Sat.’s Devo - Run the Race

Hoshea was king of Israel, when they decided to rebel and throw off Assyria’s power over them. Shalmaneser king of Assyria came to put Hoshea in prison and eventually seized Samaria, Israel’s capital. Israel had fallen to idolatry and all kinds of sins because they had forgotten the Lord and his commands and chosen to follow the gods of the nations God had delivered them from. Shalmaneser replaced the people of Samaria with his people and his gods. God sent lions among them to kill them because they didn’t know what God required. Shalmaneser sent a priest to teach the people God’s requirements, but there were such a variety of nations settled in Samaria and each of them worshiped their own gods their own way. They refused to give up their ways for God’s.
In Judah, Hezekiah son of Ahaz became king. He is the only king that followed God like David had done. He even removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones, cut down the Ashram poles, and broke into pieces the bronze snake that Moses had made. He did a total spiritual reform of the nation of Judah. God blessed him in every way and he defeated his enemies and his oppressors.
Everywhere Paul went he encouraged the saints and stirred up the sinners. His enemies wanted him dead. Satan wanted him dead. But God wanted him alive and kept strengthening and sending him out. He was driven to Jerusalem even though he knew that prison and hardships were waiting there. Paul had one goal and that was to finish his race strong and accomplish everything God had in mind for him. He also knew that when he visited his churches that this was his good-bye tour.
Lord, help us to be like Paul and finish our race with purpose and determination.

Fri.’s Devo - The Name of Jesus

Read: 2 Kings 15:1-16:20; Acts. 19:13-41; Psalm 147:1-20; Proverbs 18:4-5
Just as God had spoken through Jehu, his fourth generation was the last king from his family. Zechariah was assassinated by Shallum whose name means “restitution”. Shallum only reigned one month and the kingship went to Menahem who was a ruthless destroyer and did evil in God’s eyes. He had to pay tribute to Assyria to keep them from attacking Israel. When he died, his son, Pekhiah became king of Israel. He was assassinated by Pekah who reigned for twenty years and did evil. Hoshea assassinated Pekah.
Meanwhile, in Judah, Jotham son of Uzziah ruled for 16 years. He did what was right before God like his father only they continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense to other gods. After him, Ahaz ruled Judah and did what was not right before the Lord. He saw an altar of the Assyrians and came back to Jerusalem and had the priests build him one just like it. He put this new altar in the temple of the Lord and offered sacrifices on it. He removed the laver that the priests used to wash in.
All that Ahaz did to rearrange the worship had to do with offering a different “Jesus” who is the altar and a new way to be sanctified, which is represented in the laver.
In Acts we see that every time the Lord poured out his spirit with manifestations of power, it stirred up the evil spirits that had operated freely. They were threatened and exposed for what they were and fought back for their place.
We have been given the name of Jesus which is more powerful than any other name on earth and in heaven.
Lord, may we use your name as a weapon against the devil and as a blessing of salvation to the people.

Thurs.’s Devo - God’s Soverignty

Read: 2 Kings 13:1-14:29; Acts 18:23-19:12; Psalm 146:1-10; Proverbs 18:2-3
While Joash was still king of Judah, Jehoahaz became the king of Israel. He did evil and was oppressed by Hazael king of Aram and Ben-hadad, his son. So, Jehoahaz decided to seek the Lord. God heard his cry and delivered Israel from Aram leaving Israel with a very reduced army.
Elisha got sick and died taking his mantle to the grave. His destiny wasn’t fulfilled since he needed to raise one more person from the grave to do double the miracles Elijah had done. Since his mentee, Gehazi had blown it, there was no one to carry on his ministry. His mantle and spirit went to the grave with him. A random corpse was thrown on his grave and sprung to life!
Joash died after reigning 40 years in Judah and his son Amaziah reigned. He did what was right in God’s eyes except for removing the high places. He killed the people who had murdered his father but he let their children live as according to Moses’ laws. He fought Edom and regained some land but when he went against Israel he was sorely defeated. His arrogancy cost him the treasures of the house of the Lord and his own palace. He also lost many of his people who were taken hostage.
Amaziah was murdered by his own people just like his father, Joash. His sixteen year old son, Azariah was made king in his stead.
Meanwhile in Judah, Jeroboam was crowned king after his father, Jehoash died. He did evil but he did establish the borders of Israel like Jonah had prophecied and God used Jeroboam to save Israel in spite of their sin because he had promised not to blot out their name. After Jeroboam died, his son Zechariah reigned.
In Acts, Paul was still visiting the churches he had helped establish. Apollos from Alexandria came to visit Ephesus to teach them the scriptures. He only knew about the baptism of John to repentance. Priscilla and Aquila explained to him the baptism of Jesus which was with fire. This fire is the Holy Spirit. Paul explained this to the people. Paul placed his hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues and prophesied.
Lord, help us to walk in your baptism of fire and power.

Wed.’s Devo -Spiritual Reform

Read: 2 Kings 10:32-12:21; Acts 18:1-22; Psalm 145:1-21; Proverbs 18:1
Israel was losing territory as it was losing faith in God but Judah was being preserved through a baby boy named Joash. Ahaziah had been king for only a year and when he died of his battle wound, his sister hid her little brother from Athaliah, the queen who killed all the male sons of the king. Joash was just a baby when this happened so the priests kept him hidden in the temple of the Lord for seven years. At seven, he was brought out under heavy protection and crowned king. Athaliah was killed and Joash became king.
Joash rid Judah of Baal worship so now both Israel and Judah were Baal-free for the first time in years. Joash did major spirtual reform under the council of the priest, Jehoiada. The temple was restored and the land was blessed. Joash reigned 40 years and was murdered by his own officials. His son, Amaziah ruled in his place.
In Athens, Paul met Aquilla and Pricilla, a husband and wife team that loved the Lord. They went with him to Corinth where Paul was brought to court over his teaching about Christ. Gallio the Greek judge had no desire to get into issues about Jewish doctrine so he had them thrown out of his courtroom. The accusers attacked the synagogue ruler and beat him in front of the court, but Gallio ignored them.
When Paul got ready to go to Syria, he took Aquilla and Pricilla with him. He visited the churches in Ephesus, Caesarea and Antioch.
Lord, help us to be as diligent as Paul in spreading the cause of Christ in the earth,.

Tues.’s Devo Draining the Swamp

Read: 2 Kings 9:14-10:31; Acts 17:1-34; Psalm 144:1-15; Proverbs 17:27-28
Jehu had just been declared king by the people even though Joram was the reigning king recovering from his injuries in Jezreel. Ahaziah king of Judah was there with him. They were both related to Ahab. Jehu drove like a madman to get to them and free the land of Jezebel’s evil influence.
Both kings fled from Jehu but his arrow killed Joram and fatally wounded Ahaziah. Joram died in Naboth’s land fulfilling Elijah’s prophesy about him.
Jehu went next to kill Jezebel. She got all made up for her death and was killed by her own eunuchs. Her blood was spilled on the land of Jezreel and the dogs age her flesh until she was not recognizable also fulfilling prophecy.
Jehu drained the swamp. He had the keepers of Ahab’s 70 sons kill them themselves. Then he killed Ahab’s family, officers, close friends, and priests. He also did the same to the relatives of Ahaziah. He rounded up all the worshippers of Baal and had them killed eradicating Baal worship in Israel. The only thing Jehu didn’t do is get rid of the golden calves that Jeroboam had made. Because of his great reform, God promised that he would have a descendant to sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.
In Acts, the gospel continued to stir up the evil spirits in the people. The spirit of light and the spirit of darkness do not mix. When the power of God starts moving in miracles, signs and wonders, it stirs up the spiritual forces of evil to combat it. Paul was traveling through Greek cities where false gods were part of the scenery. In Athens he saw a tomb that had the inscription: “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD” and used that as his sermon topic. He explained that he knew the unknown God and it was God Almighty who sent his son Jesus to come to earth to die and rise from death. He would show them who he was and how great his love was for the world. Many came to accept Jesus as their Lord.
Lord, may you rid the land of abortion and all the forces of evil that defy the truth. May we carry your spirit and spread the gospel of love and peace today.

