Jehoshaaphat [ Revelation 2 v 1-7 ]

We read about  King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronucles17-20,he was king of Judah,remember Israel had become two nations,he reigned over Judah.Now the word of God tells us, that he sought to the Lord God of his Father,and walked in His commandments,and not after the doings of Israel[2 Chron 17v4] He sought the Lord God of his Fathers.Now godly fathers do not guarantee godly Children,and I am sure godly fathers would desire that their children would seek the Lord. Samuels sons where not Godly[1 Samuel 8 v2-3],but Samuel was,godliness is not transferrable,everyone needs to seek the Lord themselves,Jesse James the outlaw had a godly heritage.Next we see that he walked in His commandments,a relationship with the Lord,should affect our walk,our Saviour commanded us to love one another[John 15 v17].Next we read that he did not walk in the ways of Israel,who had, to a great degree forsaken God and His ways. All this is very good, Jehoshaphat was a perfect king, not so ,while he did not walk in the ways of Israel he became involved with them, making alliances with two of their kings,Ahab, and Ahaziah,even allowing his son to marry Ahabs daughter. All this had serious consequences , he nearly lost his life[2 Chron 17v18 v31]God delivered him,but he did not appear to learn a lesson from this,let us ask ourselves what lesson is God teaching us ?.His alliance with Ahaziah cost him financially[2 Chron20 v37].Lastly allowing his son to marry Ahabs daughter ,brought serious consequences to Judah after he died[cp. 2 Chron 22 v10 ff]
A prayer...... /Dear God help us to walk in all Your ways ,in Jesus name Amen /

Ichabod. [1 Samuel 4 v21]

We read about King Asa in 2 Chronicles 14-16.for most of his reign he did well,he sought to turn the people back to God,yes the so called people of God.As I listened to the radio recently, I was saddened by what I heard ,a denomination that was at one time,was a bulwark for the truth,now are accepting ministers with wrong practises, sinful practise's. It appears for so many Christian groups that all they have is their history, they have become  museums of the past.I like visiting museums but I don't want to live in one, Enoch walked with God,it was ongoing,  so many churches can rejoice in is their history.What applies to churches can apply to us as individuals,we once walked with God,we were faithful ,to the things of God,we loved to meet with Gods people,read the word of God,but now we are involved in things we would never have been involved in ,years ago. We think of ourselves as Christians,as many churches do but all it is , is a name,for so many Churches ,and individuals,the word Ichabod could be applied to them, Ichabod means,the glory  has departed.
A  prayer.../Dear God in wrath remember mercy,and in Thy mercy revive Your people, for Jesus sake Amen /

He can be relied upon. [ Joshua 1 v 5ff]

In 2 Chronicles13 v18. we read,/Thus the children of Israel were brought under at that time,and the children of Judah prevailed, because they  relied upon the Lord  God of their fathers/.I like to think that I can be relied upon,but I may through circumstances,let others down. I wonder have you ever been let down,by your father or mother?. A friend of mine was cheated out of a partnership, by a friend,thankfully that did not destroy him.Jesus was let down by His disciples, Paul was also let down by His fellow labourer Demas[2 Timothy 4 v10] I have a reliable car,but so often in the past,those old cars that I had, let me down,you usually cannot rely on an old car. In Joshua 1 v 5 ,our Lord speaks to Joshua,with words of encouragement,/As I was with Moses, so I will be with thee,can we rely on God,to treat us as He treated Paul,or David, or  the disciples?,the answer is yes.. Next.../So I will be with you/,surely He will not always be there,no one is always there,not so ,He has given us His word,and He will always keeps His word.So many people have left wives,husbands,children.,they have forgotten their vows,but God will never forget His promise that He will always be with us[ Hebrews 13 v5 ] Nor forsake thee.../God will be with us in trouble,the prodigal[Luke 15] found himself with no friends when trouble came,our Saviour is not a good weather friend,He was with the disciples in the storm [Mark 4 v35 ff]
A  prayer ....../ Dear God we praise You that You are reliable, You will never fail us,we can rest in he fact that You always be with us,in the good times and in the bad times,You are,our forever Friend.,for which we praise  and thank You in Jesus name Amen/

Not giving up.[ Jude v24-25 ]

