Wednesday prayer & verses (27 05 2009)

Thought for the day

A duck walked into a feed store and asked the owner, "Do you have any duck food?"

The proprietor replied, "No, we don't have any duck food."

The next day the duck walked into the same feed store and asked the owner, "Do you have any duck food?"

The feed store owner was an ill-mannered, impatient man. He yelled at the duck, "I told you yesterday! We don't have any duck food. Now get out of here and don't come back or I'll nail your webbed feet to the floor!"

Again, on the next day, the duck walked into the same feed store. This time he asked the store owner, "Do you have any nails?"

"Nope. We don't have nails.""Then do you have any duck food?"

I suppose we've all made threats from time to time that we never intended to carry out. Those of us who are parents find that our children catch on very quickly to whether or not we intend to carry through on the promises and threats we make to them.

As Christians, we want to be known as a people of our word. Jesus stressed how important that is. We shouldn't have to play word games like, "Well, if I say it like this, then I mean what I say, otherwise I don't." We need to develop a reputation as a people of our word.

May the prayer of David be our prayer this day:"Set a guard, O LORD, over my mouth; Keep watch over the door of my lips." (Psalm 141:3)

Verses

1 John 5:4

Those who are in spiritual union with God resist the power of the evil world, and the inspiring motive in their successful conflict with sin is their faith.

Mark 11:23

"For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be removed and be cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will come to pass, he will have whatever he says.

Hebrews 11:11

By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised.

2 Corinthians 9:6

But [although I am not pressing you to give] this [is true] -- he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly, and he who sows in a beneficent, generous spirit, with a view to the blessing of the recipient, shall also reap blessings given in a beneficent, generous manner.

Prayer
Father, we are confronted with deception on many fronts every day, so much so, that we can be deceived without even realizing it. Would You help us to watch out and be on our guard so that we are not deceived by man’s words, no matter how convincing they are, how charming their personality, or how cunning their craft. Help us not to fall for Satan’s deceptive tactics that have brought down believers throughout the church age. We seek You for strength and discipline. We search the Scriptures for discernment and the true revelation of who Jesus is; the Son of the Living God. It is in His name that we pray, Amen.