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John 3:16 – The Saviour 2 Timothy 3:16 – The Scriptures Colossians 3:16 – The Spirit — Let us come to the Saviour. Let us read the Scriptures. Let us worship God in Spirit and in truth.

Some people say, “Surely, you don’t believe the Bible.” They say that the Bible belongs to the past. It’s not for us today. This kind of talk takes us right back to the Garden of Eden – “Did God really say?” (Genesis 3:1).   The Bible says that “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Timothy 3:16).   Who are we to say that the Bible needs to be rewritten – so that it only says what we want it to say to us? God hasn’t stopped speaking to us through His Word – but have we stopped listening to Him?   * In our cynical world, we hear that “It doesn’t matter what you believe because what you believe doesn’t matter.” When we find ourselves starting to think like this, let’s remember this: God’s Word is unchanged .  * Sometimes, we look back over our life, and we think, “I used to love reading the Bible – but somewhere along the line, something’s changed.” What’s changed? Has God’s Word changed? No! It hasn’t changed. When our feelings change, let’s not forget this

"The Holy Scriptures are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15). In the Bible, we have God's written Word. The Bible points us to Christ. he is God's living Word - "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God ... The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth" (John 1:1,14). What do we learn as we read God's written Word? - This is what we learn: "Jesus loves me. This I know, for the Bible tells me so." God speaks to us His written Word so that we may come to trust in Christ, the living Word - "from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:15). Reading the Scriptures, we become wise for salvation as we find Christ who is our Wisdom (2 Tim

2 Timothy 1:1-2:7 Lord, we’re not to keep Your Word to ourselves. You’ve given us the “Gospel.” Help us to share it with “faithful” people who will “pass it on to others” (2 Timothy 1:11,13 & 2:2). 2 Timothy 2:8-3:9 Help us, Lord, to “remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead” (2 Timothy 2:8). Jesus is the living Lord.  Help us never to forget this. When we’re tempted to forget Him, help us to remember why He died. “He died that we might be forgiven. He died to make us good, that we might go at last to heaven, saved by His precious blood.”When we’re tempted to forget Him, help us to remember that He’s alive today – and He lives in us. Help us to say, in our hearts, “I must decrease. Christ in me must increase” (John 3:30). 2 Timothy 3:10-4:22 We thank You, Lord, for “the Holy Scriptures which are able to make us wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15). Help us to “preach the Word” in the power of “the Holy Spirit” (2 Timothy 4:2 &

2 Samuel 23:1-39 By birth, David was ‘the son of Jesse’. By grace, he was ‘the man who was raised on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, the sweet psalmist of Israel’(1). What we are in ourselves is nothing compared with what we can become through the grace of God! Look at David. Listen to what he says, ‘The Spirit of the Lord speaks by me, His Word is upon my tongue’(2). What had David done to deserve this? What was so special about him? Nothing - This was the work of God, the work of divine grace. In ourselves, we are ‘godless’, good for nothing, ‘like thorns that are thrown away’(6). In ourselves, we are not ‘mighty men’(8-9). How can we be changed? - ‘The Lord wrought a great victory’(10,12). Which of us can be described as ‘a valiant man… a doer of great deeds’(20) - apart from the grace of God? ‘By grace you have been saved…’(Ephesians 2:8-10).

2 Samuel 4:1-5:25 Lord, there are bad things happening to us, things that we wish weren't happening. Sometimes, all of this gets us down. We wonder, "Who really cares about us? Is there anybody out there - anybody who's really interested?" We thank You, Lord, that there is an answer to our question. It's not an answer that comes from the human side. It's an answer that comes from above, an answer that comes from You. It's the answer of Your love. You love us in the good times. You love us in the bad times. Thank You, Lord.

2 Samuel 7:1-29 Life isn't easy. Sometimes, it seems like there are nothing but hard times. There doesn't seem to be alight at the end of the tunnel. That's the way it feels - but it's not the way it is! Our feelings will lead us away from You - if we let them! Our feelings can run riot over us. They can wreck our lives. Help us, Lord, to look beyond the chaos. Help us to look to You. Sometimes, it feels like You're far away. That's the way it seems to us - but it's not the way it really is! You are with us - now and always (Matthew 1:23; Matthew 28:20).