Let us continue to consider Luke 22v31-32, consider two things ,Satans activity./ Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat/Satan wanted Peter,that he may devour him[1 Peter 5 v8],he has a hatred for all mankind but especially for those who belong to Christ,he truly is a fiend from hell,who will show no mercy.I read of so many Christians who are suffering terrible things,and who is behind their suffering ?, Satan.What does he want,he wants to have them,to rob God of His children,but thank God he will not succeed.CP  John 10v28-29/Romans8 v38-39, but that will not stop him from trying. Next consider ,Christs Activity/But, I have prayed for thee,that thy faith fail not[v32]Consider, as He prayed for Peter so He is praying for you, in Hebrews 7 v25 we read that Christ ever liveth to make intercession for His children. As we face the assault of the enemy of our souls Christ is upholding us with prayer.He prayed for Peter that his faith would not fail, Peter was going to be tested and he would fall, as our Saviour predicted,but would he gave up,would he stop believing?As with Peter so with us,as we face trials,are we going to give up?or our we going to hold on,and continue to believe?, is our faith going to fail?
A  prayer......./Dear God preserve us from the enemy of our souls,and grant us grace ,when tried ,not to give up, in Jesus name we ask this Amen /

Dont be fooled. [ 2 Corinthians 4 v4 ]

Just before our Lord was crucified,He spoke to Peter,this is what He said,/Satan hath desired to have you,that he may sift you as wheat[Luke 22 v31]It appears to me that unlike our Saviour, Satan rarely has a mention ,the old Puritans did not neglect to teach that there was a devil,and how to resist him.There is a lovely little book called ,/Precious remedies against Satan's devises/,a Banner of truth publication,it is very instructive.Our Saviour warns Peter that he has been singled out,by Satan,who is going to attack him,our Saviour emphasises the seriousness of this,Simon,Simon,He says, seeking to warn Peter to be on his guard. Unfortunately Peter did not take this warning seriously,which is obvious,by what he said, and done.I come from Ulster a sad little place with a very sad history,often one would see on the TV young people out on the streets causing trouble,but it was the godfathers behind these young people that needed to be dealt with.So it is, behind all the evil in this world,there is a godfather,which the Bible calls the god of this world,we need to realise this, and be on our guard
A  prayer....../Dear God help us to realise that this world has an enemy,called Satan, help us to take serious what this means,in Jesus name Amen /

I am weak,how about you?. [ Philippians 4 v 13 ]

There is a saying ,that confessing is good for the soul,so let me make a confession, I am weak,I continually have to go to God,for help.I struggle so often,with temptation,with concerns,over the future,our dear Saviour knew that we would worry,that is why He left us,words of encouragement,assuring us of His presence,of His provision,of His protection.It is not a sin to confess that one is weak,it even seems that He permits things in our lives to cause us to realise our weakness CP 2 Corinthians 12.So if we are feeling weak join the club,but  remember our weakness must not be used as an excuse to give up,or even despair,no it is an opportunity to be strong in the Lord. Let us not focus on our weakness,if we do then we will fail,rather focus on God who takes and uses the weak things.As we face this day consider how God can help us to overcome,and not to be overcome,and when we come to end of the day,consider how He has helped us and thank Him.
A  prayer..../Dear Lord we confess our great weakness,help us,and strengthen us,enable us to be overcomers. Amen /

Eternity. [ Psalm 90 ]

A.W.Tozer wrote,/We who live in this nervous age would be wise to meditate on our lives and our days long and often before the face of God and on the edge of eternity. For we are made for eternity ,as certain as we are made for time, and as responsible moral beings we must deal with both/. Tozer had such a meaningful way of putting things ,consider what he wrote what do you think of what he says,as I thought on it,I thought how so many people live just for the here and now,for time and the things of time, I read in a newspaper how there is a stampede for black diamond wrinkle cream.Well I am not saying it is wrong to try and get rid of our wrinkles,but somehow it seems to me,there is something more telling,in this, a desire for permanence,in a world that does not promise that.And it is that desire for permanence that overshadows our lives.I watched a man of God, an MP speaking on a subject of great importance,he reminded his fellow MPs of what God had to say,but I sensed very few were listening.How very few people in our society are listening.If they were listening then they would start to give consideration not just to the things of time, but also the things of eternity.Life is important,the here and now is important,but eternity is also important,and every last one of us are heading in that direction,and the vital question is this where shall we spend eternity,will it be in heaven or will it be in hell?.Please consider what I am saying,and remember the only sure way to go to heaven,and escape hell is through Christ,Tozer puts it this way,/For every man it must be Christ or eternal tragedy/
A  prayer... Dear God help us to see that You have made us for time and eternity,and help us to appreciate what that means for all of us, in Jesus Name Amen