PRAYER - "Joy Comes In The Morning"
David wrote a song for all the saints to sing with thanksgiving when the temple was finally dedicated. He praised God for saving him from his foes and healing him. "His anger endures but a moment, ...weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning." David prayed that God would spare him from early death. He knew the dead cannot praise Him or teach His truth. The new temple would be cause for glorious celebrations, a testimony to countless victories over unspeakable adversities.
Psalm 30:12 - "O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever."
PRINCIPALS - "My Times Are In Thy Hands"
We remember David as a great warrior and a mighty king, but in his day, David agonized with God. He trusted God as his rock, his fortress. "Into thine hand I commit my spirit," (a Messianic prophecy), was David's sighing resignation in the face of many griefs, reproaches and slanders. "I am like a broken vessel." His confession, "My times are in thy hands," meant that David still trusted God's guidance, though enemies threatened and times were dark.
Psalms 31:24 - "Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD."
PRINCIPLES - "Confession And Repentance Bring Blessing"
David's "Beatitudes" said, "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no guile." Before David confessed his sins, he said that his "bones waxed old" and his "moisture" was turned into summer drought. But when he confessed and repented, he found a hiding place in God, and a song of deliverance to sing. Need energizing? Try repenting.
Psalms 32:10 - "Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about."
PROPHECIES - "Blessed Is The Nation Whose God Is The LORD"
In all the history of mankind, few nations have prospered as Israel and the United States. Tragically, however, we are witnessing the meltdown of a once great civilization, because the countries which were founded by men who worshipped and honored the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob have now turned their backs on Him and gone after "strange flesh" (homosexuality) and other gods - the gods of the heathen. No power on earth can override this prophecy.
Psalms 33:12 - "Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance."
I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
– John 17:15-16
Being peculiar. That's not something most of us work to achieve, is it? But, you know, we should.
God has called us to be peculiar—to stand out from the rest of the world as living proof of His power and His love (1 Peter 2:9).
He doesn't, for example, want us to share the ailments of the world. He doesn't want us to share their sickness and poverty and failure. He's never wanted that for His people.
He gave us a physical illustration of that during the time the nation of Israel was held captive in Egypt. Pharaoh had refused to set the Israelites free, so God had allowed a thick darkness to cover the whole land. The darkness was so dreadful throughout Egypt that no one moved for three days.
"But," says Exodus 10:23, "all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings."
What a thrilling example of how God wants us to live. We should be glorifying God by the miraculously victorious lives we lead. We should constantly have people telling us, "I've heard how God healed you," or "I've heard how God prospered you and saved your children!”
So don't hold back. Put the Word of God to work in your life and dare to receive the rich blessings that belong to those who believe. Start using the Word to draw boundaries around your life, to paint spiritual warning signs for the devil. Signs that say:
Off Limits! According to God's Word, I don't belong to you anymore. My family doesn't belong to you. My health doesn't belong to you. My money doesn't belong to you. My ministry doesn't belong to you. I belong to a different kingdom. Now, back off in Jesus' Name!
Does that sound a little peculiar? Good. That's exactly what God has called you to be!
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