2 Samuel 19:40-20:26   Our words can do a lot of good - and they can do a lot of harm! Lord, help us to watch what we say. May our words be words that heal - not words that hurt. May they be helpful words, words that will help others to love You more - not words that will lead them away from You.

2 Samuel 23:1-39 Lord, we thank You for Your amazing grace. What we are, in ourselves, is nothing compared with what we can become through the power of Your love. Your love reaches us. It lifts us up - out of our sin, which drags us down, and into Your salvation, which renews our strength and makes us new men and women.

2 Samuel 24:1-25 Less pride and more praise - That's what we need, Lord. Less taking glory for ourselves and more giving glory to You - May that be the story of our life. Less living in our own weakness and more living in Your power - Lead us, Lord, into a life that is becoming less centred on ourselves and more centred on You.

2 Samuel 18:1-33 Often, we wish we could look into the future, and see what's going to happen to us. We can't. the future belongs to You, Lord - not to us. Help us to wait on You, Lord - to wait patiently for the time when Your future becomes our present. Our 'tomorrow' can never become our 'today' - until our 'today' becomes our 'yesterday.' Help us, Lord, to forget about gazing into some kind of 'crystal ball.' Give us the grace to walk with You in faith - one day at a time.

2 Samuel 1:1-2:32 Here, we read here about the end of Saul's reign and the beginning of David's reign. For Saul, the end was tragic: "See how the mighty have fallen!" (2 Samuel 1:19,25,27). David's reign marked a new beginning. God is gracious. He gives us a new beginning when we have made a mess of things. He is the God of hope. He leads us out of our failure and into His victory. 2 Samuel 3:1-5:25 In 2 Samuel 2:1-7, we read of David becoming the king of Judah. In 2 Samuel 5:1-5, we  read of him becoming the king of Israel. Behind the story of David, there is the story of God at work: "The Lord was with David." "The Lord had established him as king of Israel and made his kingdom famous for the sake of Israel, the Lord's people" (2 Samuel 5:10,12). 2 Samuel 6:1-8:18 David worships God - "I will celebrate in the Lord's presence", "You are great, Lord God. There is no-one like You, and there is no other god e

Seeking to grow in our understanding of God’s Word is important. We need to move from there to ask the question: Why are we seeking to increase our understanding of God’s Word? We are to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18). An increase in knowledge is to be accompanied by growth in grace.  We can easily get ourselves confused when we’re reading the most difficult parts of God’s Word. That’s when we need the reminder: God calls us to obey His Word –– “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near” (Revelation 1:3). When we start thinking that we’ve made some progress in mastering the Bible’s difficult passages, we need to be reminded that God calls us to love Him and to love our neighbour – “Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” (1 Corinthians 8:1). We must never forget the words which follow the call to grow in Christ – “To

2 Peter 1:1-2:10a We thank You, Lord, for Your “very great and precious promises” (2 Peter 1:4). You’re leading us on, with Yourself, to “a rich welcome into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:11). The pathway to heavenly and eternal glory will not be easy – but we’re not alone. You’re with us, every step of the way. You will not fail us in our “trials” (2 Peter 2:9). Help us not to fail You! 2 Peter 2:10b-3:18 Help us, Lord, to “grow” in Christ – and to give “glory” to Christ (2 Peter 3:18). How can we live without Your grace? Why should we not give glory to You? Grace comes from You. Glory belongs to You. The grace is Yours. The glory is Yours. Teach us to give thanks for Your grace. Teach us to give You glory in all that we do.

The history of God’s people, under their various kings, is like a rollercoaster. There are high-points - “They would be the Lord’s people” (2 Kings 11:17). These high-points are often followed by low-points - “Joash did what the Lord considered right ...but the illegal places of worship weren’t torn down” (2 Kings 12:2-3). The reign of Jehoahaz was one of decline - “He did what the Lord considered evil” (2 Kings 13:2). The decline continued under the reign of Jehoash - “He did what the Lord considered evil” (2 Kings 13:11). Despite all the sins of the kings, there was still hope. This hope did not come from the kings. It came from the Lord: “The Lord was kind and merciful to the Israelites because of His promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob” (2 Kings 13:23).