Mon’s Devo - The Power of Praise

Read: 2 Kings 8:1-9:13; Acts 16:16-40; Psalm 143:1-12; Proverbs 17:26
It appears that once Gehazi lied to Elisha, he was no longer his servant. Today we read that he was with the king telling the stories of his time with Elisha. As he told the story of the woman whose son Elisha raised from the dead, she walked in to reclaim her land. She had been instructed by Elisha to leave for a while because a famine was coming. God’s timing is perfect. She was given her land and all the income her land had produced while she was gone.
Ben-hadad, king of Aram was ill and heard that Elisha had come to his country. He sent Hazel to ask Elisha if he would recover. Elisha told him he would recover but die. Hazael would become king and ruthlessly kill men, women, children and infants in the womb. He must have belonged to Planned Parenthood.
Sure enough, Hazael went home and told the king he would recover then killed him himself and was crowned king.
Jehoram, Jehoshaphat’s son became king of Judah and married Ahab’s daughter following after Ahab’s ways instead of his fathers who had followed the Lord. During his reign, Edom and Lybnah rebelled. Jehoram died and his son Ahaziah ruled. Ahaziah’s mother was Athaliah who was like Jezebel in doing evil. They were all kin to Ahaz, as was the king of Israel. The two kings joined together and fought Hazael, king of Aram at Ramoth Gilead. Jehoram (Joram) got wounded in battle and had to go home. Hazael went to see him after the battle and Elisha sent one of his prophets to go to Ramoth Gilead and give Jehu a word. Jehu was another son of Jehoshaphat’s. He was to take him into a room by himself and anoint him king over Israel. He would destroy the house of Ahab. The prophet did as he was told and when he finished he fled. Jehu’s men asked him what the prophet had said and finally he told them. They blew the trumpet and proclaimed Jehu the king.
Wow! They changed kings like changing jeans. This is what it looks like when people do their own thing and let Satan move them. Finally, there is a man who is going to rid the nation’s of the influence of Ahab. I see this happening in our own nation. Trump is like Jehu ridding our nation of the evil influences of the house of Clinton. God bless our President and our nation.
In Acts, there was a servant girl who had the spirit of divination. When Paul cast it out she no longer had the ability to predict the future. Her master was now out of a cash cow and attacked their doctrine. Touch someone’s wallet and watch demons come to life. They were flogged and thrown into prison. This time they were put in the inner cell with their feet in stocks. They must have heard of all the times they were sprung from jail.
Instead of complaining about their undeserved punishment, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns as the other prisoners listened in amazement. God shook the earth and all the prison doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unlocked. The jailers came in fearful they had lost their prisoners. Paul shouted that they were all there and the jailer turned on the lights and brought them up so he could be saved. The jailer believed and washed their wounds, and fed them. He had them baptize his whole family. The next day, they were free to go.
Lord, help us to see the importance of praise in the midst of our persecutions.

Sun.’s Devo - The Army of God

Read 2 Kings 6:1-7:20; Acts 15:36-16:15;bPsalm 142:1-7; Provebs 17:24-25
Elisha did many personal miracles for his prophets like make a borrowed ax head float. He also spoke to the king the word of the Lord. He would warn him of every plot the king of Aram was planning against Israel so they would be ready for him. The king of Aram found out he was doing this and sent his army with horses and carrots to surround the city that Elisha was in. When Elisha’s servant woke up to see the army, Elisha wasn’t the least bit concerned. He knew that God’s army was surrounding him and it was so much more powerful. Elisha prayed that his servant’s eyes would be opened and they were. He saw for himself the army of God. Elisha prayed that God would blind their eyes and lead the whole army to the city of Sarmaria where he opened their eyes. Israel’s king lived there and as Elisha said, he fed them and sent them home. I can’t imagine what they told their king when they got home with full bellies and no kills.
The king came back and besieged Samaria and the people were starving. The king wanted to blame Elisha and sent out to kill him. Elisha knew he was coming and told him that by tomorrow, a seah of flour will sell for a shekel and two seah of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria. The king’s guard laughed at this and was told he would see it but never get any. It happened just as Elisha said. Once again, the army of Aram is humiliated and not able to fire a shot. They run with their tails between their legs as they hear the army of God. Lepers find their tents full of loot and food and share the news with Samaria. Samaria is blessed and the man who doubted is trampled in the gates.
In Acts, Paul sets out to go back and strengthen the churches he started. He is given a vision of an angel telling him to come to Macedonia and help them. He obeys and saves a prominent woman named Lydia who believes along with her household.
Lord, help us not to panic when the enemy comes in like a flood. Thank you that your army is still strong and fighting for us.

Sat.’s Devo - Count the Cost

Sat.’s Devo - Count the Cost 6-23-18
Read: 2 Kings 4:18-5:27; Acts 15:1-35 Psalm 141:1-10; Proverbs 17:23
The story of the Shunemite woman is so interesting to me. She was blessed with a son because of her kindness to Elisha and now the son was dead. She didn’t panic or even tell her husband. She went straight to Elisha and refused to leave without him.
When Elisha got there he found the boy dead on the bed. Gehazi had already placed his staff on him and it didn’t change his situation so Elisha got as close to the boy as he could. He wanted his spirit to be passed to the boy. It worked and the boy sneezed seven times and was healed and alive.
Gehazi was to Elisha as Elisha had been to Elijah. He would get Elisha’s mantle if he kept serving him and kept his heart pure.
Sadly, in the next story lost Gehazi the mantle.
A Jewish girl had been taken captive by the Armenians and became the slave of Naaman, the commander of the Armenian army. Naaman had leprosy and the young slave mentioned that there was a prophet in Israel who could heal him. He took 10 talents of silver, 6,000 shekels of gold and 10 sets of clothing. He sent a letter to the king of Israel to heal his leprosy. The king was distraught and tore his robe thinking that Aram was picking a fight with Israel. Elisha heard about it and sent word to the king to send Naaman to him.
Elisha didn’t even come outside to see him. He sent Gehazi out to tell him to wash in the Jordan 7 times. Naaman was outraged that Elisha didn’t even give him an audience and that he sent him to the muddiest river in Israel to wash in. He stormed off mad until his servant talked some sense into him. It was a small thing that the prophet had asked him to do. He was to dip in the dirt and come out clean. It was a dichotomy but God is the God of mystery and opposites. He did and was miraculously cleansed. He wanted to pay Elisha but he wouldn’t hear of it. Gehazi decided that he wanted some of that loot so he lied to the commander saying that Elisha had sent him to get 2 talents of silver and two sets of clothing for two young prophets. Then he lied again to Elisha about it. This cost him his prophetic mantle and he died of leprosy. How he thought he could trick Elisha showed how deceived he was. He sold his destiny for a little money and clothes! How sad.
The church in Acts was dealing with wrong teaching. Some thought that the Gentiles should be made to get circumcised. Circumcision was just a picture of salvation. Peter met with the apostles and elders and they decided that they didn’t need to be circumcised by they did need to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality and meat of strangled animals. (Where was PETA, then?)
Lord, we pray with the Psalmist, “Set a guard over our mouths and keep watch over the door of our lips. Let our hearts not be turned to evil and let us not take part in anything evil.”

