build up Jerusalem. Consequently, Nehemiah left the comforts of the palace to be despised and scorned (2:19) and to live in a place that lay wasted.
Today, many of our brothers and sisters in this country and in other countries are going through struggles, difficulties, hunger, and lack of finances that we know little about. Does our heart go out to them as Nehemiah's, or are we content to live in our place of ease and to ignore the situations of the needy around us?
Let us follow Nehemiah's example. First, let us pray, mourn, and seek God for them, then, May we offer up our own lives to meet the needs of those who cannot help themselves. God honored Nehemiah by recording his actions in the eternal Word.

God will also remember everything we do to the least of the brethren.

June 15

Nehemiah 3-5 Psalm 99 (Neh.3:1-3, 13-15, 26-32)
"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed ."
2 Timothy 2:15
When Nehemiah came to Jerusalem, there were gates that he had to repair. He began to build them in a specific order. As we look at the order, we can see a progression from salvation onward to maturity. Those that have once known the Lord and have turned back are desolate. They have many broken down areas of their lives, and they are in need of the Master-builder to build them up.
The Master-builder builds in the same order as the gates were rebuilt:
1.

sheep gate

(3:1)--speaks of salvation and of learning the elementary things of the Lord (Heb. 6:1, 2).
2.

fish gate

(3:3)--speaks of becoming a fisher of men or winning souls.
3.

old gate

(3:6)--speaks of learning established doctrine or the old paths (Jer. 6:16) and of getting grounded in the Word of God and walking in His law.
4.

valley gate

(3:13)--shows that the purpose of the law is to reveal sin (Rom.5:20), which will then bring a humility before God.
5.

dung gate

(3:14)--speaks of getting rubbish out of our lives or of removing sinful ways from our lives.
6.

fountain gate

(3:15)--speaks of a deeper cleansing in our hearts and lives after God deals with us, and the rubbish has been removed.
7.

water gate

(3:26)--speaks of a deeper understanding of the water of the Word (Eph.5:26).
8.

horse gate

(3:28)--speaks of learning to be an overcomer, a warrior (Rev. 19:11). Horses were tremendous weapons in battle, which also speaks of coming up higher in God.
9.

east gate

(3:29)--spoken of in Ezra 44:32 and 43:1, 2 as the gate where His glory and resurrection power come to His church. This must come in our lives as well.
10.

Miphkad gate

(3:31)--sometimes was referred to as the muster gate, where the armies of God were mustered to go forth in unity after having been filled with the righteousness and power of God.
One thing that stands out in these gates is the great importance of the Word of God and how we need it to cleanse our ways so that we can become overcoming warriors in God.
Let us take heed to the lesson of the ten gates and be diligent to study and apply the Word of God.

June 16

Nehemiah 6-8 (Neh. 8:1-12)
" the joy of the Lord is your strength."
Nehemiah 8:10
In the seventh month when it came time to celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles, Ezra stood up and read the law of God. He gave the meaning of the law so that the Israelites could understand. When the people heard the words of the law, they began to mourn and weep. Nehemiah, Ezra, and the Levites then had to tell them not to weep for this was a holy day. God said to rejoice, for the joy of the Lord would be their strength.
The leaders directions may seem strange, for most of us have the erroneous idea that those who are holy are those who walk around with long faces. We think that they never crack a smile and that they are always serious and grim. But that is not to be the hallmark of someone who is holy. Someone who is filled with Jesus will be filled with joy. For example, in Matthew 5 we are given the beatitudes. Many of them start with "blessed" which means to be so full of joy so as to be envied. That is to be the characteristic of kingdom living.
When Satan causes us to lose our joy, we also lose our strength. Discouragement, depression, etc., make us weak and cause us to focus on ourselves not on Jesus Christ and others. If we have lost our joy, May we pray like David did in Psalm 51:10-12: "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit."