Royalty and loyalty - The two things are different. Jehu was regarded as royalty, but he wasn’t fully loyal to the Lord. Jehu did some good things, with which the Lord was pleased - “Jehu got rid of Baal worship throughout Israel ... The Lord said to Jehu, ‘You did what I consider right’” (2 Kings 10:28,30). Jehu’s good actions were not the full story of his life. There was also much that was displeasing to the Lord - “Jehu did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam led Israel to commit - the worship of the golden calves that were at Bethel and Dan ... Jehu didn’t wholeheartedly obey the teachings of the Lord God of Israel” (2 Kings 10:29,31).

2 Kings 23:31-24:17 “The king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon all the men of valour … all of them strong and fit for war” (2 Kings 24:16) – A prisoner war is taken out of the battle. What a sad state of affairs it is, Lord,  when Satan sweeps in and takes control of our lives. Help us to resist Satan – in Your strength. You are stronger than Satan. Help us to remind him of this: “Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

2 Kings 24:18-25:30 “Finally, in the end, it came to the point that He cast them out of His presence” (2 Kings 24:20). Help us, Lord, to hear and heed Your Word of warning. We thank You, Lord, that You are “patient … not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). Help us never to presume upon Your patience – “Shall we go on sinning, so that grace may increase? God forbid!” (Romans 6:1-2).

2 Kings 23:4-30 “Hezekiah trusted in the Lord” (2 Kings  18:5). Josiah did “according to the law of Moses” (2 Kings 23:25). Help us, Lord, to trust and obey. Give us faith – faith that changes the way we live, faith that leads to obedience.

2 Kings 15:23-16:20 Lord, we’re being pulled in two different directions. You’re drawing us to Yourself. The world is pulling us away from You. Help us to confess our sin – we need to be better than we are. Help us to trust in Your power – You’re the only One who can make us better than we are.

2 Kings 14:17-15:22 Lord, we’re always making choices. Sometimes, we make good choices. Sometimes, we make bad choices. Life can be very confusing. We wonder, “What’s for the best? What are we to do?” Show us Your way. Lead us in Your way. Give us the strength that we  need to walk in Your way.

2 Kings 13:1-14:16 We compare ourselves to other people. We like to think that we’re doing pretty well. What, Lord, do You think about all of this? Are You impressed? You’re saying to us, “What about Jesus? How do you compare to Him? Help us, Lord, to look at Jesus – and see where we need to be changed. Help us to look to Him – and be changed by Him.

2 Kings 4:1-44 What are we to do when our situation seems hopeless? Help us, Lord, to do what Elisha did – He “prayed to the Lord” (2 Kings 4:33). Our prayer may not be eloquent – but it must come from the heart. Lord, look beyond our inadequate words. Look into our hearts. Hear the cry of our heart – and bring us out of hopelessness and into a new beginning with You, a new beginning filled with Your blessing.

2 Kings 9:1-37 Sometimes, Lord, it seems like You are far away from us. Why do we feel like this? It’s because we have wandered away from You. We’ve allowed something else to come between ourselves and You. Call us back to Yourself, back from the brink, back to a new beginning, back to the blessing that will grow stronger and stronger as we learn to trust You and say, from the heart, “The Lord is God. He is our God. He has blessed us, and we are glad.”

2 Kings 5:1-27 How, Lord, are we to receive Your blessing? Are we to “do some great thing”? Are we to prove ourselves worthy of Your blessing? No! Your Word says this: “Wash and be clean” (2 Kings 5:130. Our salvation isn’t something that we’ve paid for. It isn’t something that we’ve earned. We don’t come to You, saying, “Look at me. Look at my religion. Look at my morality.” We look away from ourselves to Jesus – and we hear Your Word of salvation: “The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

2 Kings 2:14-3:27 We think, Lord, about the future, and all we can say is this, “We don’t know what the future holds.” We turn to You. We ask You, “What does the future hold for us?” You give us Your answer to our question. It may not be the answer that we were looking for – but it is always the true answer, the best answer, the only answer. You say to us, “I know what the future holds.” Help us, Lord, to trust You. Help us to say more than, I know not what the future holds.” Help us to say something else – “I know who holds the future.”

