Daily Bible Reading - Saturday May 9th

The Philistines stole the ark. They believed that they were stealing the God of Israel too. They were very happy to have the ark. But by the end of the chapter, they wanted to return it. They discovered that the God of Israel is different from other gods. He is very powerful. He does not live in the ark.

Every time the Philistines won a battle, they stole the figures of the gods of that nation. They put them in Dagon’s temple. This showed that Dagon was more powerful than the other gods. The Bible calls these figures ‘idols’. The temple was a building. People went to the temple to praise Dagon. The Philistines took the ark of the Lord and put it in Dagon’s temple, in the morning, Dagon was in front of the ark, not next to it. He had fallen down in front of the ark of the Lord. Hey lay there as if he were worshiping the Lord, sometimes people do this in front of a king this is how they give him honour, they show that the king is more powerful than they are. The Philistines put Dagon back in his place, the figure of was probably on a high table which made him look powerful and important. The next day he was lying in front of the ark again. This was not an accident as it happened twice but this time Dagon was broken its hands and head were as if they were cut off. In those days, when men won a battle, they often cut off their enemies’ heads and hands. The Philistines won the battle with the Israelites but God showed the Philistines that he is more powerful than Dagon. Philippians 2:10-11 says that one day everyone will bend down to Jesus. They will admit that he is the most important God and everyone will give honour to Jesus. As we all know this day is coming so soon.  People will realize they should of worshipped the Lord instead of worshipping their own “idols", anything that kept them from the Lord.  I just love the book of Samuel and the life lessons that are in it.

Today’s Reading

1 Samuel 5:1-7:17
John 6:1-21
Psalm 106:13-31
Proverbs 14:32-33

Daily Devotional

Isaiah 54:17
"no weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you.  This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and this is their vindication from me," declares the LORD.

Sometimes there are seasons in life when it seems like every time you turn around something is coming against you. In times like these, I always go back to one of my favorite scriptures, Isaiah 54:17, that reminds us that no weapon formed against us shall prosper. Notice it doesn't say that no weapon will be formed; it says that it won't prosper. In other words, we shouldn't be surprised when things come against us in this life. The Bible warns that we will have trials in life, but we can be encouraged because we have victory living on the inside of us–our faith in Jesus Christ!

People tell me all the time, " you're always so positive." But I can't help it; I know we serve a positive God. I don't read anywhere in the Bible that we are supposed to go around talking doom and gloom or meditate on everything that's wrong in the world. Instead, we are to have an attitude of faith. We are to speak victory over our lives. Remember, your words have creative power. If you want to know what you're going to be like five years from now, just listen to what you're saying about your life today. You are prophesying your future. And when you declare God's Word over your life, you are creating a path for His promises to unfold. Don't use your words to describe your situation; use your words to change your situation!

Today's thought: I am encouraged because I have victory living inside of me, I speak and meditate victory for my life instead of gloom and doom.