Sun.’s Devo - The New Has Come!

Read: 1 Kings 2:1-3:3; Acts 5:1-42; Psalm 125:1-5; Proverbs 16:25 It was David’s time to die and he called in Solomon to give him his last words. He commanded him to be strong and to walk in God’s ways, following his commandments so that he would prosper. Then, there would always be one of David’s sons to sit on the throne of Israel. *** David gave Solomon commands about three people he needed Solomon to attend to after he died. Joab was the first. He had murdered Abner and Amasa in revenge. He was not to let him die in peace. *** Solomon was to honor the sons of Barzillai and let them always eat at his table for all the loyalty they showed to David. *** Then there was Shimei, the one who had cursed him when he was running from Absalom. David had promised not to kill him, but Solomon was to find a way to punish him by death. *** David died who had reigned seven years in Hebron and 33 in Jerusalem. *** Adonijah, the son of David who had tried to pronounce himself the king, tried to weasel his way back into the kingship. He would start with marrying David’s concubine, Abishag. He used Bathsheba to do it. He went to her and tried to convince her to ask Solomon if he could marry Abishag. *** When she brought Adonijah’s request to Solomon, he saw right through the facade and had Benaiah kill Adonijah. *** Solomon told Abiathar the priest who had sided with Adonijah to go home to Anathath. His honor was taken away as the priest just like the Lord had said would happen to Eli’s sons. *** When Joab heard that Solomon had killed Adonijah, he knew he was next. He ran and took hold of the horns of the altar. Solomon sent Benaiah to kill him. When Joab refused to leave the altar, Solomon had him killed right there. He was buried in the wilderness. Benaiah was put in charge of the army in place of Joab. *** Next, was Shimei. Solomon told him to build a house in Jerusalem and he was to promise never to leave Jerusalem or he would die. Shimei promised, but three years later two of his servants fled to Gath. He went to bring them back. He was brought before Solomon and rebuked and killed for breaking his promise. *** Now, Solomon’s kingdom was established. He made a marriage alliance with the Pharaoh of Egypt and married his daughter. He brought her into the city of David while he built his own house and the Temple. *** Solomon loved the Lord and walked with him, but sacrificed at the high places. *** In Acts, we had just learned that Barnabas had sold a piece of land and given all the proceeds to the apostles. Ananias also sold a piece of property. He and his wife conspired to keep some of the proceeds from the land, but tell the apostles they were giving all the proceeds to them. Ananias came alone and gave the money to Peter. Peter discerned that he was lying and confronted him. He told them that it didn’t matter that they withheld the money because it was their money, but it did matter greatly that he lied about it. He had lied to the Holy Spirit. When Peter said these things to Ananias, he dropped dead. They took him out and buried him. *** Three hours later, Sapphira his wife came, not knowing what had happened to her husband. They asked her about the land and she gave the same lie. She dropped dead also and was buried beside her husband. Great fear of the Lord fell on the church. *** The apostles were doing many signs and wonders adding many new converts. The people would bring their sick and lay them on mats in the streets so that Peter’s shadow might fall on them. People brought their sick and demon-possessed to the apostles and they were healed. *** All of this attention made the high priest very jealous. He and his followers were Sadducees who didn’t believe in the resurrection. They arrested the apostles and put them in a public prison, but during the night, an angel of the Lord opened their prison door and told them to go and stand in the temple and speak to the people about eternal life through Jesus. *** So the next day, when the high priest sent for them to be brought to them from the prison, they couldn’t find them and their was no evidence of a jail break. Someone reported that Peter and John were standing in the temple teaching the people. They had them peacefully arrested again and brought in for questioning. *** The council questioned them and asked them why they were doing what they had charged them not to do. Peter told them they had to obey God rather than them. God had raised Jesus, who they had crucified, and made him the Savior. Through him all sin can be forgiven. They were his witnesses to this great news. *** When the council heard their answer, they were so angry and wanted to kill Peter and John. But, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, who was honored by the council had Peter and John taken out of the room. Then he warned the council about how they handled these men. He reminded them of Theudas who rose up and claimed to be someone great and got many followers. When he was killed, his followers dispersed and it all came to nothing. Then there was another named Judas the Galilean who rose up and drew people after him. He also died and nothing came of his followers. So, he counseled them to leave Peter and John alone because if what they are doing is in their own power, it will die with them. But, if this is the Lord, they will not be able to fight it and win. They took his advise and had the apostles beat and told them to stop preaching about Jesus. *** Peter and John left rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer for Jesus. They continued to preach in the temple and in homes that Jesus was the Christ. *** Lord, this reminds me of what is going on right now. Nothing can stop what You are doing. The devil has no power over you or your children. We are witnessing the fall of Satan’s kingdom on earth. Hallelujah! May your kingdom come to earth.