‘Go to meet the man of God and inquire of the Lord through him’ (2 Kings 8:8). God’s servants, appointed by Him to serve the people in His Name, play a significant part in leading the people to a deeper knowledge of God. They bring the Word of God to the people. That is what they have been called to do. It is good to have faithful teaching from God’s Word. There needs also to be faithful hearing, reading and doing of God’s Word. God’s servants can take us so far – and no further. You can take a horse to the water, but you can’t make it drink! God’s servants say, ‘Here are ‘the wells of salvation’’. It is up to the people themselves to take the next step: ‘With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation’ (Isaiah 12:3). God’s Word is provided for you. It is delivered to you. What are you doing with it?

Reading about those who do what the Lord considers evil is not happy reading. Reading about God’s judgment upon such people is serious reading. It brings the challenge of God’s Word - “Be not deceived. God is not mocked. What a man sows, he shall also reap” (Galatians 6:7). This challenge is stated clearly in the words, “Sow a thought, reap an action. Sow an action, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a destiny.”

The ministry of Elisha was filled with the power of God. Elisha was “the prophet”, “the man of God” (2 Kings 5:3,8). Before we can speak and work for God, we must belong to Him. We must be the people of God before we can be prophets for God. The power of God changes us. We become “a new creation in Christ Jesus” (2 Corinthians 5:17). The power of God equips us for service - “You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you shall be My witnesses” (Acts 1:8).

2 Kings 8:1-29 Lord, help us to be faithful in hearing Your Word, reading Your Word, obeying Your Word and sharing Your Word.

2 Kings 11:1-12:21 Help us, Lord, to give ourselves to You. May there be less Grudge-Giving – “I have to”, less Duty-Giving – “I ought to”, and more Thanksgiving – “I want to.”

God’s judgment on Jezebel was awesome (2 Kings 9:30-37). Why does God’s Word speak to us so strongly of judgment? He is warning us. He is calling us to repent, to return to Him before it is too late, before our opportunity for repentance has gone. Make sure that you don’t reach the point of no return. ‘Seek the Lord while He may be found , call upon Him while He is near ’ (Isaiah 55:6). For you, this may be God’s time. The Lord may never be so ‘near’ again. You are in ‘the valley of decision’: ‘Today, when you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts’ (Joel 3:14; Hebrews 4:7). There is still time – to open your heart to Christ, to trust Him as your Saviour, to become a new creation in Him. Here is a prayer you can pray: ‘Restore us, O God; let Thy face shine, that we may be saved!’ (Psalm 80:3,7,19).

The power of God was upon Elisha. God was at work in mighty power. When we red about Elisha, we say, in our hearts, ‘This is not about Elisha. This is about God - God working through Elisha.’ We must always remember to give all the glory to the Lord. The praise does not belong to the servant. It belongs to the Lord. He alone is worthy of praise.

Near to the end of his life on earth, Elijah remained faithful to God. He stands up for God against “Baalzebub, the god of Ekron” (2 Kings 1:6,16). He spoke the Word that had been given to him by God (2 Kings 1:3-4). When Elijah was taken by God “to heaven in a windstorm” (2 Kings 2:11), the question was asked by Elisha, “Where is the Lord God of Elijah?” (2 Kings 2:14). The answer to this question is given in 2 Kings 2:15: “Elijah’s spirit rests on Elisha.” The names of the prophets change from one generation to the next. The Name of the Lord remains constant. It is in the Name of the Lord that God’s servants speak and act.

“Look to yourselves, that you may not lose what you have worked for, but may win a full reward” (2 John 8). Your work is at stake. Your glory is at stake. Help us, Lord, to keep on going. Help us not to give up. How dare we take it easy when You’re calling us to be earnest? Help us to be more committed to You. Your work will suffer, if we are half-hearted. Lord, help us to love You and serve You with our whole heart.

