Kansas City, Missouri,
United States - Reflecting God – Embrace Holy Living - “Pray, Praise, and God’s
Promises” – Tuesday, 22 April 2014 - Scripture: Psalm 44: 9 But now you rejected us, and brought us to
dishonor,
and don’t go out with our armies.
10 You make us turn back
from the adversary.
Those who hate us take plunder for
themselves.
11 You have made us like
sheep for food,
and have scattered us among the nations.
12 You sell your people
for nothing,
and have gained nothing from their sale.
13 You make us a
reproach to our neighbors,
a scoffing and a derision to those who are
around us.
14 You make us a byword
among the nations,
a shaking of the head among the peoples.
15 All day long my
dishonor is before me,
and shame covers my face,
16 At the taunt of one who reproaches and
verbally abuses,
because of the enemy and the avenger.
17 All this has come on
us,
yet have we not forgotten you,
Neither have we been false to your
covenant.
18 Our heart has not
turned back,
neither have our steps strayed from your
path,
19 Though you have crushed us in the haunt of
jackals,
and covered us with the shadow of death.
“Pray, Praise, and God’s
Promises” by Duane C. Brush
It is in those times
when we have nothing else to hold onto that we learn God’s promises are enough.
King Jehoshaphat had
enjoyed God’s blessing on his godly leadership. The king had been able to
fortify his defenses and establish peace with some of his non-Israelite
neighbors. However, two powerful neighbors, Moab and Ammon, led an alliance
determined to invade and destroy Judah.
In 2 Chronicles 20 we
read how Jehoshaphat responded to the threatened invasion. Instead of
stockpiling arms and training troops he declared a fast and called his people
to prayer. The king, in his prayer, reminded God of His faithfulness in years
past. The Lord told Jehoshaphat that “the battle is not yours” (2 Chronicles
20:15). The king encouraged his people to have faith and sing praises to the
Lord. God set “ambushes” against Judah’s enemies. When Jehoshaphat saw the
enemy they were all dead. I took his army three days to gather up all the
plunder and carry it away.
Jehoshaphat turned to
God in the time of trouble and saw the kind of deliverance only God could
bring! Prayer, praise, and faith in God’s promises opened the door for God’s
powerful action on their behalf.
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Hymn for Today:
“Standing on the Promises”
by R. Kelso Carter
1. Standing on the promises of Christ my King,
through eternal ages let his praises ring;
glory in the highest, I will shout and sing,
standing on the promises of God.
Refrain:
Standing, standing,
standing on the promises of Christ my Savior;
standing, standing,
I'm standing on the promises of God.
2. Standing on the promises that cannot fail,
when the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,
by the living Word of God I shall prevail,
standing on the promises of God.
Refrain:
Standing, standing,
standing on the promises of Christ my Savior;
standing, standing,
I'm standing on the promises of God. (Refrain)
3. Standing on the promises of Christ the Lord,
bound to him eternally by love's strong cord,
overcoming daily with the Spirit's sword,
standing on the promises of God.
Refrain:
Standing, standing,
standing on the promises of Christ my Savior;
standing, standing,
I'm standing on the promises of God.
4. Standing on the promises I cannot fall,
listening every moment to the Spirit's call,
resting in my Savior as my all in all,
standing on the promises of God.
Refrain:
Standing, standing,
standing on the promises of Christ my Savior;
standing, standing,
I'm standing on the promises of God.
Thought for Today:
“If we understand life’s
troubles as God’s passionate call to listen to His direction for life, our
struggles have purpose” (Jim Edlin and Janelle MacKay).
Prayer Needs:
For faculty and students
as they prepare for full-time Christian ministry in Argentin!
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WordAcion Publishing
Company
Beacon Hill Press
Nazarene Publishing
Company
2500 Troost Avenue
Kansas City, MO 64108
United States
Embrace holy
living…visit reflectinggod.com.
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