Fri.’s Devo - The God of Abundance

Read: 2 Kings 3:1-4:17; Acts 14:8-28; Psalm 140:1-13; Proverbs 17:22
Mesha, the king of Moab had been supplying the king of Israel with 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams a year. They decided they were done with that and rebelled. The king of Israel asked Jehoshaphat, king of Judah and the king of Edom to help him fight them. They all agreed but after a seven day march they ran out of water for them and their animals. Only Jehoshaphat wanted to ask for God’s help. He asked if there was a prophet around.
The king of Israel knew of Elisha and they called for him. He told them that the only reason he agreed to meet with them was because he had respect for Jehoshaphat, certainly not them. (You have to love the boldness God gives prophets to speak the truth!)
Elisha asked for a harpist to play while he got in God’s presence to hear his word. God’s word was to dig trenches because God was going to supernaturally fill the trenches with water. They would totally win the battle. It happened just as Elisha said it would.
We go from God using Elisha to save a nation to saving a widow and her two sons. She was the wife of a prophet who had died and was going to lose her two sons to slavery because she couldn’t pay her debts. Elisha asked her what she had and it was a little oil. She was able to fill all the jars she could find with that little oil and it sustained her and her sons the rest of their life.
Next, Elisha blessed a barren woman with a son.
God is able to take our obedience and multiply it for whatever we need. The kings needed water and God gave it in abundance. The widow woman needed money to keep her sons out of slavery and God blessed her with enough oil to sustain her through life. The barren lady needed a child and God blessed her with one. God is the God of abundance; the God of more than enough.
Our story in Acts is such an interesting story of human nature. The people in Lystra see one remarkable miracle and decide that Paul and Barnabas are Greek gods come to life in one minute and the next they are stoning them. If there is one thing we can learn from Paul it is that the church is very fickle and you have to keep your mission about God or you will fail. Paul did that and just kept going.
Lord, help us see that you are the God of more than enough. May we walk in obedience.

Thurs.’s Devo - The Next Generation

2 Kings 1:1-2:25; Acts 13:42-14:7; Psalm 139:1-24; Proverbs 17:19-21
Ahab’s son Ahaziah followed him in evil and was injured by falling through the roof of his house. He sent his officers to ask Baal-Zebub if he would recover from his injury. Baal-Zebub means “lord of the fly” and refers to a poisonous fly that bites. God sent Elijah to intercept the messengers and give his message to the king. God’s message was that since he thought he needed to ask a false prophet his future, he would die without recovering.
When Azariah discovered it was Elijah who had prophesied his death, he sent 50 men to bring him back. Elijah called down fire and they were consumed. Another 50 were sent and the same thing happened to them. When another 50 were sent, that officer humbled himself before Elijah calling him a man of God and begging him to spare his life and the life of his men. God told him to go with that man back to the king.
Elijah followed him back to the king and told him face to face what God said. Ahaziah died and his son, Joram succeeded him.
It was time for Elijah to leave and all the prophets knew it including Elisha. Elijah kept trying to get alone so he could leave the earth. Elisha was determined to get a blessing from Elijah and would not leave Elijah’s side. Elijah went to Beth-el, Jericho, and Jordan. Bethel was the place Abraham was called by God to be the Father of many nations. Jericho was the first city Joshua led the people to conquer when they reached the promised land and Jordan was the region that Jesus ministered in while he was on earth. Elijah felt the need to walk these areas on the last day of his life on earth. When he asked Elisha what he wanted, he replied that he wanted a double portion of Elijah’s spirit. Elijah told him that what he asked for was difficult but if he saw him leave, then he could have it. He did see the chariot of fire and he did see Elijah leave so he tore his own clothes off and put on the cloak of Elijah’s and immediately started calling on his spirit. He parted the Jordan and walked across. Then he healed the bitter waters with salt and called down a curse on some boys who were mocking him. Bears mauled them to death.
Elisha went to Mount Carmel where Elijah had called down fire and killed the prophets of Baal to spend some time there, then returned to Samaria.
In Acts, Paul and Barnabas were asked to come back the next Sabbath and teach. That next week, most of the town showed up to hear what they had to say. They explained that they were lights to the Gentiles to find their way to their God. The Gentiles were elated, but many of the Jews were not so happy about that. They formed a coalition of important people in the town against Paul and Barnabas. They threw them from their region. Paul and Barnabas left praising God for the opportunity to suffer for Christ.
They left there and went to Iconium where the same things happened. Many were saved and saw the miraculous power of God and many were upset and caused trouble for Paul and Barnabas. When they found out their was a plot to stone them, they fled the town and went to Lystra and Derbe. Nothing could stop them from preaching the truth.
Lord, may we be as determined as Elisha to get the mantle we want and as faithful as Paul and Barnabas to continue in our walk no matter the opposition.

Wed.’s Devo - Living For Eternity

Read: 1 Kings 22: 1-53; Acts 13:16-41; Psalm 138:1-8; Proverbs 17:17-18
After years and years of fighting one another, Judah and Israel decided to join forces and fight Aram to regain Ramoth Gilead. Ahab had his false prophets who prophesied that they would win. Jehoshaphat, king of Judah asked if there was a prophet of the Lord they could ask. Ahab knew of Micaiah but he hated him because he never had anything good to say to him. Jehoshaphat insisted they ask him anyway so Ahab sent for Micaiah.
He sarcastically prophesied what the other prophets said then told them the truth. They would not win if they went out against Aram. He told them that if Ahab went to war he
would be killed. When he said this one of Ahab’s prophets slapped him in the face and mocked him. Ahab had Micaiah sent to Amon and put in jail until he returned safely.
Ahab never returned safely because just as Micaiah had prophesied, he died in the battle. The dogs licked his blood from his chariot to fulfill Elijah’s prophesy. Ahaziah his son became king of Israel for two years. He was also evil and worshiped Baal.
The prophets laid down their lives to say the truth. They refused to sugar coat God’s word for their own comfort. It is truly not this life that we are living for but eternity. Whatever we lose for the gospel will be rewarded in eternity.
In Acts, Paul is in Antioch at the synagogue. The rulers had asked Paul if he had any encouragement for the people. Paul stood up and gave them a history lesson. He started with Moses and spoke of Samuel, Saul, David, John the Baptist, and Jesus. He explained that Jesus was the one David had said would be God’s son. He was the one promised that would forgive their sins and be their Messiah.
Lord, help us to live for eternity.