Sat.’s Devo - The Next King

Read: 1 Kings 1:1-53; Acts 4:1-37; Psalm 124:1-8; Proverbs 16:24 David was getting old and could not get warm. His servants proposed they find a young woman to take care of him and lie with him to keep him warm. They found Abishag who was young and beautiful. She attended after David and kept him warm till he died. *** Adonijah, David’s fourth son born in Hebron. He exalted himself and planned to be the next king. He made himself look like a king by having chariots and horsemen and fifty men to run in front of him wherever he went. *** Adonijah conspired with Joab and Abiathar the priest to help him become the next king. Zadok the priest, and Benaiah, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and David’s mighty men were not with Adonijah. *** Adonijah invited all his brothers and the king’s sons to come to the Serpent’s Stone were he made a great sacrifice of sheep and oxen. He didn’t invite the important people on David’s side. *** Nathan told Bathsheba to go tell King David that Adonijah had declared himself king without his knowledge. She was to remind David that he had promised that Solomon would be the next king after him. Nathan would come in after her and confirm what she had said. *** When David heard from both of them, he immediately called for Zadok, Nathan and Benaiah. He told them to take Solomon on his own mule and all the servants to Gihon. The priests were to anoint him with oil and blow the trumpet and say, “Long live King Solomon!” Then they were to bring him back and place him on his throne. *** Zadok and the others did just what David said to do and when the people rejoiced, the earth split by their noise. Adonijah and his crew had just finished eating when they heard the sound of the trumpet. When they found out what had happened and the response of the people in the city, all the people with Adonijah left fearing for their lives. Adonijah, especially feared for his life and went and took hold of the horns on the altar for mercy. King Solomon sent people to get him. He wouldn’t let go till he was promised he would not be killed. He was told as long as he proved himself honorable he would live, but if he didn’t, he would die. Adonijah came and paid homage to King Solomon and Solomon sent him home. *** In Acts, Peter and John had just finished speaking to the people about Jesus when the Saddusees came in. They were most upset that they were speaking of the resurrection of Christ since they didn’t believe in any kind of resurrection. They arrested them and put them in prison for the night. But, about 5,000 had come to believe what Peter and John had preached to them. *** The Sanhedrin met the next day and brought in Peter and John and asked them who had given them the authority to heal the cripple and say what they said. Peter, now filled with the power of the Holy Spirit, answered. He told them they did all this by the name of Christ Jesus, who they crucified. He was the stone that they rejected and now has become the cornerstone. Only in his name, may people be saved. *** The men in the Sanhedrin were amazed at their boldness and knowledge, since they were common and uneducated. The man who had been healed was standing beside them as a witness so they had no rebuttal. *** The men reasoned among themselves that they were between a rock and a hard place. All Jerusalem had witnessed the miracle. They couldn’t deny what had happened so they called Peter and John in and banned them from speaking in Jesus’ name. *** Peter and John answered and said that it they couldn’t deny what had happened nor stop speaking about it. God was their judge. The Sanhedrin were losing their power. They had no other recourse than to threaten them and let them go free. *** Peter and John returned to their friends and fellow believers and reported all that had been said. They prayed that God would see their threats and give them boldness to continue to speak the truth. They prayed that Jesus would continue to heal and do signs and wonders. As they prayed, the place they were in shook and all were filled with the Holy Spirit and boldness. *** The believers became a family who took care of one another’s needs. They continued to witness the power of Jesus’ name and his resurrection. One of the believer’s name was Barnabas who was a Levite. His given name was Joseph. He sold a field he owned and brought all its proceeds and gave it to the apostles. *** We are coming into that kind of fellowship where we will consider all we have to be the Lord’s. We will freely give to help others in their needs. We will be bold and see the power of God heal and do signs and wonders in our midst. It will be glorious! *** Lord, may we hunger and this for the Holy spirit to be alive and active in our lives. May we be good stewards of all you give us.

