JULY 8 & 9, 2023 – A Sacred Desire

 July 8 & 9, 2023
 July 8 – Daily Reading – Ezra 1-3 / Acts 10:23-48
 July 9 – NO READING

 

 GOD’S WORD:

Ezra 3:2 Then stood up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren, and builded the altar of the God of Israel, to offer burnt offerings thereon, as it is written in the law of Moses the man of God.

 

 GETTING INTO GOD’S WORD:

        I can tell you as someone who travels from home for ministry, it is sure good to lay my head on my pillow in my home again. Others treat me with wonderfully, with Christian love and kindness. Their hospitality is grand. Yet there is something wonderful about being home. My journeys are normally about two weeks or less. I call home and talk with my wife almost daily. I send pictures and receive them from her while I am gone. Yet, I still want to come home when I am done. There is also my home church family. I love to preach and sing at other churches. Yet, the people from my home church hold a very special place in my heart that others cannot fill.

 

        The children of Israel, both Northern Israel and Southern Judah, have been in exile for many years. No phone calls home, no pictures from the old homestead. Also, there is the fact that there is really nothing back home, to go home to. Many of the homes had been destroyed and the center of worship, their temple, was demolished. However, one day, God moved on the heart of a lost king, King Cyrus, to send many of them back home to rebuild a temple for the Lord. When they got back, before they began to construct this temple, they had a sacred desire to fulfill first. They knew it was important to build an altar first and seek God’s will in the building. Forsaking God is what caused their exile. They sure did not want to make that mistake again. 

 

 GETTING GOD’S WORD INTO ME:

        We often have good ideas for ministries. Some of the ideas are really great. Yet the best laid plans without God and His blessing, is like putting the cart before the horse. Prayer is the key to all spiritual blessings.

 

What is the ratio of time spent in prayer and that spent in planning?

 

THE WEEK IN REVIEW:

        We should be A Sacrifice Delivered to God with our lives. (Rom. 12:1) Yet man often fails as we’ve seen in:

 

● A Sad Departure
● A Spiritual Duty
● All Suddenly Done
● A Storeroom Dilemma
● A Serious Declaration
● A Sacred Desire

      Knowing the sinfulness of man, God sent His Son, Jesus, to be A Sacrifice Delivered once and for all, for all who will put their faith and trust in Him. Amen!

       Enjoy today with your church and hear what God has prepared in the heart of His man for you this week.

   See you tomorrow.  

 

 SUNDAYS:

       Today we suggest you read and study whatever the Lord has laid on your Pastors heart. Whatever scripture he uses for today’s messages were given to him by God for your specific needs.

July 10, 2023	Ezra 4-7	Acts 11
July 11, 2023	Ezra 8-10	Acts 12
July 12, 2023	Neh. 1-3	Acts 13:1-28
July 13, 2023	Neh. 4-6	Acts 13:29-52
July 14, 2023	Neh. 7-8	Acts 14
July 15, 2023	Neh. 9-10	Acts 15:1-27
July 16, 2023	No Passages Assigned

A Sacrifice Delivered