Psalms 27:3-4 Though an army should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this I will be confident. One thing have I desired of the LORD, that I will seek; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple.
As the war in the Middle East rages, its raised our “prayer intensity” and this reminded me of a story I came across some time ago, which I hope is a blessing.
A United States Army officer who trained pupils at Fort Sill for over 20 years once described the different qualities of the students during the two decades of his tenure. During the 1950s, he observed the students’ attitude as being so lax that the instructors had trouble keeping their students awake during their lectures. This drastically changed in the mid-1960s. The students began taking meticulous notes and absorbing every word of instruction. So, what changed? The lectures weren’t any different. Were mid 60s students somehow more diligent? No… but the circumstances had changed. The pupils of the 1950s weren’t expecting to be sent to war, but the men in the 1960’s were being prepared to go to Vietnam.
We are already at war and the battle is raging. We cannot afford to be unprepared, as though we were at peace. Each of has a post or a position to occupy, or a battlefront to advance upon.
So let us stay awake, alert and in constant preparation, feeding and abiding in the Word of God, continuing instant in prayer and growing mighty in it. There’s so much work to be done, and our Commander in Chief is looking for eager volunteers who are well prepared to serve. Honoring Him in the battles ahead will bring great joy through the exploits He will enable us to do.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]Shortly after WWI, Lawrence of Arabia was entertaining some of his Arab friends in Paris. He showed them the sights of the city: the Arc d’Triomph, the Louvre, the Champs Elysees. It was a remarkable irony to Lawrence that these amazing sights were not what most impressed his Arab friends — but rather the bathtub faucet of their hotel room. They were completely astonished that someone could turn a handle…and get all the water he wanted.
In this prophetic passage the critical question is immediately followed by the powerfully convicting answer. Joel prophesies the Day of the Lord, and asks, “Who can endure it?” The next word “therefore”, is followed by the prophet’s urgent counsel: “Turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping and with mourning!”
The Lord gave us His promise to send us a helper -- the Holy Spirit. The word for "helper" in the NT Greek is "paraclete". This word has more meaning then simply "helper" -- it was also an ancient term used in warfare. When Greek warriors went onto the battle field, they went out in pairs, so when the enemy attacked they could stand back-to-back, covering each other's blind side. The battle partner in Greek was called a "paraclete" -- he was there to watch your back!
When I was younger I used to take an ax and cut up firewood from the woods behind our house. The one thing I always did was sharpen my axe! A dull axe meant harder work chopping through fallen trees. The sharper the ax the less effort and energy required for the task. So I learned early on to sharpen my ax before venturing into the woods, and I saved myself a lot of time and energy. (Besides I was a small kid, growing up, so I needed all the help I could get! 😉 )
One of His greatest promises to us is that nothing can separate us from the love of God. No tribulation or distress we might ever suffer can obliterate the power of His love to carry us through!
In Israel, the Ministry of the Interior is called Misrad Ha-Pnim, translated literally, "Office of the Faces". Those in charge of immigration and citizenship are looking into the faces of those who seek citizenship or residency within the land. Some have observed that the officials there carefully scrutinize each applicant...