Tues.’s Devo - God is the Victor

Read: 1 Kings 20:1-21:29; Acts 12:24-13:15; Psalm 137:1-9; Proverbs 17:16
God had told Elijah to anoint Hazael the king over Aram. Ben-Hadad was king at the time. He rallied his army to attack Samaria, Israel’s land. First he sent his messengers to intimidate Ahab and then he boasted of what he was going to do to them since they refused to give him all he wanted. Ahab told him he shouldn’t count his chickens before they hatched and got ready for war. Ben-hadad’s army way out-numbered Ahab’s but God sent a prophet to Ahab to give him strategy and tell him that He would give him the victory. Ahab was to start the battle himself and he was to send out the 232 young officers of the provincial commanders to fight first. The officers killed their opponents and caused the Armenian army to flee with Israel on their tails.
The prophet came back and told Ahab that the army of Aram would return to fight in the spring.
They did come back and this time were defeated even worse. They had thought that God could only fight in the hills and not in the plains. God proved that he was the God of the plains also. One hundred and twenty-seven thousand were killed of the Armenians. Their officials told Ben-hadad, king of Aram that the Israelites were merciful so they should surrender to them. They made a treaty of peace and the prophet returned to let Ahab know that he had made a mistake by letting Ben-hadad live. Ahab would die for this.
Ahab didn’t learn his lesson and went home and lusted after Naboth’s vineyard which he wanted for a vegetable garden since it was so close to his house. The vineyard was Naboth’s inheritance and he didn’t want to sell it so Jezebel got involved and had Naboth’s name slandered and wrongly accused him of blasphemy with the penalty of stoning. Once Naboth was dead, Ahab was able to take his vineyard.
God sent Elijah to tell Ahab that he would die in the same place that Naboth died. Jezebel would have her blood spilled on the ground by the wall of Naboth’s vineyard and the dogs would eat her body.
Ahab humbled himself and God repented of judging him in his lifetime. The judgment would be passed to his children.
In Acts, revival continued to spread. When the Spirit was moving, and prophecy was coming forth, Satan couldn’t stand it and sent his prophets. Satan’s prophet was Bar-Jesus who was an attendant of the proconsul. The proconsul was interested in hearing about Jesus but Bar-Jesus tried to stop Paul. Paul called him out and called down blindness on the sorcerer and he immediately became blind. This got the proconsul’s attention and he became a believer in Christ.
Lord, we pray for discernment to know your prophets from Satan’s. Let us not be afraid to confront evil because light is so much more powerful than darkness. Light disperses the dark.

Mon.’s Devo - A New Order

Read: 1 Kings 19:1-21; Acts 12:1-23; Psalm 136:1-26; Proverbs 17:14-15
Ahab come home awestruck by what he had witnessed but Jezebel was there to strike him down from his spiritual high. Elijah was hopeful of a national repentance but instead was threatened and had to flee for his life. He ended up under a broom tree in Beersheba ready to quit. This was the same place that Hagar found herself when she had been kicked out of Abraham’s house. God sustained her and Ishmael and so God did for Elijah. An angel woke him up twice and fed him and gave him drink that would sustain him for the 40 day trek to the mountain of Horeb. Horeb is the mountain range that has Mt. Sinai where God gave Moses the law.
God told Elijah to go and stand on the mountain because He was about to pass by. Elijah witnessed destructive winds, an earthquake and a fire, but God was not in any of them. Then he heard the whisper of God and went outside where God gave him instructions. He sent him to anoint Hazel king over Aram, Jehu king over Israel and Elisha to succeed him as prophet. He encouraged him with the fact that there were 7,000 people in Israel who had remained faithful to him.
Elijah left and met Elisha first. Elisha was plowing with 12 oxen when Elijah threw his mantle on him. No doubt, these oxen were his inheritance and his occupation. He had to sacrifice them and completely burn them to follow his new calling.
It is so easy to get distracted by the bad events happening in our world, but if we will just wait, God will whisper peace to our hearts and give us his instruction. We cannot save the world, but we can do what God calls us to do and that is enough. God is in control of the rest.
In Acts, Peter is thrown in prison again but this time Herod has him more heavily guarded. There are four squads of soldiers assign to him and he is chained between two guards. An angel comes and springs him out of jail and saves his life. Herod is furious and has the guards killed. He leaves for Caesarea and there his pride kills him…literally.
God knows how to preserve us and protect us. We don’t ever have to fear the enemy.
Lord, help us to boldly proclaim the truth.

Sun’s Devo - God’s Prophet Prevails

Read: 1 Kings 18:1-46; Acts 11:1-30; Psalm 135:1-21; Proverbs 17:12-13
God strategically planted Obadiah, a devout follower of God in charge of Ahab’s palace. He had the inside scoop and knew that Jezebel was killing God’s prophets so he was able to save 100 of them. God had his last say in that. He killed all of her prophets in the end.
The tell-tale sign of where the people stood is verse 21B. It says: “but the people said nothing”. Elijah had asked them whether they were going to serve God or Baal. They were in the presence of 950 false priests and one prophet of God. I guess the peer pressure was too much.
God did prove he was God in a very demonstrative way. In the midst of a severe famine and drought, Elijah poured about 39 quarts of water on his sacrifice. Elijah knew that the way to receive what he needed was to give what he lacked. He gave sacrificially and God answered abundantly. The rain that fell was a torrent.
Elijah ran before Ahab back to Jezreel which was about 10 miles. It was customary to have runners that ran before the king. God had kept Elijah fit and able so he did this to show his honor to God and his country, even though Ahab was an evil king. Elijah was hopeful for the nation to have revival but was about to be greatly disappointed.
In Acts, the church was going through a major shift. When Peter returned to Jerusalem, word had already reached the people that he had eaten with a Gentile and prayed for him. He had to defend his actions and try to get them to see what God had shown him about the Gentiles. God had filled these people with the Holy Spirit so they would have to blame God for breaking his own laws. Sounds crazy, but that is about how crazy many of the splits in churches are.
The blessing of persecution is that it dispersed the believers who were running for their lives and sought refuge in Gentile cities. Soon they were telling their story and the Gentiles were believing them and getting saved and filled with the Holy Spirit. This happened in Antioch so when the believers in Jerusalem heard, they sent Barnabas to help start a church there. He arrived to find a large vibrant group of believers hungry for teaching so Barnabas sent for Saul to come and help him. It was here that they coined the word “Christian” to describe the believers.
We are in the midst of a shift just like the early church went through and it is going to take some change in our thinking and prior teaching to be able to put the new wine into new wineskins. God is doing a new thing.
Lord, shake us out of our tradition and help us to see what you are doing and move with your Spirit.