In our thinking about the Lord’s Return, it is very important that we do not forget that the decision between salvation and judgment is one which must be made here and now. The Bible speaks of the Day of the Lord’s Return as a Day of salvation for the Lord’s believing people. The Lord’s Return will also bring a Day of judgment for all who turn their backs on the Saviour. The Bible also speaks of another day of salvation, another day of judgment. That day is today. This is precisely what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 6:2 - “Now is the day of salvation.” Now is the time for making your decision for Christ. Now is the time for faith in the Saviour. Jesus underlines the importance of our present response to Him. He does this, in John 3:18, when He speaks of those who are already under judgment because of their unbelief: “he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the Name of the only Son of God.” The Lord awaits for our response now. May God he

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18).  These are tremendous words of faith. They lift our eyes above “our light and momentary troubles.” They set our eyes on the “eternal glory.” When we see our times of suffering in this eternal perspective, our hearts are encouraged in the Lord. Our suffering isn’t the last word. God’s eternal glory is – and we will share in His eternal glory – “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! … Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when He appears, we shall be like H

We have often heard these words spoken. Here, we are reading them in the Word of God. How often do we think about these words? What do they mean? These are life-changing words. Through ‘the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ’, we become ‘rich’ - ‘blessed in Christ with every spiritual blessing’ (2 Corinthians 8:9, Ephesians 1:3). ‘In love God has destined us to be His sons through Jesus Christ’ (Ephesians 1:5). How do these blessings become ours? How do we become God’s children? We hear the Word of truth, the Gospel of our salvation. We believe in Christ. We are sealed with the promised Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13). Such great blessing - ‘the Spirit is poured upon us from on high (Isaiah 32:15)!

Two men with the same name – Saul, the first king of Israel, and Saul of Tarsus, the persecutor of Christ and His servants. In both stories, we read of a new man. * In the case of Saul, the first king of Israel, David was the new man. Saul was rejected. He was replaced. The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king … So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed David in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came upon David in power. Samuel then went to Ramah” ( 1 Samuel 16:1, 13 ). * In the case of Saul of Tarsus, it was very different. Saul became the new man. He became Paul the apostle. He was saved by the Lord. His life was transformed by the power of Christ’s love. He became a new creation in Christ Jesus. He had this great testimony: “It is no lon

How do we react when things don’t seem to be going very well? We all need the encouragement of God’s Word: ‘Thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumph’ (2 Corinthians 2:14).

Here are some great words from Jim Elliot, an American missionary who died at the hands of Auca Indians in Ecuador in the 1950s – “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”  * "To gain what he cannot lose" - Eternal life has lasting value.  * "what he cannot keep" - The things of this world don’t have lasting value. After Jim Elliot and four other American missionaries were killed, there was great blessing among the Aucas.  * Think of these faithful martyrs. Think of the blessing which followed.  In 2 Corinthians 4:15, we have a great comment on the wonderful blessing which followed the killing of the American missionaries by the Aucas - “All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.” The American missionaries laid down their lives. The Aucas found eternal life. It was for their benefit. Grace reached more and more people.

In the work of ministry, we are often discouraged by the lack of response. May God help us to remember that “we have received this ministry by the mercy of God” (2 Corinthians 4:1). May He give us the wonderful privilege of seeing more people responding to the Word of God which, by the power of the Holy Spirit, “gives the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6).

2 Chronicles 5:2-6:42 Without Your blessing, Lord, our worship is empty. We need Your blessing. We pray for Your blessing. May “the glory of the Lord fill the House of God” (2 Chronicles 5:14). This is our prayer. We pray for the preachers. We pray for the people. May each and every one of us be blessed by You. May we be “clothed with Your salvation.” May we “rejoice in Your goodness” (2 Chronicles 6:41).

2 Chronicles 1:1-2:18 Lord, we need Your wisdom (2 Chronicles 1:10). We need Jesus – He is Your wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:30). Without Jesus, we’re fools. We may think that we’re wise – but we’re not. Jesus makes us wise. True wisdom comes from Him. When we build our lives on Jesus, we are truly wise (Matthew 7:24-27). Lord, give us Your wisdom – the wisdom that knows the most important thing: Jesus is our Saviour.

2 Chronicles 3:1-5:1 Lord, You call us to work for You, to “work in the Temple of the Lord” (2 Chronicles 4:11; 2 Chronicles 5:1). This is no ordinary work. It’s spiritual work. It is “most holy” (2 Chronicles 3:8,10; 2 Chronicles 4:22). Real work come for You emerges from true worship of You. Before we can be Your workers, we must be your worshippers. Teach us, Lord, to worship You. As we worship You, may we receive from You the strength that we need to work for You.

