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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kjfgG3CDB0
Or search YouTube for ‘Is the Christian’s Heart
Deceitfully Wicked?’
By Desiring God (8 min 12 sec)
[The woman of Tekoa] “Then the woman said, ‘Please let
your maidservant speak a word to my lord the king.’ And he said, ‘Speak.’ The woman said, ‘Why then have you planned
such a thing against the people of God?
“’For in speaking this word the king is as one who is
guilty, in that the king does not bring back his banished one. For we will surely die and are like water
spilled on the ground which cannot be gathered up again. Yet God does not take away life, but plans
ways so that the banished one will not be cast out from him.’” II Samuel
14:12-14
This passage is from a very complicated time in the life of
David. He had grown older and his sons
more powerful. Because they had been so ‘lovingly’
indulged, they were jealous of their futures – King David would not live forever.
Here deceit is set in motion to make the king promise to allow
his son, Absolom, to return home (he had avenged his sister against another and
therefore was doomed to exile in a ‘sanctuary city’ and would never be able to
return home without being killed).
Yet the king was not deceived by this woman. You can sense his growing weariness from a
life peppered with mistakes…and yet God called him, with all his warts to serve
Him.
And so He calls us, warts and all, knowing that our only
hope is in surrendering our evil hearts to Him and asking Him to save us from
the inevitable banishment for eternity otherwise.
Take care with love, especially His, Darlene (who still
prays for you daily)
PS: Find my statement
of faith: https://especiallyhislove.blogspot.com
(where you will also find a series of
beginner Bible studies to share). You can easily find the WeakDay Devotion
online by doing a Google search for ‘WeakDay Devotion’. (Also, there is an android ‘Google
Blogger’ app you can download to read them on your phone. Not sure about Apple.). For the books, go to Amazon
books.
NEW PRAYER REQUESTS (any updates?)
·
Barbara –
the beloved wife of my brother who recently passed that she would be comforted
and cared for by those around her as she manages so much all by herself
now. Pray for her safety and peace and
protection at night.
·
Grant –
please pray for his eye infection, that it is cleared up easily and swiftly
·
Ian –
has a desire to grow his understanding and effectiveness with personal
evangelism. Please pray for him.
·
Sarah and Andrew – he left his job and she has gone to work in a
new and exciting role. Pray for this
precious Christian couple that they focus on family balance to the glory of the
Lord.
·
Yoshimi – had
two interviews last week. Pray one of
them comes through for her.
·
Joni – a
long-time friend who is wandering through the challenges of cancer
treatment. Pray for her health carers
and for her strength and all the adjustments she must now make during her
recovery.
·
Peyton and Carter
- Grandchildren of Jeff and Rachael. Payton is their eldest granddaughter and is
now in her third year at college. Carter
is a senior in high school. Both are
exceptional students and love the Lord. Pray
they are not distracted by worldly things, that they continue to do well in
their studies and that their love of the Lord increases daily.
·
Ray – please
give him grace and comfort as he cares for his mother who has Alzheimer’s and whose
memory is too quickly fading away and pray for Kathy,
his wife who supports him through this.
·
Thanksgiving - David
– had double cataract surgery with good results, still being treated for
macular degeneration. He now awaits some
new glasses but is feeling stronger each day.
Pray for wisdom for his health carers and for Heidi, his daughter, who cares for him daily, to be strong
and healthy through this time.
·
Thanksgiving: Denny is
recovering well from his surgery. Please
continue to pray for his patience and healing.
Pray the Lord encircles Marci,
his wife (and my life-long friend) with comfort, health and patience as she
supports him.
·
Peter and Jill –
the surgery to place stents in his arteries has been rescheduled. Pray the Lord quiets his concerns and gives him
extra wisdom and patience while he waits.
Pray also for his wife, Jill as
she has been unwell and is Peter’s most effective supporter.
·
Jake - A friend of my brother, living with COPD
(emphysema) and heart problems. Please
pray for his daughter, Tiffany and
for other friends and health carers to help him through his health journey.
·
Annette and Lyle – have returned home and need prayer to settle in
and begin a new adventure. Thank you for
praying for Lyle, his wrist/ arm injury is slowly healing and improving daily.
·
Wayne B – is slowly losing his beloved wife, Lyn,
(diagnosed with frontal temporal dementia three and a half years ago). She has been in care since May of 2020 but
recently had a succession of falls and is now in a psycho-geriatric facility.
She sometimes knows who he is but is no longer able to respond. Pray for comfort for Wayne as he deals with
this difficult situation.
·
Jen – lost
her only sister and still needs your prayers to get through this difficult time
and pray her health remains good.
·
Demi and John – one evening he went out his backdoor to run an
errand and was attacked by someone with a knife who stabbed him several times (one
pierced his heart). He has recovered
physically, but please pray for him and his wife as they pull their lives
together – that they might find the Lord in all the chaos left behind.
·
Callilah-
a lost child. Pray the Lord captures her
heart.
·
Megan (for
emotional healing) and Scott, her
husband (for patience and wisdom) and wisdom for his sister, Clare, as she seeks to support them through
troubled times.
·
Sue and Rob - need prayers for wisdom and resolute spirits as
they deal with their adult nephew, Luke. They invited him to stay with them during a
difficult time in his life, but he refuses to leave now and is ungrateful and
disruptive. Pray for salvation for Luke
and that he accepts their request.
·
Bettina –
continue to pray for her as she grows into a new phase of her life in the Lord. Pray each of her five married daughters,
their spouses and 17 grandchildren grow to love and follow the Lord Jesus
Christ.
·
Robin –
lost her beloved mother (was 93 years old), please pray for strength and
healing for her as she navigates through this time of mourning and for her
daughter who is comforting her.
·
Family of Eric – Eric died suddenly at 52 leaving his
47-year-old wife and three girls (ages 16, 19 and 23). Pray the Lord brings strength to them as they
regroup into a new life. Pray for
trustworthy, honourable, Bible-based friends to continue to support them.
·
Pray for true,
Christ-centered revival in America.
Pray for those in full-time service
Pray the Lord uphold our Christian leaders – that they never compromise God’s Word and remain bold and courageous in the face of evil. Pray for their wisdom, safety, ingenuity, strength and for their families.
Pray for those with ongoing health concerns
Many of us have family, friends and loved ones with fragile health. Pray God takes special care with them and protects them in practical ways and that the Lord will have mercy on them during this challenging time.
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