Sat.’s Devo - My God Shall Supply

Read: 1 Kings 15:25-17:24; Acts 10:23b-48; Psalm 134:1-3; Proverbs 17:9-11
All the kings are either measured by David who followed God with all his heart, or Jeroboam who caused Israel to worship golden calves. Asa had become king of Judah and he got rid of the idolatry in Judah, meanwhile Israel was changing kings like we change clothes. Each king was worse than the last. They were killing off all the offspring of the last king so the kingship no longer became a succession of family but one of military power. The last king we read about today for Israel was Ahab who was one of Israel’s most notable kings. He married Jezebel and everyone has heard about her. Together they brought the worship of Baal to Israel.
Into this mess of idolatry enters Elijah, God’s prophet. He is probably the only person in Israel who was not afraid of Ahab and told him what God was saying. Elijah announced that there would be no rain until he said it then he went and hid. God sent the raven to feed him and a brook for water. When that dried up, God sent him to a widow in Zarephath. Zarephath means “a place of refining.” Even the man of God needs refining. When he met this “new supply”, she was gathering sticks to make her last meal for her and her son because she was out of food. I wonder if Elijah was tempted to doubt this was his supply. Obviously he got it together because he told her to make him some bread first then she would never be without. She did and her jar of flour and her jug of oil never ran dry.
That is the answer to our needs. We have to give first to the Lord, then he will supply what we need. This widow gave her life and the life of her son for Elijah and Elijah was able to give the life of her son and her life back to her.
In Acts, Peter brought Cornelius before his Jewish followers so they could see what God was doing with the Gentiles. This was a huge shift in their thinking since they thought that God was the god of the Jews only. Now, they saw that he was everyone’s God and like Jesus had said right before he left, God wanted to save everyone. He had sent them to the uttermost parts of the earth to preach the good news.
Lord, open our eyes to the people you want us to minister to and love into the kingdom.

Fri.’s Devo - Identities

Read: 1 Kings 14:1-15:24; Acts 10:1-23a; Psalm 133:1-3; Proverbs 17:7-8
Jeroboam did everything his way, but when his son, Abijah got sick, he was ready to do it God’s way. He sent his wife to find the prophet, Ahijah, that had prophecied that he would be the next king. Ahijah gave Jeroboam another prophecy. Since he had disobeyed the Lord so adamantly, his kingdom would be taken from him and given to another. Every male in his line would killed through disaster and the son they were asking about would die. His son would be the only one in his family who would receive a burial because he was the only one that God had found any good in.
Rehoboam wasn’t doing much better in Judah. They fell into idolatry and sin so God sent Shishak king of Egypt to attack Jerusalem. He took all the treasures of the temple and the gold shields that Solomon had made. These shields represented their faith. They replaced them with brass ones which means they had replace real faith with fake faith.
At least Rehoboam got a burial. His son, Abijah ruled in his stead. Interestingly his name was the same name of Jeroboam’s son that died. He didn’t do any better than his father in following the Lord. He spent his life fighting with Israel. When he died, his son Asa ruled. Finally, someone who did it right!
He threw out the male shrine prostitutes and got rid of all the idols his fathers had made. He even brought down his own grandmother, Maacha because she had set up an Asherah pole. Asa began conquering Israel and making Judah strong.
When he died his son, Jehoshaphat became king.
In Acts we have the salvation of the first Gentile, Cornelius. Peter was given a dream showing him that it was kosher now to eat things he would normally have thought of as unclean. Gentiles were normally considered unclean, but now God was making them clean. Cornelius was a centurion which means that he was in charge of 100 men making him important by the world’s standards. Peter was a Jewish fisherman making him seem small in the world’s standard. Both Peter and Cornelius had to jump over cultural hoops in their minds to connect and embrace one another but that is what the love of God does. He puts us all on the same playing field at the same level.
Lord, help us to walk in the identity you have given us and not the one the world thinks we are.

Thurs.’s Devo - The True Church

Read: 1 kings 12:20-13:34; Acts 9:26-43; Psalm 132:1-18; Proverbs 17:6
Rehoboam ruled Judah and Jeroboam ruled the other tribes. Jerusalem was in Rehoboam’s land so in order to keep Jeroboam’s people in his kingdom he felt the need to have his own places of worship. Jeroboam set up golden calves in Dan and Bethel and told the people that these were the gods that had led them out of Egypt. Then he appointed priests who were not Levites and established a new feast that was not at the time of God’s feasts. He fabricated God’s worship making a religion of his own. The people fell for it since he was their king. God sent a prophet to Bethel to prophecy against the altar Jeroboam had set up. He declared that God was not pleased and to prove it the altar would split and the ashes would pour to the ground. When Jeroboam lifted his arm to stop him, his arm stuck and he couldn’t move it. The altar split and the ashes poured out just like the prophet said. Jeroboam had to humble himself and ask the prophet to pray for him so that his arm would relax. He did and his arm returned to normal.
I don’t understand the next part. Another prophet heard about what this prophet had done and tricked him into disobeying the Lord which led to his death. Why????? I am stumped about this story so if someone would like to share their insight I would love it.
In Acts, Saul was having a hard time convincing the people of Jerusalem that he was now on their side. He had probably killed many of their loved ones and it was going to take more than a story to convince them. Barnabus helped vouch for Saul and they eventually believed that Saul was sincere. The church was much freer with Saul now a Christian.
Peter traveled to Lydda where he raised a paralytic from his bed then on to Joppa where he raised the woman, Dorcus from the grave. Those were exciting times for the church.
Our first verse of Psalms says “O Lord, remember David and all the hardships he endured.” It goes on to say that for the chosen Zion he will clothe her priests with salvation and her enemies with shame. He will abundantly bless her provisions and satisfy the poor with food. Zion is a picture of the overcomers - not nominal Christians but sold out believers.
Lord, may we be of the Zionists who are clothed in salvation and walk in everything you purchased on the cross.

Wed.’s Devo - God’s in Control

Read: 1 Kings 11:1-12:19; Acts 9:1-25; Psalm 131:1-3; Proverbs 17:4-5
Solomon married wives from the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites meaning that he made covenants with those spirits. They are fatherlessness, prejudice, cultish, hunters of fish, and terror. They brought with them all their evil practices of worship of idols and turned Solomon’s heart from God. God stirred up three adversaries to Solomon: Hadad the Edomite, Rezon the son of Eliadah, and Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
Hadad means “I shall move softly”. Hadad had escaped Joab when he killed every male in Edom. He was out for revenge. Rezon had fled David’s army and landed in Damascus where he became the ruler of Syria and hated Israel. His name means “to wax lean”. Jeroboam means “the people will contend” and that they did. Jeroboam was appointed by Solomon to rule the house of Joseph because of his gifts and talents. One day, Jeroboam was on his way to Jerusalem when he was stopped by the prophet, Ahijah and given a prophecy. God was going to rend the kingdom from Solomon’s family because of his idol worship and give ten of the tribes to Jeroboam.
Solomon must have heard of the prophecy because he gave orders to kill Jeroboam. He had to flee to Egypt. Meanwhile, Solomon died and gave his kingdom to Rehoboam, his son.
Jeroboam came to Rehoboam’s ordination to advocate for the people. He asked Rehoboam if he would lighten the load for the people who were being forced to hard labor.
Rohoboam took the wrong advice and lost ten tribes in one speech. He was given the choice of ruling kindly or harshly and he chose fear because fear breads fear.
This was the same motivation of Saul in Acts. You fear what you don’t understand so you try to control it. Saul didn’t understand the new wine that Jesus brought so he sought to stop it with force and murder. He just didn’t have eyes to see so God took his natural sight from him so he could see with his spiritual eyes. God opened his spiritual ears and he heard the Lord’s voice.
God saved Saul; changed his name to Saul and sent him to the Gentiles. Saul knew the Jewish law backwards and forwards but God sent him to a totally foreign group of people so he could reprogram him to know truth.
God sometimes does not let us use our natural abilities because then we think we did it. He often calls us out of our comfort zone so we will totally rely on Him.
How ironic that Saul, the hunter that was bound by tradition is now the hunted that is set free.
Lord, help us to walk in the freedom you have given us totally depending on your mercy and grace.