June 17

Nehemiah 9-11 (Neh. 9:5-37)
"Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart."
Psalm 37:4
Nehemiah 9 is a good example of God-centered prayer. So many times we are guilty of coming to the Lord with a "give me" attitude. We see God as a warehouse controller to whom we give our orders, and then we can get whatever we want. But God is our Father, and He wants to develop a loving relationship with us, not just give us the desires of our heart.
Read again the prayer in chapter 9 and notice the great emphasis placed on all the Lord has done in the past. This chapter praises the Lord for His righteousness, His signs and wonders, His mercy and goodness as well as His graciousness and justice. Israel had recorded the things that God had done for them in the past so that they could go back over them and marvel at their wonderful Lord.
Having a place to write down what God has done for you in the past is a good practice. I have a notebook I call "My Miracle Book." It lists different dates and situations where God has moved in my life, answered prayer as well as His disciplining touch. When I read back over them, praise and adoration begin to bubble in my heart. Then I thank Him and remind myself of His goodness.
God does give us the desires of our heart, but there is a condition: delighting ourselves in Him first. May we focus more on delighting ourselves in the Lord Jesus Christ and not so much on our needs. Then, we'll see all our needs and desires taken care of by Him.

June 18

Nehemiah 12, 13 Psalm 81 (Neh. 13:1-14)
"Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there May bemeat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing."
Malachi 3:10
Nehemiah returned to the Persian court after his governorship of twelve years in Jerusalem. In his absence, the old evils returned as the people were led astray by Tobiah, who was given an apartment in the house of God by Eliashib the high priest. When Nehemiah returned to Jerusalem, Scripture says that what he saw grieved him sore.
Tobiah's room was the room in which the tithes had been kept. But now the tithes and offerings had ceased, and there was room for evil Tobiah to move in. This is an illustration of the truth that when we fail to give our tithes and offerings, we make room for Satan to lead us astray. The prophet Malachi, who prophesied at this time, rebuked the people for robbing God of their tithes (Mal. 3:7-10).
Because the tithes and offerings had not been brought to the storehouse, all the Levites had gone to work in the fields (13:10). The people forgot their previous pledge (10:35-39), and thus they deprived those ministering in the temple of their rightful support. (cf. Num. 18:21-24, 1 Cor. 9:3-14).
As it was in Nehemiah's time, so it is today. Neglecting to adequately remunerate the church pastoral staff will force many pastors to seek other employment and will diminish the effectiveness of the church's ministry in the community. A minister is to spend the bulk of his time in prayer and in the ministry of the Word (Acts 6:4). If he has to work "in the fields," his time needed in prayer and in the Word is greatly hindered.
May we not fail as Israel did. They forsook their tithing, let in evil Tobiah, and caused the Levites to be less effective.

June 19

Esther 1-3 (Est. 2:5-20)
"Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready."
Revelation 19:7
The book of Esther takes place around 483-474 B.C. Esther is crowned queen about twenty-five years before Ezra returns to Jerusalem. The book of Esther is a historical narrative, but yet it is also much more than that. This book is also a type of how the Lord Jesus prepares His Bride to be ready for the great marriage day. As we look at these truths and apply them to our lives, we will also be chosen by our King and find favor in His eyes.
Esther 2:12 describes the prescribed preparations for the virgins. There were six months with the oil and myrrh and then six months of sweet odors. This can speak of the situations God uses to make us fit for Him. Myrrh was an embalming compound gotten by beating the tree with leather whips. The resin from the myrrh tree would coat the leather tongs, and then it would be scraped off and made into the oil of myrrh. Many times we go through difficult situations where we are not sure how we will end up. Through these trials, God works faith, stability, and character into our lives.
God doesn't just give us "myrrh experiences"; He balances our experiences with six months of sweet odors. These can be times of victory, answers to prayers, etc. We need these times of great joy and rejoicing to wash us after a hard trial. After every trial is a time of rejoicing, rest, and peace when we walk with the Lord (cf. Job 42:10-12).
May we learn to thank God for the myrrh as well as the sweet odor experiences. They both make us beautiful and a delight to our heavenly Bridegroom.