Fri.’s Devo - Numbering the People

Read: 2 Samuel 23:24-24:25; Acts 3:1-26; Psalm 123:1-4; Proverbs 16:21-23 David had 37 mighty men who are listed and Uriah the Hittite was the 37th. *** Israel went into sin and the Lord was not pleased. He put it in David’s heart to number the people so he could bring judgment to the nation for their sins. 
 *** David instructed Joab to go and number all who were able to fight in his army. Joab tried to talk him out of it, but David was the king and his command stood. Joab and his army began counting in Gad on the other side of the Jordan, then crossed the Jordan into Dan and the other tribes. It took him nine months and 20 days. Joab found 800,000 valiant men in Israel and 500,000 in Judah. *** When Joab was done, David repented that he had numbered the people. The law says in Exodus 30:12, “When thou take the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou number them; that there be no plague among them, when thou number them.” To number the people was to bring them to account for their sins and since David didn’t collect the ransom money, they couldn’t pay the ransom for their sins, meaning they would die in their sin. *** Sure enough, the prophet Gad came for a visit and gave him the choice of three judgments. Israel could have three years of famine, three months of their enemies winning battles against them, or three days of plagues. He chose the three days of plagues because he would rather fall under God’s hand and pray for his mercy. *** The plague killed 70,000 men from Dan to Beersheba. When the death angel came to Jerusalem and was about to destroy it, the Lord stopped it. The angel was beside the threshing floor of Araunah. David could see the angel who was killing the people and asked him to have mercy on the innocent people. *** God sent Gad to tell David to raise up an altar at the place the angel stopped the plague. David insisted on paying the full price of 50 shekels of silver for the threshing floor from Araunah. There he built an altar to the Lord and offered burnt offering and peace offering and the Lord heard his prayer and stopped the plague. *** In Acts, there was a man who had been lame all his life who regularly begged at the gate of the temple. When Peter and John met him, Peter told him he had no money, but he would give him what he had, which was the power of God to heal him. He told him to rise and walk in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Peter and John helped him stand and he walked into the temple leaping and praising the Lord. The people recognized him as the beggar they had seen all their lives and were amazed. *** Peter took the opportunity to witness to the crowd. He told them that he and John had nothing to do with this man’s healing. God, the father of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob glorified Jesus who they had delivered over to Pilate and denied as their own. They chose to let a murderer live and killed the Author of life. But, God raised him up and they witnessed his resurrection. By his name, this man was made whole and now they are witnesses of his power. *** Peter continued that they had killed Jesus out of their ignorance just like the prophets had said. Jesus suffered for their sins. All they have to do is repent to have their sins blotted out. Jesus will come to them and refresh their spirits. They were living in the days all the prophets had spoken about. They and their offspring will bless the earth if they turn from their wickedness and turn to Jesus. *** We are also living in the days the prophets spoke about. God is pouring out his Spirit once again on his people and visiting us with victory. He is bringing justice and victory against his enemies. We can be ignorant and miss it like many did when Jesus came the first time, or we can have eyes to see and rejoice and participate with God. *** Lord, thank you for what you did when you sent your son to die for our sins, and thank you for what you are doing right now on the earth. We see your light becoming brighter and darkness being exposed. The truth is setting us free. May we finish the work that you have sent us here to do.