Tues.’s Devo - The Power of God Manifested

Read: 1 Kings 9:1-10:29; Acts 8:14-40; Psalm 130:1-8; Proverbs 17:2-3
The Lord came to Solomon a second time when he had completed the building of the Temple. He told him that his name, his eyes and his heart would always be there. If they continued to walk with him God would establish their kingdom on earth forever but if they turned from following him, he would cut Israel out of the land and this house would be cast out of his sight and only be a memory.
Solomon had two houses built: one for God and one for himself. These two houses were a picture of who Solomon was. Solomon was a fragmented soul who was caught between this world and following after God. Solomon greatly erred when he gave Hiram 20 cities in his land and when he built a house for the Pharoah’s daughter. He was inviting other gods into his land. Hiram hated his cities because the world will never love or understand the things of God unless they have a hungry heart.
Pharaoh took the city of Gezer from the Philistines after burning it to the ground and presented it to his daughter, Solomon’s wife. Solomon rebuilt the town of Gezer. It meant “a piece”. He also built up Beth-horon which means “house of hollowness”. We can see Solomon slowly slipping into vanity and the potholes of riches. Another city he built was Baalath which means “mistresship”. He probably put his mistresses here. All these were in the wilderness which is the place of “lost”.
Solomon was ripe for the visit of the Queen of Sheba. He unwisely showed her all his wealth and treasures because he had been overtaken with pride and glory. She lavished him with spices which heightened his senses and gold and precious stones which appealed to his eyes. He gave her anything she wanted out of his treasury because he had lost his discernment.
Solomon was given great discernment which he traded for the world’s wisdom. He accumulated things and valued chariots and horses and armies so by his own power he could protect himself. He had left God far behind and reduced him to a ritual.
In Acts, Peter and John were sent to Samaria, because they were hungry for the Good News. They came and preached Jesus and the Holy Spirit. When they laid their hands on the people, they were filled with the Holy Spirit. When Simon, the ex-New Ager saw this, he wanted to buy their power. They explained that the Holy Spirit was not for sale and that his heart was evil in this matter. He needed to repent. Simon asked that they pray for him. We never hear about Simon again so I don’t know if he truly repented or not.
Phillip met the eunuch from Ethiopia which is the land of Sheba where the queen we read about today came from. Some believe that he was a descendent of Solomon and the queen. I don’t know but I do know this: he was hungry for God. He had traveled all the way to Jerusalem just to celebrate the feast of Pentecost. He got his own Pentecost.
God told Phillip to go to his chariot and listen to what he was reading. He was reading Isaiah 53 which is all about Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. Philip was able to explain to the eunuch the meaning of the scripture and baptize him right there. Then Philip was translated to Azotus which was Ashdod, the place that the fish god, Dagon had to bow to the ark of the Lord in Samuel 5:3.
There are great adventures in store for the body of Christ in this season. We just have to believe and do the impossible.
Lord, help us to be like children and not doubt.

Mon.’s Devo - The Promise of His Presence

Mon.’s Devo - The Promise of His Presence 6-11-18
Read: 1 Kings 8:1-66; Acts 7:51-8:13; Psalm 129:1-8; Proverbs 17:1
It is the feast of Tabernacles and time to bring up the ark of the Lord and let the Lord tabernacle with his people. This dream had been in David’s heart but now was manifested in the flesh in Solomon’s reign. This is a prophetic picture of the end time when we will reign with God literally being in his presence. He is in our hearts now as he was in David’s. Solomon even had a hard time believing God would dwell on earth (verse 27) but he knew that God had promised that his Name would be there. No matter what happened to them, Solomon established that God in his temple was the place to go to to find the answers. He was the one who would deliver, judge, bless, heal, forgive and save and that never changes.
In Acts, Stephen is at the end of his speech. He accused the spiritual leaders of being as blind as all the ones who had gone before them. The spiritual leaders had killed all of God’s prophets and refused to listen to their rebukes. He called them stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears. He asked them why they always resisted the Holy Spirit like their fathers. Stephen was not a people-pleaser and he didn’t love his life unto death. Stephen was sold out to the truth and was stoned for it.
Stephen prayed the same prayer that Jesus prayed when he died. He forgave his murderers and prayed mercy for them.
They laid his clothes at the feet of Saul. Little did he know that it was really Stephen’s mantle that was laid at his feet and he would one day pick it up and continue Stephen’s work.
Persecution was bumped up and so was the power of God. So much that a sorcerer coveted this power he was seeing the apostles do and started believing in the power of God. He followed Phillip wherever he went astonished.
When the church starts doing the works of Jesus, then the New Age community will take note.
Lord, thank you for your presence in our lives. Thank you that the temple of the Holy Spirit is within us. May we pick up the mantle you have for us and continue the work of the Spirit.

Sun.’s Devo - God’s Ways

Read: 1 Kings 7:1-51; Acts 7:30-50; Psalm 128:1-6; Proverbs 16:31-33
It took Solomon almost twice the time to build his house than the Lord’s house. His house consisted of the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon, a huge hall, a court of justice, his own personal house and a house for the queen from Egypt. Of all the 600 wives that Solomon eventually had, he only built a house for the Pharoah’s daughter from Egypt. She was one of the greatest causes of his backsliding and his downfall.
I found it interesting that the king of Tyre would be half Phoenician and half Israelite. He came to Jerusalem and used his artistic gift to craft the metal work for Solomon. It had to take him years away from his kingdom to do this for Solomon.
In Acts, Stephen is still giving his sermon and it picks up with Moses at the burning bush. Moses chose to follow God and face the rejection of his people who complained and fought him at every turn. They rejected him and went back to Egypt in their hearts. Even with the tabernacle and God’s presence with them, they chose to worship the stars and Molech and idols. So God promised to send them into exile in Babylon.
He took them all the way to Solomon building the temple and explained that God never wanted a physical temple but a spiritual one.
Stephen was building his case against the religious leaders in showing them their stand all through the ages. They refused the Lord and his ways and now had a law unto themselves that totally rejected God’s son and didn’t recognize his presence among them.
Lord, may we recognize your presence with us and follow after your ways.

Sat.’s Devo - The Building of the Temple

Read: 1 Kings 5:1-6:38; Acts 7:1-29; Psalm 127:1-5; Proverbs 16:28-30
God made us to need each other and the gifts God has given each of us. In building the temple, David would need the help of Hiram the king of Tyre. Tyre was a Phoenician city where the commerce of the whole world was stored in their storehouses. David had made sure that he had favor with Hiram, the king of Tyre for the Lord’s purposes. Solomon used this favor to help build the temple and bless Hiram and his nation with food. This is the way of the kingdom.
Every detail about building the temple is extraordinary. The shift of working, the fact that no sound of a chisel or any iron tool was heard at the temple site. Everything was build off-site and brought there. The levels were smaller on the bottom and had three levels each getting larger as they got higher. That is the picture of how the higher we go with the Lord, the greater our capacity to hold his presence. No stone was seen in the inner part of the temple - only wood and gold. The two angels that knelt on the altar would have a wing span that spanned from one wall to the other. That gives us a great picture of being hidden under the shadow of his wings.
It took seven years to complete the temple. It was began in the month of Ziv or Ijar which is the month of flowers - our May. It ended in the month of Bul which is a month of rain.
In Acts, Stephen has been brought before the high priest to give his defense. He is accused of speaking blasphemy against the temple and the law. It was really against his testimony of his faith in Jesus as the Christ.
Stephen took the opportunity to give them a sermon teaching them their spiritual heritage starting with Abraham. He talked about the price the patriarchs had to pay to follow God’s will for them. They were misunderstood and went through great trials to follow God.
Our Psalm wraps up what we just read in both Testaments: “unless the Lord build the house, they that labor, labor in vain.”
Lord, may we build a spiritual house for you to dwell in today.