June 20

Esther 4, 5 Psalm 42 (Est. 4:1-12)
"And they overcame him [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death."
Revelation 12:11
When Esther was told that a decree had been issued against the entire Jewish nation in Persia, Mordecai also told her that she must go before the king to make supplication for her people. Esther's first reaction was to draw back, for there was a law that anyone who came into the king's inner court with out an invitation was to be put to death, unless the king extended to him his golden scepter. If she went in, the king might think her too bold. Judging from his dealings with Vashti, he was not beyond putting his queen to death.
However, after Esther understood her God-ordained duty, she called a fast and uttered these words: " if I perish, I perish" (4:16). Esther was going to obey the will of God for her life no matter what the cost. She wasn't serving God for what she could get, but she wanted to obey even if it cost her her life.
When God asks you to do something, do you balk or hesitate, or have you already counted the cost of being a Christian? God wants everything in our lives. He isn't interested in us serving Him just when it is convenient or profitable. When others scorn, laugh, mock or even disfellowship us, are we willing to pay the price for His best? May our attitude be like Esther's so that no matter what the cost we are willing to do anything to win God's approval.

June 21

Esther 6-8 (Est. 7:1-10)
"Only by pride cometh contention ."
Proverbs 13:10
Haman is a picture of pride. He had worked his way up in the kingdom until he was second only to the king himself. However, pride goeth before destruction (Pro. 16:18), and Haman was walking in the path of pride and destruction. His pride caused his anger to rise up when Mordecai would not bow to him. Anger caused him to build the gallows that he himself was later killed on. Haman reaped what he sowed.
Many times we May find ourselves putting someone else down or criticizing them, or as Scripture says we contend with them. Pride is what causes us to contend with someone or belittle them. For in belittling them, we raise up our ownselves. When we contend with someone we always lose, for pride is the root of contention, and pride's end is a fall.
Haman's pride built the gallows, and the gallows killed Haman. Be assured that all we do out of a prideful spirit will come back on us. May we learn to recognize our pride as the root of contention. Also, May we ask the Lord Jesus to wash pride from us and to place within us a meekness that will indeed cause us to inherit the earth.

June 22

Esther 9, 10 Psalm 129 (Est. 9:1-5; 10:1-3)
"A man's gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men."
Proverbs 18:16
For years, Mordecai sat at the king's gate. He was a man with an insignificant position, yet he was very gifted. He had even saved the king's life by reporting a conspiracy to kill the king that had been planned by two of the king's chamberlains. Still, in all this he sat in an insignificant position.
Mordecai could have gone around telling everyone that he had the ability to be the next in command to the king himself. He could have fought to climb the ladder of prestige and success. But, he knew a principle of in Scripture: a man's gift makes room for him. He didn't have to tell others he was gifted, but others recognized it.
Proverbs 20:6 notes that "Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?" Do you tell everyone how well you can do something, or do you do something faithfully and let everyone notice your gift? Psalm 75:5-7 says that promotion comes from the Lord and not from different ways that we might try to promote ourselves.
God promoted Mordecai to be next to King Ahasuerus. His greatness, might, and acts of power were known to all. Mordecai was promoated all because God found him faithful in just being a servant at the king's gate, not because he told everyone of his leadership capabilities.
May we concentrate on being faithful with the task at hand and let God promote us. Our gift will make room for us; we need not make room for ourselves.

June 23

Job 1-3 (Job 1:1-21)
"Be still, and know that I am God ."
Psalm 46:10
After a brief description of Job, we are given a glimpse of audience day in the court of the King of kings. The sons of God or angels presented themselves before the Lord to report upon their various duties. Satan, the adversary, entered in among them in his capacity as "prince of this world" and "prince of the power of the air." He is "called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: . . . the accuser of our brethren" (Rev. 12:9, 10). Satan apparently had an official right to enter the presence of Jehovah on this particular day.
When Satan entered the scene, the Lord asked him where he had come from. He said that he had come " From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it" (1:7). The original idea in the Arabic is the "heat of haste." He had been hurrying through the inhabited earth like a roaring lion seeking those whom he could devour.
This is the spirit of Satan: unrest and fervent haste. What a contrast the spirit of Satan is to the life of our Lord while He was here on this earth. He never was in a hurry, but He walked in calmness and peacefulness through His life here on earth.

