25 Elul 5993 / 11 September 2023
Day 254 Readings
Torah: Ha'azinu, 2nd Portion (Devarim (Deuteronomy) 32:7-32:12)
8 When the Most High divided their inheritance to the nations,When He separated the sons of Adam,He set the boundaries of the peoplesAccording to the number of the [a]children of Israel.9 For the Lord’s portion is His people;Jacob is the place of His inheritance.
10 “He found him in a desert landAnd in the wasteland, a howling wilderness;He encircled him, He instructed him,He kept him as the [b]apple of His eye.
Bible Study Together
Deuteronomy 30:1-31:13
15 “See, I have placed before you today life and [v]happiness, and death and [w]adversity, 16 in that I am commanding you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His judgments, so that you may live and become numerous, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to take possession of it.
19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have placed before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your [y]descendants, 20 by loving the Lord your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding close to Him; for [z]this is your life and the length of your days, [aa]so that you may live in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”
Deuteronomy 31
1 So Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel. 2 And he said to them, “I am 120 years old today; I am no longer able to [a]go out and come in, and the Lord has told me, ‘You shall not cross this Jordan.’ 3 It is the Lord your God who is going to cross ahead of you; He Himself will destroy these nations before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua is the one who is going to cross ahead of you, just as the Lord has spoken.
4 And the Lord will do to them just as He did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, and to their land, when He destroyed them. 5 The Lord will turn them over to you, and you will do to them in accordance with all the commandments which I have commanded you. 6 Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or in dread of them, for the Lord your God is the One who is going with you. He will not desert you or abandon you.”
7 Then Moses called to Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and courageous, for you will go with this people into the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you will give it to them as an inheritance. 8 And the Lord is the one who is going ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not desert you or abandon you. Do not fear and do not be dismayed.”
365 Daily Kingdom Living
God Cares
Whether in the psalmist David's time or our own, Satan hates a city of peace and safety. He wants cities where chaos, division, anger and confusion undermine society's very foundation. He's the father of lies and destruction. Fortunately, as David notes in verse 22, we can cast our cares and concerns on the Lord; He sustains us and will never let the righteous fall. He cares about our nation.
Prayer: Too often, dear Lord, I see the drama around me and forget you are God. I watch politicians threatening, citizens fighting, and many people 'colouring' the truth to their advantage. Instead of trusting you, I just feel frustrated and helpless. Forgive me. Like the psalmist, may I see your strong hand in maintaining justice and showing love for our city. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Scripture
Isaiah 8
1 Then the Lord said to me, “Take for yourself a large tablet and write on it [a]in ordinary letters: [b]Maher-shalal-hash-baz. 2 And [c]I will take to Myself faithful witnesses for testimony, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.” 3 So I approached the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. Then the Lord said to me, “Name him [d]Maher-shalal-hash-baz; 4 for before the boy knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”
16 Bind up the testimony, seal the [q]Law among my disciples. 17 And I will wait for the Lord who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob; I will wait eagerly for Him. 18 Behold, I and the children whom the Lord has given me are for signs and wonders in Israel from the Lord of armies, who dwells on Mount Zion.
Isaiah 9
1 [u]But there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish. In earlier times He treated the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali with contempt, but later on He will make it glorious, by the way of the sea, on the other side of the Jordan, Galilee of the [v]Gentiles.
2 [w]The people who walk in darknessWill see a great light;Those who live in a dark land,The light will shine on them.3 You will multiply the nation,You will [x]increase [y]their joy;They will rejoice in Your presenceAs with the joy [z]of harvest,As people rejoice when they divide the spoils.4 For You will break the yoke of their burden and the staff on their shoulders,The rod of their oppressor, as [aa]at the battle of Midian.5 For every boot of the marching warrior in the roar of battle,And cloak rolled in blood, will be for burning, fuel for the fire.6 For a Child will be born to us, a Son will be given to us;And the government will [ab]rest on His shoulders;And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peaceOn the throne of David and over [ac]his kingdom,To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousnessFrom then on and forevermore.The zeal of the Lord of armies will accomplish this.
