Tag: 03 Nov

Praying the Psalms: Sat, 03 Nov – Psalm 109 ~ the wicked slander me and tell lies about me

Praying the Psalms

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Opening – (Northumbria Community)

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I 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 seek Him in His temple.

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.
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Morning Reading: Psalm 109 (NLT) – For the choir director: A psalm of David.

O God, whom I praise, don’t stand silent and aloof while the wicked slander me and tell lies about me. They surround me with hateful words and fight against me for no reason. I love them, but they try to destroy me with accusations even as I am praying for them! They repay evil for good, and hatred for my love. They say,

  • “Get an evil person to turn against him. Send an accuser to bring him to trial.
  • When his case comes up for judgment, let him be pronounced guilty. Count his prayers as sins.
  • Let his years be few; let someone else take his position.
  • May his children become fatherless, and his wife a widow.
  • May his children wander as beggars and be driven from their ruined homes.
  • May creditors seize his entire estate, and strangers take all he has earned.
  • Let no one be kind to him; let no one pity his fatherless children.
  • May all his offspring die. May his family name be blotted out in the next generation.
  • May the Lord never forget the sins of his fathers; may his mother’s sins never be erased from the record.
  • May the Lord always remember these sins, and may his name disappear from human memory.
  • For he refused all kindness to others; he persecuted the poor and needy, and he hounded the brokenhearted to death.
  • He loved to curse others; now you curse him.
  • He never blessed others; now don’t you bless him.
  • Cursing is as natural to him as his clothing, or the water he drinks, or the rich food he eats.
  • Now may his curses return and cling to him like clothing; may they be tied around him like a belt.”

May those curses become the Lord’s punishment for my accusers who speak evil of me. But deal well with me, O Sovereign Lord, for the sake of your own reputation! Rescue me because you are so faithful and good.

  • For I am poor and needy, and my heart is full of pain.
  • I am fading like a shadow at dusk; I am brushed off like a locust.
  • My knees are weak from fasting, and I am skin and bones.
  • I am a joke to people everywhere; when they see me, they shake their heads in scorn.

Help me, O Lord my God! Save me because of your unfailing love. Let them see that this is your doing, that you yourself have done it, Lord. Then let them curse me if they like, but you will bless me! When they attack me, they will be disgraced! But I, your servant, will go right on rejoicing! May my accusers be clothed with disgrace; may their humiliation cover them like a cloak.

But I will give repeated thanks to the Lord, praising him to everyone. For he stands beside the needy, ready to save them from those who condemn them.
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Morning Prayer

O Lord our God: Deliver us from evil and the lies and deceit of wicked people –

+ who slander and bear false witness against us…
+ who hate us and work to ruin us and our families…
+ who raise the sins of our past to defame us…
+ who appeal to idols and false gods against us…
+ who divide us and demonize us…

O Lord our God: Save us because of your loving-kindness through your Son, Jesus Christ – that we may return evil with good, cursing with blessing, and hatred with love – all to your glory. Amen.
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“Psalm 109” (Move) – Richard Bruxvoort Colligan

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Blessing – (Northumbrian Community)

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, and protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
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+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Morning Reading & Prayer: Fri, 03 Nov – Acts 11-12 ~ Holy Spirit given to Gentiles

Morning Reading & Prayer

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Opening – (Northumbria Community)

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I 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 seek Him in His temple.

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.

Please Read: Acts 11-12 (NLT) – click here

Reading Excerpts

Peter Explains His Actions

Acts 11:1-4 (NLT) – Soon the news reached the apostles and other believers in Judea that the Gentiles had received the word of God. But when Peter arrived back in Jerusalem, the Jewish believers criticized him. “You entered the home of Gentiles and even ate with them!” they said.

Then Peter told them exactly what had happened….

Acts 11:15-18 (NLT) – “As I began to speak,” Peter continued, “the Holy Spirit fell on them, just as he fell on us at the beginning. Then I thought of the Lord’s words when he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ And since God gave these Gentiles the same gift he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to stand in God’s way?”

When the others heard this, they stopped objecting and began praising God. They said, “We can see that God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of repenting of their sins and receiving eternal life.”

The Church in Antioch of Syria

Acts 11:19-30 (NLT) – Meanwhile, the believers who had been scattered during the persecution after Stephen’s death traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch of Syria. They preached the word of God, but only to Jews. However, some of the believers who went to Antioch from Cyprus and Cyrene began preaching to the Gentiles about the Lord Jesus. The power of the Lord was with them, and a large number of these Gentiles believed and turned to the Lord.

When the church at Jerusalem heard what had happened, they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw this evidence of God’s blessing, he was filled with joy, and he encouraged the believers to stay true to the Lord. Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and strong in faith. And many people were brought to the Lord.

Then Barnabas went on to Tarsus to look for Saul. When he found him, he brought him back to Antioch. Both of them stayed there with the church for a full year, teaching large crowds of people. (It was at Antioch that the believers were first called Christians.)

During this time some prophets traveled from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them named Agabus stood up in one of the meetings and predicted by the Spirit that a great famine was coming upon the entire Roman world. (This was fulfilled during the reign of Claudius.) So the believers in Antioch decided to send relief to the brothers and sisters in Judea, everyone giving as much as they could. This they did, entrusting their gifts to Barnabas and Saul to take to the elders of the church in Jerusalem.