Feverish haste never comes from the Lord

, and the more we become like Him, the more we will partake of the calmness and restfulness manifested in Him. May we learn to be still and to know the Lord. Let's not be in a feverish haste and miss the presence of the Lord in our lives on a daily basis.

June 24

Job 4-6 (Job 6:8-27)
"How forcible are right words!"
Job 6:25
After seven days of silence before his friends, Job poured out the depths of his soul. He wished that his birthday would not be a time of celebration, but he regarded it as a day of mourning. Job looked at death as a way of escaping this time of anguish.
Job had not rejected God or rebelled against the Lord, but he was coming perilously near doing so in his language. Earlier he had told his wife that one ought to receive both good and bad from the Lord. Death, as a way of escape, is not God's way of yielding to His will. No matter how hot the fire or how terrible the trial, we need to daily thank the Lord for the life that He has given us.
We must remember that Satan is the adversary behind these thoughts and words about dying. When Satan saw that he could not get Job to curse God outright, he began to draw him to speak words that gave no glory to God. The words tended to put a weight on the soul and to drag it down further.
In today's reading, we find Job's three friends falling into a similar plight. Rather than speaking words of comfort, they spoke words that caused Job to be on the defensive. Many of their words were true, but they didn't apply to Job's situation. They were not speaking by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, but they were speaking out of their own reasoning. Because of this, Satan used their lips as a tool to put greater pressure on Job.
May we learn a lesson from Job's friends: what we say in a situation will not be right, but when we speak under the anointing of God, our words will give grace to those who hear. May we speak words that give grace to those who hear (Eph. 4:29).

June 25

Job 7-9 (Job 9)
"For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."
1 Timothy 2:5
As Job continued in the refiner's fire, he began to compare himself to God and was brought to despair. He saw such a gulf between himself and God that even if God answered he would not believe it (9:16). If he was righteous and said he was perfect, God would still would be able to find fault in him. His final complaint was that God was not a man as he was that he could answer and talk with Him (9:3). Job cried out for a mediator or an umpire between his Creator and himself.
This need for a mediator was met in Jesus Christ, who took on human weakness to be the mediator between God and man (1 Tim. 2:5). Through Jesus Christ, we can have a relationship with God. "For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father" (Eph. 2:18). The separation that Job felt need not to be our experience in the New Testament economy. Oh, we May go through periods without sensing His precious presence, but we can always have peace with God by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Does there seem to be a gulf between you and the Lord? Do you hear His voice speaking within your spirit? Have you made use of the Mediator? If not, then ask Jesus to reveal Himself to you and to cleanse you by His precious blood which He shed for your sins. Praise the Lord! He is the Mediator "In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him" (Eph. 3:12).

June 26

Job 10, 11 Psalm 49 (Job 11:1-20)
"If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God ."
1 Peter 4:11
Many of the things that Job's friends said were true in themselves, but they did not fit the situation. They were principles of God applied at the wrong time to the wrong situation. Zophar told Job that "God exacteth of thee less than thine iniquity deserveth" (Job 11:6). While it is true that God is a God of mercy and longsuffering, what Zophar said was hardly the thing to say to Job in his trial. Instead of focusing on the mercy of God, Zophar was telling Job how wicked he was. Zophar had a true principle, but it was not prompted by the Spirit of God. It just came from his own reasonings.
Principles are fine. We need God's principles. But, when someone comes to us for counsel, we must make sure that we have the right principle for the right situation. Just giving our opinion will not help, but we must ask God to show us the key that will bring hope and life to every situation.
Do you tend to throw around pat answers without inquiring of the Lord? May we learn to wait on the Lord before we speak to men.

