Daily Bible Reading - Tuesday August 25th
Job was really letting them have it wasn’t he?
2 “I have heard all this before.
What miserable comforters you are!
3 Won’t you ever stop blowing hot air?
What makes you keep on talking?
It looks as if all of his friends have deserted him, all of his servants have disappeared, his wife despises him it says, everyone is criticizing him saying it’s his fault that God has come down on him and yet he still says God is his redeemer, he doesn’t turn his back on God. He still doesn’t know that God has allowed the devil to do this. Job is one strong person, even though he is complaining and wanting to die he is stronger then most people I know today. I know if that was me I would probably have dug my own grave and jumped in it so to speak. There is really some good lessons to be learned in Job, we may not think Job applies to us today but it actually does. We go through similar cir****tances and problems in our lives, if we were to face them like Job I truly believe we’d come out stronger then ever. We all know what happens to Job at the end, the same thing can happen to us. God can and will restore to us 100 fold what the devil has stolen from us. Just like the devotional though, we have to stay filled with hope, no matter how long we been going through bad cir****tances and no matter how many set backs we’ve had and no matter how much the devil has stolen from us we have to get up every morning with the attitude that THIS could be the day that God returns it all. The devotional also talks about the name of the Lord being a strong tower, that’s a song too that talks about “The name of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous run into it and they shall be saved" it goes something like that but its true, if we will run to the Strong Tower, the Lord, He will deliver us from the hands of the devil, as long as we keep our hope in the Lord we are putting ourselves in the path for victory, yay!!! Its coming our way, hold on, for whatever you do DON’T give up.
Today’s Reading
Job 16:1-19:29
1 Corinthians 16:1-24
Psalm 40:1-10
Proverbs 22:1
Daily Devotional
Zechariah 9:12, NIV
"Return to your fortress, o prisoners of hope, even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you"
God wants to bring to pass everything that He's promised to you! He longs to give you the deepest desires of your heart. He wants to restore to you twice as much as what's been stolen from you! But you have to do your part and stay filled with hope. That means that no matter how long you've been in that negative situation, no matter how many setbacks you've suffered; you've got to get up each day with the attitude that this could be the day God turns it all around!
The Bible says that the Name of the Lord is a strong tower. When you put your trust and hope in Him, you are in a fortress of strength. Nothing can steal your joy, peace, or enthusiasm. You are positioned for victory! You are positioned for power! And you are positioned to receive everything God has in store for you!
A Prayer for Today:
"Heavenly Father, thank You for Your goodness and faithfulness. Thank You for Your promise to restore every area of my life. I choose to be a prisoner of hope trusting in Your Name alone. I bless You today and always. In Jesus' Name. Amen."
I Corinthians 15:57 - But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
When I have time I'm going to have to get out the commentary's and see what they have to say about Job... I've heard many a sermon on him but I had forgotten his "language"...so to speak...he talks so strongly it seems and when he says a positive thing it really stands out to me... a few little words he says today that jump off the page was this: "my prayer is pure"... are my prayers pure? are there any selfish motives behind them? am I to the place I need to be to approach His throne? so much to think about there. The bit down the verses he says: "Even now my witness is in heaven and my advocate on high." That's so encouraging beings he could still say that even in the midst of such personal devastation!
I also liked this verse: "Nevertheless, the righteous will hold their ways, and those with clean hands will grow stronger." Boy that just makes me want to make sure of my living and that my hands are clean...you know everyday when I come in from walking I go straight to the sink and wash all the dog slobber, dirt and hair off... boy does that feel soooooo good to get my hands clean... the same applies to my spirit when I "come clean with God" so to speak!
In a way the verses I underlined in the Psalm goes right along with this thought: I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Then on down: I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is written in my heart.
My goodness some days there is just so much it seems hard for me to "retain" and keep it at the front of my thoughts... my mind goes in so many directions.
I've sure gotten lots of good out of parts of the devotions this year! It sure has been a constant reminder that we need to stay positive and look for the good things of God, exercise our faith.
Hope you have a good and wonderful day all of Missouri.
Bec