James Is Killed and Peter Is Imprisoned

Acts 12:1-5 (NLT) – About that time King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the church. He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. When Herod saw how much this pleased the Jewish people, he also arrested Peter. (This took place during the Passover celebration.) Then he imprisoned him, placing him under the guard of four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring Peter out for public trial after the Passover. But while Peter was in prison, the church prayed very earnestly for him.

Peter’s Miraculous Escape from Prison

Acts 12:6-11 (NLT) – The night before Peter was to be placed on trial, he was asleep, fastened with two chains between two soldiers. Others stood guard at the prison gate. Suddenly, there was a bright light in the cell, and an angel of the Lord stood before Peter. The angel struck him on the side to awaken him and said, “Quick! Get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists. Then the angel told him, “Get dressed and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Now put on your coat and follow me,” the angel ordered.

So Peter left the cell, following the angel. But all the time he thought it was a vision. He didn’t realize it was actually happening. They passed the first and second guard posts and came to the iron gate leading to the city, and this opened for them all by itself. So they passed through and started walking down the street, and then the angel suddenly left him.

Peter finally came to his senses. “It’s really true!” he said. “The Lord has sent his angel and saved me from Herod and from what the Jewish leaders had planned to do to me!”

Believers Amazed

Acts 13:12-19 (NLT) – When he realized this, he went to the home of Mary, the mother of John Mark, where many were gathered for prayer. He knocked at the door in the gate, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to open it. When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that, instead of opening the door, she ran back inside and told everyone, “Peter is standing at the door!”

“You’re out of your mind!” they said. When she insisted, they decided, “It must be his angel.”

Meanwhile, Peter continued knocking. When they finally opened the door and saw him, they were amazed. He motioned for them to quiet down and told them how the Lord had led him out of prison. “Tell James and the other brothers what happened,” he said. And then he went to another place.

At dawn there was a great commotion among the soldiers about what had happened to Peter. Herod Agrippa ordered a thorough search for him. When he couldn’t be found, Herod interrogated the guards and sentenced them to death. Afterward Herod left Judea to stay in Caesarea for a while.

The Death of Herod Agrippa

Acts 13:20-25 (NLT) – Now Herod was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. So they sent a delegation to make peace with him because their cities were dependent upon Herod’s country for food. The delegates won the support of Blastus, Herod’s personal assistant, and an appointment with Herod was granted. When the day arrived, Herod put on his royal robes, sat on his throne, and made a speech to them. The people gave him a great ovation, shouting, “It’s the voice of a god, not of a man!”

Instantly, an angel of the Lord struck Herod with a sickness, because he accepted the people’s worship instead of giving the glory to God. So he was consumed with worms and died.

Meanwhile, the word of God continued to spread, and there were many new believers.

When Barnabas and Saul had finished their mission to Jerusalem, they returned, taking John Mark with them.
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“Into All the World” – Adventist Choir, Philippines

https://youtu.be/ZNt4HW7Fb4k?t=59s
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Blessing – (Northumbrian Community)

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
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+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Morning Prayer: Thu, 03 Nov – Psalm 26:1-2; Jeremiah 31:21; Mark 1:16-18 ~ test my motives

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Opening Sentence

I call all heaven to witness today that I have put on Christ.
I choose no other Lord than the Maker of heaven and earth.
This day I walk with Him and He will walk with me.

Reading: Psalm 26:1-2 (NLT)

what-is-my-motive-heart-check-up

Declare me innocent, O Lord, for I have acted with integrity; I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. Put me on trial, Lord, and cross-examine me. Test my motives and my heart.

Reading: Jeremiah 31:21 (NLT)

Set up road signs; put up guideposts. Mark well the path by which you came. Come back again, my virgin Israel; return to your towns here.

Reading: Mark 1:16-18 (NLT)

One day as Jesus was walking along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew throwing a net into the water, for they fished for a living. Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!” And they left their nets at once and followed him.
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Prayer:

Confession: There is one God and one mediator between heaven and earth, the man Jesus Christ, who gave Himself as a ransom for all people.

+ Create a clean heart within me, O God, so that I may become Your chosen shelter and the resting place of the Holy Spirit.

+ Holy God, Holy and Strong, Holy and Immortal, have mercy on me.

+ I make the cross of Christ upon my breast, and I ask the living God of the universe that the Light of lights banish my darkness so that I may live in the resurrection power of Your love.

+ Holy God, Holy and Strong, Holy and Immortal, have mercy on me.

Pardon: The journey from death to life is ours through Jesus Christ, by the strength, power, and mercy of God’s love. Wherever our path has taken us in the past, today is a new day in the eyes of the Lord. Let us live as children of light.
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“Restore My Soul “ – Vertical Church Band

Restore my soul, revive my heart | Renew my life in every part | Reveal to me what sin remains | Then lead me to the cross again

At at the cross I’ll find the way | To live the life Your hand has made | So find me there, Lord, and help me stay | In true surrender with You, my Savior

Relight the fire that burned so strong | Reminding me what You have done | My one request is to be changed | So lead me to the cross again

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!