Fri.’s Devo - Let Your Light Shine

Read: 1 Kings 3:4-4:34; Acts 6:1-15; Psalm 126:1-6; Proverbs 16:26-27
Solomon met God in a dream and God told him to ask for what he wanted. Sounds like a dream come true! Jesus said the same thing several times to us. John 14:13 says that whatever we ask in Jesus name, he will do it that the Father may be glorified in the son. Then in the next verse he says again, “If you ask any thing in my name, I will do it.” So we have that same priveledge. We can learn from Solomon what to ask for. He asked for discernment to govern the people and distinguish between good and bad. God was very pleased with his answer and not only gave him that, but gave him riches and long life.
Solomon and all the people saw that his prayer got answered when they saw how he dealt with the two women who argued over the baby.
When God gives us a gift of discernment, then wisdom to make the right decision is easy. We should all pray for discernment and it will be given to us. If we seek God’s kingdom first, then all other things will be added to us.
In Acts, the Greek speaking Jews were feeling prejudice against their widows. They had to appoint seven faithful men to take care of the women so that the ones who were to teach and preach could spend their time studying. God was moving in power and the religious leaders couldn’t stand it because they were jealous. Stephen was one of the ones God used in miracles so they really hated him. He was arrested and put on trial. The religious leaders could not deny his wisdom so they hired false witness to say that he blasphemed. Stephen’s face shone like an angel because of the glory of the Lord.
Lord, may we shine as lights in this world and when the world is to look on us may they see Jesus.

Thurs.’s Devo- Walking in Power

Read: 1 Kings 2:1-3:3; Acts 5:1-42; Psalm 1251-5; Proverbs 16:25
David knew his time was getting short so he called in Solomon and gave him some orders about some unfinished business. First, David told Solomon to be strong and walk in God’s ways following all his commands. If he did, God would prosper him and his descendants would always possess the throne.
Then, David gave him orders concerning his last enemies. Joab had to be killed for killing two innocent men: Amnon and Abner. Shimei, the one who cursed him when fleeing from Absalom needed to be die young. He left the details up to Solomon. Lastly, he told Solomon to be kind to Barzillai who brought supplies to David and his men when they were fleeing Absalom. David asked Solomon to let him eat at his table. This would secure him being provided for for the rest of his life.
Adonijah went to Bathsheba and asked her to ask Solomon for the hand of Abishag. Abishag was the young woman who had been brought in to lay with David to keep him warm. Solomon saw this as a huge threat to his authority and had him killed for this. Solomon used Benaiah, one of David’s three mighty men to do all his military needs. Beanies saw to it that all these men were taken care of the way David had requested. Joab, Shimei, and Adonijah were all killed and Solomon had peace in his kingdom.
Then Solomon did a very foolish thing. He made an alliance with the Pharaoh of Egypt and married his daughter.
David died. He had reigned 7 years in Hebron and 33 in Jerusalem. In both these numbers we see that David totally completed his destiny and was conformed into the image of Christ.
In Acts, we see God also having to clean house in the church. Ananias and Sapphire were leaders in the church. While they were teaching to give everything to the Lord to help others, they themselves had kept back some of their money secretly for themselves. They lied about the price of the sell and just gave that much to the church making them liars and hypocrites. full of pride and lacking faith. God dealt with their lie and took them both out. Seems harsh, but when the power of God moves like it did then, it requires more fear and obedience. True revival should bring the fear of God.
This only led to more people coming to the faith in God. Everyone is looking for something more powerful than themselves to follow. How much better to follow God who is merciful and kind, than a dictator who rules in anger and terror.
As the apostles moved in miracles and signs and wonders, the religious leaders became more and more jealous. They tried to stop them by throwing Peter and his men in the public jail. Angels came and broke them out of jail at night and told them to go and preach the gospel in the temple courts.
The guards found the prison securely locked, but the prisoners gone. How could they explain a power greater than them? This made the Sanhedrin want to kill them, but God raised up Gamaliel to calm them down and let God take care of the apostles. The apostles were ordered not to speak in the name of Jesus and then let go. They left rejoicing and continued teaching in the temple courts, and in the houses daily. They never stopped proclaiming the good news of the gospel of Christ.
Lord, may we walk in the power of the Holy Spirit today.

Wed.’s Devo - David’s Successor

Read: 1 Kings 1:1-53; Acts 4:1-37; Psalm 124:1-9
Proverbs 16:24
Adonijah was David’s fourth son born in Hebron and Solomon was David’s fourth son born in Jerusalem. David had promised Bathsheba that her son would be the son to sit on the throne to pay her back for what he had done to her. He had killed her husband and made her commit adultery with her. This was her reward.
Adonijah assumed that he would be the next king since he was next after Absalom. He didn’t wait to let God put him there, he ran ahead of God and had to be humbled. We could learn from his mistake. He exalted himself to be the king and had to run to the horns of the altar for his life. Solomon’s kingdom was made secure and David placed him on his mule to ride into the city like Jesus did. Then he was placed on the throne just as Jesus was after he endured the cross.
In Acts, Jesus is at work through the disciples. They met a man crippled from birth who was begging. Peter looked at the man and told him he didn’t have any money, but he would give him what he did have and that was the power to heal. He took him by the hand and raised him up so he would now glorify God and be able to make his own living. Revival broke out among the people when they realized the miracle that had just taken place. Peter took advantage of the crowd and preached the good news of Jesus.
Lord, help us to take advantage of every opportunity we have to preach the good news.

Tues.’s Devo - Promises Fulfilled

Read: 2 Samuel 23:24-24:25; Acts 3:1-26; Psalm 123:1-4; Provebs 16:21-23
In the list of David’s thirty mighty men, Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband, was listed as one of them. Israel must have turned from the Lord, because God looked for a way to punish Israel and incited David to number them. One of their sins must have been their pride because God put it in David’s mind to number the fighting men of Israel. Numbering Israel was not the problem, the fact that they were suppose to pay a fee for every soul that they numbered and they didn’t know that since they had gotten away from God’s laws. Exodus 30:12-14 says that when the people are numbered they are to each give a half shekel to the sanctuary so that no plague would come upon them. How ironic that David would choose the plague for his punishment. The plague was brought by an angel and when it got to Jerusalem the Lord stopped it at the threshing floor of Araunah. Araunah means “I will shout for joy.” David bought this place from him and it became what we know as the Temple Mount. David chose this land to build the Temple on. He turned the curse into a blessing.
In Acts, we see the crippled man at the gate of Araunah’s threshing floor and he is healed and shouts for joy. When he drew a crowd, Peter explained that all the prophets spoke of that day when Jesus would come to earth and bring salvation through his blood on the cross. They were heirs of the promise as we are.
Lord, help us to walk in the promises of our day.

