April 29th- could we aspire to a faith strong enough to gain us a place in a history text, even if it be a nameless part of a group?

1 Chronicles 5: 18The sons of Reuben and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh, consisting of valiant men, men who bore shield and sword and shot with bow and were skillful in battle, were 44,760, who went to war. 19They made war against the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish and Nodab. 20They were helped against them, and the Hagrites and all who were with them were given into their hand; for they…

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April 28th- the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided,

1 Chronicles 1: 19Two sons were born to Eber, the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days the earth was divided, and his brother’s name was Joktan. Most of our reading today consists of long genealogical lists. Looking for a nugget of significance, we find something similar to the very brief “Prayer of Jabez” passage that has spawned a series of books and study materials. Why would this brief…

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April 27th-How would our families respond if we, as men, took the same steps as Josiah?

2 Kings 23:1Then the king sent, and they gathered to him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem. 2The king went up to the house of the LORD and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests and the prophets and all the people, both small and great; and he read in their hearing all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the…

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April 25th-Hezekiah was known as no other one before or since

2 Kings 18: 5He trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel; so that after him there was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among those who were before him. 6For he clung to the LORD; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses. Hezekiah was known as no other one before or since; his faith and lifestyle were exemplary. Who among us…

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April 24th- Throughout history, the mixture of faith and power has been disastrous.

2 Kings 17: 7Now this came about because the sons of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who had brought them up from the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and they had feared other gods 8and walked in the customs of the nations whom the LORD had driven out before the sons of Israel, and in the customs of the kings of Israel which they had…

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April 23rd-Jehoash took seriously the need to restore and repair the temple

2 Kings 12: 4Then the Jehoash said to the priests, “All the money of the sacred things which is brought into the house of the LORD, in current money, both the money of each man’s assessment and all the money which any man’s heart prompts him to bring into the house of the LORD, 5let the priests take it for themselves, each from his acquaintance; and they shall repair the damages of the house…

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April 21st- If we really look back on our lives, we, too can see where the Lord has worked even while we were not aware at the time.

2Kings:1Now Elisha spoke to the woman whose son he had restored to life, saying, “Arise and go with your household, and sojourn wherever you can sojourn; for the LORD has called for a famine, and it will even come on the land for seven years.” 2So the woman arose and did according to the word of the man of God, and she went with her household and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven…

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April 20th-This is a situation in which there was simply too much credit extended and the loss of her husband precipitated a crisis.

2 Kings 4:1Now a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the LORD; and the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.” While the usual point in this and the following verses comes from the blessing the woman receives when she pours out oil into vessel after vessel to regain…

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April 19th- How deeply rooted is this, our human nature, that we find it hard to approach Him, to seek Him diligently

2 Kings 3: 9So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom; and they made a circuit of seven days’ journey, and there was no water for the army or for the cattle that followed them. 10Then the king of Israel said, “Alas! For the LORD has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.” 11But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not a prophet of the LORD here, that we…

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April 18th- he would not join the other prophets to please the king, and, in so doing, perpetuate a lie.

1 Kings 22: 13Then the messenger who went to summon Micaiah spoke to him saying, “Behold now, the words of the prophets are uniformly favorable to the king. Please let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably.” 14But Micaiah said, “As the LORD lives, what the LORD says to me, that I shall speak.” Micaiah, a prophet, would not go along with the others. He would not join the…

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April 17th-We too can often misconstrue the Lord’s plan by allowing our emotions to cloud the issue.

1 Kings 17: 17Now it came about after these things that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his sickness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18So she said to Elijah, “What do I have to do with you, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my iniquity to remembrance and to put my son to death!” As we see in the following verses, Elijah will show the…

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April 16th-What is it that consistently interferes with YOUR relationship with the Lord?

1 Kings 16: 25Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD, and acted more wickedly than all who were before him. 26For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and in his sins which he made Israel sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel with their idols. No doubt, with family being so important, especially patriarchs, the men of Israel surely had heard stories and scriptures regarding the…

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April 15th-Solomon is challenged by the Lord repeatedly through adversaries and shows his extraordinary wisdom.

1 Kings 11: 14Then the LORD raised up an adversary to Solomon……28Now the man Jeroboam was a valiant warrior, and when Solomon saw that the young man was industrious, he appointed him over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph. Solomon is repeatedly challenged by the Lord through adversaries and shows his extraordinary wisdom. In this particular situation, Solomon recognized the leadership…

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April 14th-How quick are we to offer thanksgiving and praise and to give credit where credit is due?

1 Kings 8:22Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the assembly of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven. 23He said, “O LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart, 24who have kept with Your servant, my father…

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April 13th- Solomon held true to David’s desire to honor the Lord.

1 Kings 7: 15He fashioned the two pillars of bronze; eighteen cubits was the height of one pillar, and a line of twelve cubits measured the circumference of both…..19The capitals which were on the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily design, four cubits. 20There were capitals on the two pillars, even above and close to the rounded projection which was beside the network; and the…

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April 12th-while we consider understanding a function of the brain, he wants it to reflect his heart

1 Kings 3: 5In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream at night; and God said, “Ask what you wish me to give you.” 6Then Solomon said, “You have shown great lovingkindness to Your servant David my father, according as he walked before You in truth and righteousness and uprightness of heart toward You; and You have reserved for him this great lovingkindness, that You have given him a son to…

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April 11th-Solomon, who is purported to be the wisest man who ever lived, took his primary instruction, his father’s last words, which were simply, “trust and obey”

1 Kings 2: 1As David’s time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son, saying, 2“I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong, therefore, and show yourself a man. 3“Keep the charge of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and…

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