2 Chronicles 35:20-36:23   Lord, we've read good things about King Josiah (2 Chronicles 34:15,33) - but it wasn't all good: "He did not listen to the words of Neco from the mouth of God ... " (2 Chronicles 35:22-24). After Josiah's time, there was terrible spiritual decline (2 Chronicles 36:1-2 / 2 Kings 23:31-32; 2 Chronicles 36:,5,9,11-12). We think of today's world. We wonder, "Is there any hope for the future?" Help us to draw encouragement from this: "The Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus, king of Persia ... to build Him a house at Jerusalem" (2 Chronicles 36:22-23). - and help us to say to our neighbours, "Let us go to the House of the Lord" (Psalm 122:1). Help us, Lord, to keep on believing that the time of Your blessing may not be far away.

2 Chronicles 31:11-32:33 You call us, Lord, to seek You - and You also call us to serve You (2 Chronicles 31:20-21). Where does our seeking and serving come from? It comes from Your salvation. We read the words, "The Lord saved Hezekiah" ( 2 Chronicles 32::22) - and we think of our salvation. We rejoice in Your precious promise - "All the ends of the earth, turn to Me and be saved" (Isaiah 45:22). We rejoice in our gracious Saviour - Jesus Christ, "the Saviour of the world" (John 4:42).

2 Chronicles 30:1-31:10 You call us, Lord, to return to You. You promise to welcome us (2 Chronicles 30:9). Where does our returning come from? Where does our rejoicing come from? They both come from You. You put it into our hearts - to return to You (2 Chronicles 30:12). What joy there is for us when we return to You - "The good Lord pardons every one who sets his heart to seek God" (2 Chronicles 30:18-19).

2 Chronicles 7:12-22 The gathering together of God’s people - “I ... have chosen this place for Myself” (2 Chronicles 7:12). Note also 2 Chronicles 7:15-16 - “... this place... this temple.” The key verse is 2 Chronicles 7:14. Taking this verse together with Acts 1:12-14, we may say, ‘This is the kind of prayer that leads to Pentecost.’ What we have here is humility, prayer, longing for God and repentance. When we say, “Pray”, we must ask, ‘How are we to pray?’  * We are to pray with humility. Remember the parable of the Pharisee and the publican (Luke 18:9-14).  * We are to pray with longing for God. Prayer is more than just words. There is to be intensity and persistence. The parable of the persistent widow (Luke 18:1-8): She kept on praying until she received an answer. We are to “cry out to God day and night” (Luke 18:7).  * We are to pray with repentance. Our words are to be backed up by our life.   When God hears this kind of prayer, arising from our

“Give me wisdom and knowledge so that I may lead these people ... This great people of Yours” (2 Chronicles 1:10). Wisdom is not given to us for our own benefit, It is given to us for the benefit of others - so that we might lead them to the Lord. We are to follow in the footsteps of our Lord. He “came not to be served but to serve” (Mark 10:45). “I want to build the Temple for the Lord my God. I want to dedicate it to Him” (2 Chronicles 2:4). Everything that we do is to be done for God. Everything that we do is to be dedicated to Him. This is the lesson that we learn from Solomon and the building of the Temple. We are to do all things for the glory of God. He alone is worthy of our praise. We are not only to worship Him in the place of worship and at the time set aside for worship. We are to worship Him all of the time, wherever we are. We are to praise Him in His House. We are to continue to praise Him, as we go out from His House to the world. The building of the Temple -

2 Chronicles 10:1-11:23 Lord, we see division among Your people: "Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day" (2 Chronicles 10:19). You are not pleased. You say, "Do not go up to fight against your brothers" (2 Chronicles 11:4). This is not just ancient history. It's our problem. It's a big problem. We still need to hear the words of Jesus - "a house ... divided against itself cannot stand" (Mark 3:25). There are to be "no divisions" among us (1 Corinthians 1:10). We are "all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28). Lord, help us, in our praying and our living, to echo the prayer of Jesus: "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me" (John 17:21,23).