Mon.’s Devo - The Baptism of Fire

Read: 2 Samuel 22:21-23:23; Acts 2:1-47; Proverbs 122:1-9; Proverbs 16:19-20
David gave his people a song about the Lord’s faithfulness. God had done what he promised to do for David. He had made him king and helped him secure his kingdom and blessed the land.
God gave them rest from their enemies with the help of David’s mighty warriors. David had his three mighty men just like Jesus had his three that were his closest: Peter, James and John. David’s were Josheb-Basshebeth, Eleazar, and Shammah. Their amazing feats were listed. Then he had thirty other mighty men that did fearless exploits for the kingdom.
In Acts, Pentecost arrived along with the Holy Spirit. He came like a mighty wind, putting fire on the heads of the disciples. This was the baptism that Jesus brought. John the Baptist baptized with water for repentance but Jesus baptized with fire. This was his baptism. Just like on the first Pentecost when Moses went up on the mountain of the Lord and it had fire on top, the disciples became the mountain that housed the spirit of the Lord. The fire of the presence of the Lord was now in the bodies of the disciples and would remain just like the dove remained on Jesus when he was baptized.
Peter, who had been hiding in the upper room for days, now had boldness to come out to the streets and boldly proclaim the good news about Jesus and his salvation. That is one of the things that the Holy Spirit does; he gives us boldness to be witnesses.
Three thousand souls were saved that day and devoted themselves to hearing the teaching of the apostles. They ate and fellowshipped and became a family of believers, taking care of one another’s needs.
Lord, we need your baptism of fire in our hearts so that we can boldly proclaim your good news.

Sun.’s Devo - The End of Rebellion

Read: 2 Samuel 20:14-22:20; Acts 1:1-26; Psalm 121:1-8; Proverbs 16:18
Sheba was still on the run from David’s men because he wanted to usurp David’s kingdom from him. He fled to the fortified city of Abel Beth Maacah. When Joab set a siege ramp to batter the walls and make them fall, one of the wise women of the town asked to speak to Joab. She asked him why they were doing that to a loyal city of Israel. He told her about Sheba and she told him to stop because the city would throw Sheba’s head over the wall to him. They stopped and they did. This makes me wonder how many battles would be stopped if we just got to the root of the problem. Many times it could be stopped without a fight and the loss of innocent people.
David was then able to organize his kingdom and have rest until they went into a three year famine. Once again, David went to the Lord to ask him why. He revealed that it was because of Saul. In his zeal, he had killed the Gibeonites who the Lord had told to spare and that was the reason for the famine. David went to their survivors and asked them how he could avenge their wrong. They asked for seven of Saul’s descendants. David gave them to them and they killed them and exposed them on a hill before the Lord. They did this during the Passover season. Jesus was killed and exposed on a hill for the sins of all the people just as these seven were killed and exposed for the sins of Saul. Then God lifted the famine and the prayers of the people were answered.
David fought in his last battle because he was getting too old and his life was too precious to Israel. David had trained his army well and they were able to continue without him. This is the goal of every good leader.
We begin the acts of the apostles today. Jesus had appeared to them for forty days after his death, pouring into them about the kingdom of God on earth. He told them that they would receive the Holy Spirit and power to be his witnesses in all the earth. Jesus was taken up in a cloud and they all saw it. He said he would come back the same way.
The disciples and the women met constantly praying and encouraging one another. They chose a disciple to replace Judas who had bought a field with his betrayal money and died. He hung himself and then his body was thrown over a wall onto rocks. The place was called the pit.
In every generation, there arises an anti-christ but every time it ends bad for him.
Lord, help us to be deliverers of righteousness and healing.

Sat.’s Devo - David’s Return

Read: 2 Samuel 19:11-20:13; John 21:1-25; Psalm 120:1-7; Proverbs 16:16-17
The people who met David at the Jordan were the Benjamites who were the tribe that Saul was from, Shimei, the one that had cursed David when he left and Zia, the one who lied abut Mephebosheth and got his inheritance. They look a lot like the people who met John the baptist at the Jordan River. David forgave them all just as God forgave all who came to be baptized. Barzillai met him but was too old to go back to Jerusalem with David. He was one of the men who met David and his men when they were leaving and gave them supplies and food (2 Samuel 17:27). Instead he gave David his servant, Chimham which means, “my longing” because he longed to go with David.
It didn’t take long to have a church split. The men of Israel were mad that the men of Judah hadn’t told them that David was coming back so they could help him cross the river. A troublemaker named Bicri stood up and declared that Judah had no part in David and took the men of Israel and deserted David to follow him. His name means “first born”. Remember first we are born of the natural and need to be reborn of the spirit. Bicri stood for the unregenerated man.
When Amasa, the man who had led Absalom’s rebellion couldn’t rally the men of Benjamin in the allotted time, David let Abishai, the priest lead his army. Joab and his men went with Abisai. They met up with Amasa and Joab killed him. Joab had a zeal for the king that was bigger than David’s compassion.
In John, Jesus met for the third time, after his death, with his disciples. This time it was at the Sea of Tiberias while they were fishing. They hadn’t been able to catch any fish so Jesus told them to put their nets on the other side. They caught a net full. Jesus was trying to tell them that they would have to go to the other side of the sea to the Gentiles, because that was where the hungry souls were.
Lord, help us to get out of what we think and into what you think. Show us where to put our nets.

Fri.’s Devo -A New Thing

Read: 2 Samuel 18:1-19:10; John 20:1-31; Psalm 119:153-176; Proverbs 16:14-15
David had such a hard time seeing his own son as his enemy. Joab knew that as long as Absalom was alive, David’s kingdom would not be secure. David wanted to preserve Absalom and repair their relationship but Joab knew what Absalom was capable of. Absalom had erected a monument to himself in the Kings Valley because he had no son to carry his memory. He was the epitome of pride and arrogance.
God delivered Absalom into Joab’s hands and he did what he thought needed to be done.
David’s reaction to his son’s death was hurtful to his men who had sacrificed their lives to fight for him. Joab had to shake him out of his grief and make him wake up to reality. He did and David did meet with his men.
We all face hard decisions and deaths to things that need to die. It is easy to mourn for what we had and not see the blessing in the new thing God is doing. Old ways of doing things sometimes need to die to let new ones spring forth.
God was definitely doing a new thing in John. It was the third day after Jesus had died and the only one who came to the tomb was Mary Magdalene. She saw that the stone had been removed and ran to get Peter and John. They found the strips of linen that Jesus had been wrapped in lying there. The cloth that had been around Jesus’ head was folded up by itself. They didn’t understand that Jesus had risen even though he had told them several times he would rise on the third day.
Peter and John went home but Mary stayed and cried. When she looked into the tomb she saw two angels seated where Jesus body had been. They asked her why she was crying. She answered them then turned to see Jesus standing in the garden. She didn’t recognize her till he said her name and then she knew.
He told her to tell the disciples.
That night as the disciples were hiding out and discussing all that had happened. Thomas said that unless he saw it for himself, he wouldn’t believe. A week later, he got his chance. Jesus showed up and showed Thomas. It wasn’t a rebuke as much as it was to show Thomas that He was eternal and knew everything Thomas asked for and would be just that close even though he was leaving again.
God wants to reveal himself to all of us if we will ask him to. When we have doubts, we need to ask God to give us a sign of his presence. He loves to encourage us so that we will be strengthened and encourage others.
Lord, help us to see your signs all around us of your presence in our lives. Send us a personal wink from heaven today.