Thurs.’s Devo - David’s Prayer

Read: 2 Samuel 22:21-23:23; Acts 2:1-47; Psalm 122:1-9; Proverbs 16:19-20 David continues his praise of God. He doesn’t mention his sin with Bathsheba, which shows that he knows he was completely forgiven. David didn’t live in condemnation or fear. He knew that everything he had accomplished was because of the Lord. God’s enemies were David’s enemies. All his victories were God’s victories. He understood when a king rules fearing the Lord, God will bring his blessings. *** David had many mighty warriors who fought for him and the Lord. He sang their praises and told of their exploits. Once while on a crusade, he became very thirsty and commented that he would love a drink from the well beside the gate at Bethlehem. Three of his men broke through the Philistine camp and drew water from the well and brought it to David. He refused to drink it because these men had risked their lives to get it. He saw it as their blood and poured it out on the ground. *** The strangest story was of Benaiah who was the son of Jehoiada. He struck down two ariels of Moab. Ariels??? My commentary said they were “lionlike men.” Sounds like a demonic hybrid. Then he went and killed a real lion in a pit. *** In Acts, the day of Pentecost had arrived and just like Jesus had promised - his gift arrived. It came as a sound like rushing wind and filled the house they were in. Divided tongues of fire rested on the heads of each of them and they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other tongues by the Spirit of God. *** Many men had come from all over Israel to celebrate Pentecost, They heard the disciples speaking in their language and knew they were locals who wouldn’t know their language. They were amazed because, in their language, the disciples were telling the mighty works of God. *** Some thought the disciples were drunk, but some one pointed out that it was 9:00 in the morning, so they probably weren’t drunk. Peter stood up and explained what was happening. He quoted the prophet Joel who said that in the last days, God would pour out his Spirit on all flesh and their sons and daughters would prophesy and their old men dream dreams. Even the servants would prophesy and they would all see wonders in the heavens and on the earth. Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved. *** Peter explained that Jesus was sent to earth and did the mighty works of God, but they delivered him up to be crucified. God raised Jesus up and loosed him from death. David had prophesied and prayed that God would not abandon him to stay in Hades, but bring him into life. *** But, David did die and was buried. David was seeing ahead to the resurrection of Christ. Peter and his disciples were witnesses of Christ’ resurrection and now experiencing his promise to send his Spirit. *** Peter said, “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, the Jesus whom you crucified.” *** The people were broken-hearted when they realized Peter was telling the truth. They asked what they could do and Peter told them to repent and be baptized in Jesus name to forgive there sins, then they would also receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Three thousand agreed and accepted Jesus and were baptized in water and in spirit. *** Then, the new converts devoted themselves to learn from the apostles and fellowship with believers. They saw many signs and miracles at the hands of the apostles. They lived as one family eating and fellowshipping daily. Their numbers grew as they lifted up the Lord. *** Lord, we look forward to the day we will be see this same hunger for You and your Word. We pray for revival in our nation and in our cities. Let it start in our hearts.

Wed.’s Devo - Settling Accounts -

Read: 2 Samuel 20:14-22:20; Acts 1:1-26; Psalm 121:1-8; Proverbs 16:18 Sheba who had been proclaimed king of Israel went to Abel of Beth-maacah which is in the tribe of Naphtali. It was a metropolis and known for its strength and importance. Sheba, who was a Bichrite assembled all his fellow Bichrites with him there. *** Joab attacked the city and besieged the city. He set up battering rams to break through its wall. A wise woman in the city asked to speak with Joab. When thy met, she explained how the city of Abel was known for its wise men. It was considered a “mother in Israel.” She wanted to know why Joab would want to snuff them out. He told her, his battle was only with Sheba the son of Bichri who was trying to usurp David’s place as king. He told her he would call off his men if they would hand Sheba over to him. She told him his head would be coming over the wall. *** She went into the city and told them how to stop being attacked. They found Sheba and beheaded him and threw his head over the wall. Joab blew his trumpets and took his men home. *** There was a famine in the land, so David sought the Lord to find out why. He showed him that Saul, in his zeal for Israel, had killed the Gibeonites who had a covenant with Israel. David went to meet with the surviving Gibeonites to ask them how he could atone for the wrong that Saul had done. They didn’t want to be bought. They wanted Saul’s house to be punished so they asked for seven of Sauls sons so they could hang them before the Lord at Gibeah. *** David agreed, but spared Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth because of the covenant he had made with Jonathan. The seven sons were hung around the time of Passover. Two of Rizpah’s sons were hung. She refused to let the birds and the wild animal’s eat their bodies so she camped out and kept them from eating them. When David found out about it he had all of them along with Saul and Jonathan’s bones buried in Saul’s family tomb in Zela of Benjamin. *** God saw this and ended the famine. *** Israel went to war with the Philistines and killed four giants. David was almost killed in the battle and was saved by Abishai. David’s men decided that David was too old to fight anymore and needed to stay home where he would be safe. *** The day that God delivered David from the hand of Saul, David penned this Psalm in Chapter 22. It is repeated in the Psalms. It is the picture of what God did for Israel in David’s time and what God did for Jesus as he died on the cross. God came down and fought for both of them and delivered them from their earthly enemies and their spiritual enemy - Satan. *** Acts was written by Paul to a young mentee named Theophilus. This is his book of what happened after Jesus died and rose from the dead and appeared to his disciples for 40 days. *** The last time Jesus appeared to them, he told his disciples not to stay where they were, but to go to Jerusalem where they will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit would give them power to be his witnesses at home and to the ends of the earth. After he told them this, he ascended up in a cloud. While they were watching him leave, two angels stood beside them in which robes. He told them that Jesus would come back just like he left - in a cloud. *** They returned to Jerusalem and stayed in an upper room where they devoted themselves to pray and wait. *** One of those days, Peter stood among his friends and spoke of what had happened to Judas Iscarot. He had bought a field with the money he received for betraying Jesus and fell headfirst on the rocks and died. The field became knowns as “Field of Blood.” *** Prophets had foretold this and said that they should get someone to take his place. They wanted someone who had been with them from the time of John’s teachings till now - someone who had witnessed his resurrection. They put forward two men - Joseph and Matthias. They prayed and cast lots and it fell on Matthias so he was added in Judas’ place. *** Lord, everything points back to you. History keeps repeating itself and your story keeps being told. You are the center of everything. You are our keeper. May we honor you, today with our lives and our devotion.