2 Chronicles 12:1-13:22  Lord, You're calling us to make our choice - What kind of life will we live? Will it be "He did evil because he had not set his heart on seeking the Lord" (2 Chronicles 12:14)? or Will it be "As for us, the Lord is our God and we have not forsaken Him" (2 Chronicles 13:10)? When, Lord, unbelief and disobedience are threatening to take over our lives, help us to hear Your Word of warning: "Do not fight against the Lord ... you will not succeed" - and help us to speak the words of faith: "God is with us; He is our Leader" (2 Chronicles 13:12).

2 Chronicles 14:1-16:14   Lord, we see so much of ourselves in Asa. He started well - "Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God" (2 Chronicles 14:2). He ended badly - "He did not rely on the Lord his God ... even in his disease he did not seek the Lord" (2 Chronicles 16:7-9,12). Help us, Lord, to hear and heed the words of Jesus: "No-one who puts his hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the Kingdom of God" (Luke 9:62); "He who endures to the end will be saved" (Mark 13:13). Help us to "go on" with You and for You (Hebrews 6:1).

2 Chronicles 17:1-18:34 Lord, we read of “the first ways of … David” (2 Chronicles 17:3). He had started off so well – “the Spirit of the Lord came upon David in power” (1 Samuel 16:13). Sadly, he took his eyes off You – and he fell away from You (2 Samuel 11:2-5). What about us, Lord? Have we “lost our first love” (Revelation 2:4)? You’re calling us back to Yourself. Help us to return to You – “Spirit of the living God, fall afresh on me. Break me, melt me, mould me, fill me.”

2 Chronicles 19:1-20:37 Lord, we see two sides of Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 19:2-3) – two sides of ourselves! There is the godly side – “O Lord … our eyes are upon You” (2 Chronicles 20:12). There is the sinful side – “Jehoshaphat … made an alliance with Ahaziah … who was guilty of wickedness” (2 Chronicles 20:35). Lord, You know our weakness. Help us to come to You, in our weakness. Help us to receive new strength, Your strength, the strength that we need to live a more godly life, a life that brings glory to You and blessing to us.

Proverbs 2:16-34 Lord, we love to hear Your promises of love. Sometimes, we need to hear Your words of warning. In Your warnings, we hear the voice of Your love. In Your love, You’re calling us back from a way that will do us great harm. You call us into a better way – the way of Your great salvation. Lord, when we are being pulled away from You, bring us back to Yourself. Speak to us with Your Word of warning, the Word that calls us back so that we can move forward with You and for You. When we don’t want to hear it – That’s when we most need to hear it. Speak to us, O Lord, and help us to listen. “How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” (Hebrews 2:3).

Proverbs 3:1-18 Lord, we want everything to go smoothly – but that’s not what You’ve promised us! Your way can seem like a long and winding road – but it’s better to be facing problems, as we walk with You on the pathway of holiness, than to be having an easy time of it because we’ve stopped standing up for You.

Proverbs 3:19-35 Lord, our faith is often put to the test. Soon, we become aware that our faith is very weak. When we start to feel that our faith is so weak, help us to remember something – Our God is always strong. With You, as our God, we go from strength to strength. It’s not our own strength. It’s Your strength.

Ezra 4:1-5:17   Sometimes, Lord, we're so busy, looking at the opposition that we fail to see the opportunity. Sometimes, the opposition can have some success - "the work on the House of God came to a standstill" (Ezra 4:24). Whenever Satan attacks Your work, You raise up Your servants to keep the work going: "Zerubbabel ... arose and began to rebuild the House of God in Jerusalem (Ezra 5:2). When our heads go down, You will lift them up - and Your work will go on.

Proverbs 4:1-9 Thank You, Lord, that You do not keep Your distance from us. In Your Son, Jesus, our Saviour, You have come to us. This is more than “From a distance, God is watching us.” From a distance, You have come to us. Help us to come to You. Help us to know that you are near to us.

Proverbs 5:15-23 We thank You, Lord, for the love of Jesus. There is no love like the love He has for each and every one of us. Before we ever thought of loving Him, He loved us. Before we were even born, He gave Himself, in death, for us. What a wonderful love! It’s the greatest love of all.