2 Corinthians 12:1-10
A Thorn in the Flesh
7 Because of the extraordinary greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to [b]torment me—to keep me from exalting myself! 8 Concerning this I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might leave me. 9 And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast [c]about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I delight in weaknesses, in [d]insults, in distresses, in persecutions, in difficulties, in behalf of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.
Psalms 55
12 For it is not an enemy who taunts me,Then I could endure it;Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me,Then I could hide myself from him.13 But it is you, a man [h]my equal,My companion and my confidant;14 We who had sweet [i]fellowship together,Walked in the house of God among the commotion.15 May [j]death come deceitfully upon them;May they go down alive to [k]Sheol,For evil is in their dwelling, in their midst.
16 As for me, I shall call upon God,And the Lord will save me.17 Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and moan,And He will hear my voice.18 He will redeem my soul in peace [l]from the battle which is against me,For they are many who are aggressive toward me.19 God will hear and humiliate them—Even the one who [m]sits enthroned from ancient times— SelahWith whom there [n]is no change,And who do not fear God.20 He has put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him;He has [o]violated his covenant.21 His [p]speech was smoother than butter,But his heart was war;His words were softer than oil,Yet they were drawn swords.
22 Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you;He will never allow the righteous to [q]be shaken.23 But You, God, will bring them down to the pit of destruction;Men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days.But I will trust in You.
Proverbs 23:4-5
New American Standard Bible
4 Do not weary yourself to gain wealth; Stop dwelling on it. 5 When you set your eyes on it, it is gone.For wealth certainly makes itself wingsLike an eagle that flies toward the heavens.
Dear AVI,
O GOD My KING, Blessed are YOU O My FATHER who reigns over all earth and the heavens!!! Great are YOU O GOD and KING. O LORD My GOD, I am draining and I am losing faith in people, espcially with Marlene. I pray LORD that YOU will deal with such people who might only cause harm to me. I feel tired, weary and drained from all church activities. Please AVI, make a way for me, to escape all the stress and anxieties of life because I want to be focused on serving and loving YOU. Please rescue me from the trap that I am in. Please bring me to YOU O GOD, bring me to YOUR perfect will O GOD and help me to live an abundant life of joy and fruitfulness in YOU. O GOD, do not allow the enemy to propser in their deceits, in their manipulation and lies against me, please rescue me O GOD from everything that is not of YOU and bring me to YOUR paths of righteousness. O GOD, have YOUR way in me O GOD havey YOUR Way, even in my family, in my church. O GOD, take care of me O GOD, and lead me to YOUR pefect will. Revive me once again, revive me... I am tired in this world O GOD, take me away, take me... take me to YOUR Place where I will forever be happy and at rest. Help me LORD, it is such a cruel world, I do not want to stay here longer, please take me to YOU, take me.... O GOD Almighty, bring all YOUR saints to YOU, bring us all to YOUR throne of grace, bring us to YOU. I need YOU O GOD, for unto YOU I belong, I belong to YOU My GOD. Please provide all the solutions to our problems, give us a way out of what BIR is doing to us.... O GOD, if it is YOUR Will O GOD, give us a sign that we ought to talk to Atty Yu and seek his counsel and not just Atty Sheiryl. Speak to us Adonai regarding these things. O GOD, have mercy on us O GOD. Please JESUS MY KING overcome all our problems in BIR, in the Warehouse, so many things I am facing and I am already weak. I do not have strength to fight O GOD unless YOU strengthen me. Please O GOD. Toda Raba for my time with Siansi Sandra, toda for helping me by talking to her, and that she is praying for me to overcome all my problems and be free to be happy. O GOD, YOU Promised that the wise will do exploits, in the end, please make me wise and strong and able to face all the challenges that I face today, please give me power O GOD, and strength. O GOD, have mercy on me O GOD, take care of me, and come LORD JESUS! Come!!! For unto YOU belong all the honor and the glory and praise!!!
Ba HaShem YESHUA HaMashiach, Amen!