June 27

Job 12-14 (Job 14:1-15)
"Man that is born of woman is of few days ."
Job 14:1
In Job 14, Job began to talk about the brevity of life. "Man that is born of woman is of few days " (14:1). "He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not" (14:2). Our life here on earth passes by quickly. James 4:14 says our life is like a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away. First Chronicles 29:15 says our days here on earth are as a shadow that does not abide.
Yet, at times we think and act like all there is to life is here in our life on this earth. We fail to live like we know that when we die we must appear before God (Job 19:26) and must give account for all that we have done (1 Cor. 2:11-15). Life on earth is much like the life of a baby in the womb; it is only a place of development to be able to enter eternal life. It would be foolish for a baby to think that the only life it will ever have will be in the womb. Yet many people, even Christians, live like this life is the primary life when it is only a place of preparation.
The years of life pass quickly. Are you making preparations for eternity? Are you laying in store riches in heaven by giving to God now? Are you allowing Jesus Christ to develop His nature in you, or are you more concerned with houses, cars, jobs, and other activities? May God help us to begin to live with a view of eternity in our hearts and minds.

June 28

Job 15-17 (Job 16)
"Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we May be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."
2 Corinthians 1:4
When Job was down, afflicted, and discouraged, his "counsellors" continued to beat him into the dust. Instead of encouraging Job in his trial, they became part of his ordeal. For this reason, he called them "miserable comforters" (16:2). He acknowledged that if the tables were turned, he could speak against them as they did against him. But Job says that he would not do that, but

he would strengthen them with his words

and cause their grief to be lessened. Still, they did the opposite. They tore up Job by criticism and increased his grief by their words.
Second Corinthians 1:3-7 tells us that God is the

God of all comfort.

He comforts us in all our tribulations so that we May be able to comfort others when they go through the same thing. We can only truly comfort others when we have gone through a similar situation. To comfort someone we must have compassion and mercy, not a critical spirit like Job's friends. When we have walked the road before them and know what they are feeling, then we can lift them up with our words of comfort.
Look back over the trials and tribulations you have gone through. Is there someone around you going through a similar situation? Why not go encourage them? The God who brought you through will deliver them as well. Begin to let the God of all comfort flow through you.

June 29

Job 18, 19 Psalm 71 (Job 19:25-29)
"These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye May know that ye have eternal life, and that ye May believe on the name of the Son of God."
1 John 5:13
When Job was at one of his deepest moments of despair, he broke out into a burst of triumphant faith saying that even though his body be destroyed, yet he had the glorious assurance that he would see God. It was as if a bright light was suddenly turned on. Faith began to rise up within his heart as the Lord overwhelmed him with a knowing that he would live forever.
Friend,

do you have that assurance of eternal life?

It comes from that comes from a meeting with God, whereby He plants living and active faith within your hear. Do you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you have eternal life? First John 5:13 shows that we do not have to just hope we have eternal life, but we can know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we have been born from above by the Holy Spirit into eternal life.
If you don't have that assurance, but you desire it with all your heart and want to give the rest of your life totally to Him, then just pray, confess your sins, turn from your own ways. Ask Him for that precious meeting whereby He places the Holy Spirit within your heart, giving that "knowing" that Job experienced. Yes, you can know that you have eternal life.

June 30

Job 20, 21 Psalm 109 (Job 21:7-15)
"Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby."
Hebrews 12:11
In Job 20, Zophar interrupted Job's triumphant declaration of the living Redeemer. Zophar took Job's exultation in the Spirit to be the emotional joy of the godless. His main thought was that the wicked "Job" would have his portion in this present world: he would lose all the wealth that he had obtained (20:15), terror would be upon him (20:25), and the heavens and earth would reveal his sin and rise up against him (20:27). In essence, he was saying that Job's problems were because of wickedness.
In reply to Zophar, Job presented an entirely different picture of the portion of the wicked. Job showed that the wicked man's punishment is not always in this life, for they might be mighty in power (21:7), might not fear their safety, and might not be disciplined by God (21:9). The wicked May spend their days in prosperity and go to the grave quickly without much suffering (21:13). They feel they have no need of God nor do they desire to know His ways (21:14), because they are self-satisfied. Yet, Job 21:30 says that the wicked are reserved for a future judgment, a day of destruction and wrath.
Let us not despise the chastisement of God, for it is a sign that God is dealing with us as sons to prepare us for eternity. Job was being prepared for eternity, but the wicked were and still are walking straight to destruction with no trouble to alarm them of their need for God. Let us learn to thank God for His chastening that yields the fruit of righteousness when we correctly respond to His discipline.