Proverbs 6:16-35 Lord, Your Word is our “lamp” and “light” (Proverbs 6:23; Psalm 119:105). Your Word shows us the ways we are to avoid – and it shows us the way we are to follow: Your way, the way of obedience and blessing. Help us, Lord, to watch how we live, to take care that we do not drift away from You, to keep on choosing Your way, the way that brings glory to You.

Proverbs 9:1-18 Lord, You come to us with bread and wine. You come to us in Jesus, our Saviour. You come to us in love. You show us how much You love us. There is no love like Your love for us. It’s the best love. It’s the greatest love. It’s love “so amazing.” It’s love “so divine.” Thank You, Lord, for Your wonderful love.

Proverbs 11:12-31 Lord, You’re calling us to win others for You. You’re calling us to share Your love with them. You’re calling us to bring Jesus to them. Help us, Lord, not to keep Your Good News to ourselves. Help us to pray, “Here I am, wholly available – as for me, I will serve the Lord” (Chris Bowater).

Proverbs 12:1-14 Lord, show us the way we are to go: “The root of the righteous stands firm” (Proverbs 12:12). – and the way we are not to go: “He who follows worthless pursuits has no sense” (Proverbs 12:11). Does it make any sense to follow “worthless pursuits” when we can be “filled with all the fullness of God”? You show us the most sensible way to live “Let Christ dwell on your hearts through faith” (Ephesians 3:17-21).

Proverbs 12:15-28 What harm can be done by “reckless words” (Proverbs 12:18)! Lord, teach us to take care how we speak. Help us to remember that we are Your witnesses. We have a testimony to maintain. Teach us that there is a better way than the way of “lying lips” (Proverbs 12:22). Help us, Lord, to bring “glory” to You, as we keep on confessing our faith: “Jesus Christ is Lord” (Philippians 2:11).

Proverbs 13:12-25 What, Lord, do we do with Your Word? How do we respond to Your Word? Do we respect Your Word? Do we despise Your Word? There’s a right way and a wrong way of hearing Your Word (Proverbs 13:13). Teach us, Lord, to turn from the wrong way, and to turn to the right way (Proverbs 29:1; Psalm 19:7-14).

Proverbs 14:1-19 “A perverse man will be filled with the fruit of his ways, and a good man with the fruit of his deeds” (Psalm 14:14). Lord, You speak to us about two kinds of fruit – good fruit and bad fruit. How are we to have good fruit in our lives? Help us, Lord, to throw away our bad fruit – “strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness … ” – and enjoy Your good fruit. We need Your Word (Psalm 1:1-3). We need Your Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). – “love, joy, peace … ” (Galatians 5:19-24).

Proverbs 13:1-11 “The light of the righteous rejoices” (Proverbs 13:9). We thank You, Lord, that Jesus is our Light. He’s “the Light of the world” (John 8:12). In Him, we rejoice (Romans 5:11 – “the blood Of Jesus, Your Son, cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). We thank You that, through Jesus, You have “called us out of darkness into Your marvellous light” (1 Peter 2:9). When, Lord, we’re going through hard times, help us to see the light at the end of the tunnel – “the salvation of our souls” (1 Peter 1:6-9).

Proverbs 17:1-12 What kind of people are we to be? What kind of life are we to live? Lord, You’re calling us to live a life of “love” (Proverbs 17:9). How, Lord, do we learn what love is? – We learn from You. You show us what love is – “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son … ” (John 3:16). In Jesus, we see perfect love – “The Son of God loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). The Holy Spirit fills our lives with Your love – “The fruit of the Spirit is love” (Galatians 5:22). Help us, Lord, to live a Godly, Christlike, Spirit-filled life – a life of love.

The Holy Spirit is the Breath of God. All Scripture is God-breathed. We experience the Breath of God upon our life when we listen attentively to the God-breathed Scriptures. Paul speaks, in 2 Timothy 3:15-17, of the   relationship between the Breath of God (the Holy Spirit) and the God-breathed Word (the Holy Scriptures) - 'the Holy Scriptures ... are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work'. 1) The Holy Spirit uses the Word of God to make us wise.     The wisdom which comes from the Spirit and the Word is a special kind of wisdom. It is not the wisdom of this world. It is the wisdom which is bound up with Christ, salvation and faith. Worldly wisdom places great value on intellectual attainment. It emphasizes the importance of getting on in the world. True spiritual