Tues.’s Devo - David Returns to Jerusalem

Read: 2 Samuel 19:11-20:13; John 21:1-25; Psalm 120:1-7; Proverbs 16:16-17 David sent news to Zadok and Abiathar who were the priests in Jerusalem to convince the elders to bring him back as their king. He also send word to Amasa to remind him that David had been made him commander of his army instead of Joab. So the men of Judah came to Gilgal to meet David and bring him over the Jordan. *** Shimei, the man who had cursed David came out to meet him along with a thousand men from Benjamin. He fell down before David and begged for forgiveness. David’s men wanted to kill him but David spared his life for the time being. Ziba of the house of Saul came down with his fifteen sons and twenty servants and helped bring all David’s people across the the Jordan. *** Mephibosheth also came to meet David. He had not trimmed his beard or washed his clothes since David left Jerusalem. When David asked him why he didn’t go with David when he fled, he said that Ziba tricked him. He told him he would bring him a donkey, but then didn’t. David gave him back his half of his land he had given to Ziba. *** Barzillai the old man from Gilead came to meet David. He had provided food and provisions for David and his men while they were away. David tried to get him to move to Jerusalem so he could take care of him, but Barzillai wanted to go home and live out the rest of his days at his own home. David took Barzillai’s youngest son, Chimham to serve with him. Later, he would give Chimham an inn in Bethlehem which was believed to be the one Jesus was born in. *** The men of Israel showed up and were angry with the men of Judah for not letting them be the ones to help David return to Jerusalem. They argued with the men of Judah till one of them from Benjamin, Sheba blew his trumpet and declared that Bichri, another Benjamite was their king. So all of Israel changed their allegiance from David to Bichri. *** When David returned to his palace in Jerusalem, he took the ten concubines who had been taken by Absalom and placed them in a separate house where they lived as widows. *** David had Amasa call all Judah to meet with him in three days. When Amasa was not back in the three days, David sent Abishai with an army to pursue Bichri. Abishai met Joab and his men who were also going to kill Bichri. Joab killed Abishai for taking his place, then continued to lead the army to find Bichri. *** In John, Peter was with Thomas, the sons of Zebedee and two other disciples. Peter announced he was going back to fishing. The others went with him but they caught nothing all night. *** Just as the day was dawning, Jesus stood on the shore and asked them if they had caught anything. They didn’t recognize him. He told them to cast their net to the right side of the boat. When they did, they were not able to haul in the fish there were so many. This reminded Peter of the first time Jesus had done this. John recognized him as the Lord and jumped into the sea and swam to shore. The other men dragged the fish to the shore. *** Jesus had prepared a fire and told them to bring their fish to cook them. They had caught 153 fish. Jesus gave them bread and fish to eat. *** After eating Jesus asked Peter if he loved him three times. Each time Peter told him he did and Jesus told him to feed his sheep. He encouraged him to follow him. *** Peter asked Jesus about John, and Jesus told him John was not his business. He would take care of John. John, who wrote this book said that Jesus did so many miracles that books could not contain them. *** Lord, thank you that you are such a personal God and you have explicit plans for each of us. May we follow our path that you have set for us and not be distracted by what you have planned for others. We are all part of your wonderful family.

