"Here I am..." I want to be like Ananias. He was available, he was aware there was evil in the world, he questioned, but he obeyed. He was rewarded with assurance that God's plan was at work.

Acts 9:10-16

Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.”
And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying,
and he has seen in a vision a man named Ananias

come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight.”
But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem.
And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.”
But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.
For I will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name.”

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"How can I, unless someone guides me?" Thank you Holy Spirit for guiding us through the scripture. It wouldn't be the same without you!

Acts 8:26-31

Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place.
And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure.

He had come to Jerusalem to worship
and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah.
And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”
So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
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Simon the sorcerer wanted what they had so much that he offered to buy his way in. If you are shackled with bitterness and life is unfair, get over it. Your heart is the thing, and it must be right before God.

Acts 8:18-24

Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money,

saying, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”
But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!
You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.
Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you.

For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity.”
And Simon answered, “Pray for me to the Lord, that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”

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Fear of the Lord is such an old-fashioned notion. But, if it leads to life, satisfaction and assurance against evil, it is good enough for me.

Proverbs 19:23

The fear of the Lord leads to life,
And he who has it will abide in satisfaction;
He will not be visited with evil.

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Send them a text. How about Instagram. It doesn't matter how you do it, just tell your children about His strength, that they might set their hope in God.

Psalm 78:1-8

Give ear, O my people, to my law;
Incline your ears to the words of my mouth.
I will open my mouth in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings of old,

Which we have heard and known,
And our fathers have told us.
We will not hide them from their children,
Telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord,
And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.
For He established a testimony in Jacob,
And appointed a law in Israel,
Which He commanded our fathers,
That they should make them known to their children;
That the generation to come might know them,
The children who would be born,
That they may arise and declare them to their children,
That they may set their hope in God,
And not forget the works of God,
But keep His commandments;
And may not be like their fathers,
A stubborn and rebellious generation,
A generation that did not set its heart aright,
And whose spirit was not faithful to God.

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Sometimes the Bible's simple summaries are amazingly powerful.

1 Chronicles 11:9

So David went on and became great, and the Lord of hosts was with him.

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He was chosen by God to be king. Saul then chose to be unfaithful. Not a good combination. Hmmm, life or death? I choose life.

1 Chronicles 10:13-14

So Saul died for his unfaithfulness which he had committed against the Lord, because he did not keep the word of the Lord, and also because he consulted a medium for guidance.
But he did not inquire of the Lord; therefore He killed him, and turned the kingdom over to David the son of Jesse.

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The world provides many kinds of personal prisons: addiction, worry, unhappiness, pride, pain, pursuit of success, money, love, and sex. The list is endless. We need help to free ourselves. But once the miracle has happened, we need to stand in His temple and teach what we have learned.

Acts 5:22-25

But when the officers came and did not find them in the prison, they returned and reported,
saying,

Jayden Cassidy
photos

“Indeed we found the prison shut securely, and the guards standing outside before the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside!”
Now when the high priest, the captain of the temple, and the chief priests heard these things, they wondered what the outcome would be.
So one came and told them, saying, “Look, the men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!”

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God gives us this paragraph in the midst of a long genealogy. I touches me. I asked to be delivered from evil so I'm not in pain! I think Jabez had it right and I have it all wrong.

1 Chronicles 4:9-10

Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying,

“Because I bore him in pain.”

Woman in labour: charcoal drawing
Photo: Thorfinurr

And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.

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If you were broken and are now restored, think of the people you might amaze just by walking whole in the world. People want what you have. Share it with them.

Acts 3:6-10
But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”

And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong.
And leaping up he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.
And all the people saw him walking and praising God,
and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
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"For you and for your children..." I don't know about you, but I think the gift of the Holy Spirit is the best gift I've ever received. I pray constantly to open my heart to it.

Acts 2:38-39

Elizabeth Potter

And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy spirit.
For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”

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Imagine, there are now sophisticated translation applications for your smart phone. I wonder how they do that?

Acts 2:4-8
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven.

And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language.
And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?
And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language?
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Over and over Israel and Judah broke the covenant with God. They were stubborn and "went after false idols and became false." I don't know about you, but it reminds me of me.

2 Kings 17:13-15

Yet the Lord warned Israel and Judah by every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.”

But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the Lord their God.
They despised his statutes and his covenant that he made with their fathers and the warnings that he gave them. They went after false idols and became false, and they followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom the Lord had commanded them that they should not do like them.

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And John didn't even know about blogs and twitter. I suppose Jesus does.

John 21:25

Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

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He had compassion on them because of His covenant. These are evidently enduring things: Israel vs. Syria; God's compassion.

2 Kings 13:22-23

Now Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz.

But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them, and he turned toward them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, nor has he cast them from his presence until now.

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Truth is freedom. Are you listening to His voice?

John 18:37

Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”

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If you believed with certainty that you would never run out of something, wouldn't you give it to as many people as possible? So give it away. There will be plenty of Christ for you and there will always be some left.

2 Kings 4:42-44
A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. And Elisha said, “Give to the men, that they may eat.”

But his servant said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” So he repeated, “Give them to the men, that they may eat, for thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and have some left.’”
So he set it before them. And they ate and had some left, according to the word of the Lord.
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Overcoming tribulation may be our most important job in this world. It strengthens us and it encourages us to love one another. "Take heart" He says. I do.

John 16:33

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

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I'm trying!

John 15:16

You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.

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Tornado, earthquake, fire? No, His voice is a low whisper. Listen to the "still small voice'" says the King James Version.

1 Kings 19:9-12

There he came to a cave and lodged in it. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”

C.Thamo Dharan
photos

And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.
And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.

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So this little portion of Psalm is in my reading this morning. I have been in pain and depressed. I wouldn't know how to sacrifice an ox. I do seek God! Let my heart revive. You too.

Psalm 69:29-33

But I am afflicted and in pain;
let your salvation, O God, set me on high!
I will praise the name of God with a song;
I will magnify him with thanksgiving.
This will please the Lord more than an ox
or a bull with horns and hoofs.
When the humble see it they will be glad;
you who seek God, let your hearts revive.
For the Lord hears the needy
and does not despise his own people who are prisoners.

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As a child I always loved this: "Verily, verily." It sounded so pretty. Thank you King James. Truth is pretty in all forms.

John 13:20 (KJV)

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

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When I am in trouble, I'm getting better at turning to God in the first place and not as a last resort. I still forget sometimes. That never turns out well.

Psalm 69:16-18
Hear me, O Lord, for Your lovingkindness is good;
Turn to me according to the multitude of
Your tender mercies.
And do not hide Your face from Your servant,
For I am in trouble;
Hear me speedily.
Draw near to my soul, and redeem it;
Deliver me because of my enemies.
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I have a recurring dream about a huge wave. In the abundance of His steadfast love, by faith in his salvation, I have been delivered from the enemy.

Psalm 69:13-15
But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord.
At an acceptable time, O God,
in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness.

Ben James photo

Deliver me 
from sinking in the mire; 
let me be delivered from my enemies
and from the deep waters.
Let not the flood sweep over me,
or the deep swallow me up,
or the pit close its mouth over me.
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