Mon.’s Devo - David’s Victory

Read: 2 Samuel 18:1-19:10; John 20:1-31; Psalm 119:153-176; Proverbs 16:14-15 David divided his army into three parts and put Joab, Joab’s brother Abishai, and Ittai in charge of the three groups. They refused to let David go to battle with them because if he died, their cause would die with him. *** David’s men defeated Israel’s army and killed 20,000 on the first day. They fought in a thick forest which killed more men than the sword. *** Absalom was caught in the thickets by his hair which was a huge source of his pride. One of Joab’s men saw him hanging from the tree and reported it to Joab. Joab wanted to know why he didn’t kill him and the man said he had heard David tell them not to harm Absalom. Joab shot threw three javelins into Absalom’s heart and his body guards finished him off. ** Joab blew a trumpet meaning the war was over and they had won. Joab took Absalom’s body and threw it into a pit and put stones over his body. All Israel fled to their homes. *** Sadly, the only thing Absalom had to remember him by, since he had no sons, was a pillar he had had erected which he named “Absalom’s monument.” *** Ahimaaz, the priest wanted to carry the news to David, but Joab wouldn’t let him. Instead he sent a Cushite runner with news they had won and Absalom was dead. Ahimaaz begged to go after him and finally Joab let him. *** Ahimaaz took the short cut and got their first. He told David they had won, but didn’t tell him Absalom was dead. The next runner told him Absalom had been killed. David was so upset over Absalom’s death that he couldn’t rejoice over the victory. David’s army heard of David’s mourning and crept into the city in shame. 
 *** Joab rebuked David for caring more for his rebellious son who wanted to kill him than all the faithful people who had risked their lives to save him. He warned David that if he didn’t go out and congratulate and thank his troops, it would be worse for him than ever before. David heard him, went out to sit in the gate and everyone came to hear what he had to say. *** Meanwhile, back in Jerusalem the people argued about why they had not brought David back to be their king since Absalom was dead. *** In John, on the third day after Jesus had been crucified, Mary went to the tomb. She saw that the stone had been rolled away and Jesus body was gone. He ran to tell Peter and John. They ran to the tomb but Peter got their first. He saw that the only thing in the tomb was the linen garments they had wrapped Jesus in and the face cloth. When John saw it, he believed what Jesus had said about rising from the dead. *** They went back home, but Mary stayed weeping outside the tomb. She saw two angels sitting where Jesus had been laid, one at the head and one at the feet. They asked her why she was weeping. She told them that someone had taken Jesus body and she didn’t know where. Then Jesus asked her why she was weeping. She though he was the gardener and answered him the same. When Jesus called her name, she recognized him and ran to hug him. He told her that she couldn’t touch him because he hadn’t gone to heaven yet. Mary ran and told the disciples what she had witnessed. *** That evening, Jesus stood among them and showed them his hands and his side. He blessed them with peace and told them to receive the Holy Spirit. Jesus told them they now had power to forgive sins and withhold forgiveness of sins. That evening would have made it the 4th day which was exactly when Jesus went and brought Lazareth out of the grave and revealed him to the disciples. *** Thomas was not with them and when he heard they had seen Jesus, he remarked that he wouldn’t believe unless he had seen the place where they put the nails in his hands and see his side where they struck him. *** Eight days later, Thomas got his chance. Jesus came right through the locked door and offered Thomas to put his finger in his hands and in his side. Thomas believed and blessed those who believed with out having to see the proof. *** John let us know that he only recorded a few of the many miracles that Jesus did. He wrote the ones he did so that we who read them might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and in believing in him, we have eternal life. *** Lord, we believe though we haven’t seen. We thank you for the Holy Spirit who has revealed the truth to our hearts. We do see though the eyes of our spirit. Thank you for putting on the hearts of your disciples to write down everything they saw in their books so that we can read them and have understanding. May we use the power of the Holy Spirit to believe, to witness, to forgive and to reveal Jesus to the world.