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DAILY READINGS: Deut. 4; Eccl. 5-6; Luke 7:30-50

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done
in earth, as it is in heaven. Matt hew 6:9-10

The way the Lord’s prayer is translated in English suggests that
“as it is in heaven” applies only to “Thy will be done”. I suggest it
should be understood that it applies to all three phrases. Hallowed
be Thy Name, on earth as it is in heaven. Thy kingdom come, on
earth as it is in heaven. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
All three of these aspects are true of heaven. We ought to pray that
this will be realized also on earth. —David M. McCulloch

At the blessed hour of prayer, trusting Him we believe,
That the blessings we’re needing, we’ll surely receive. —Fanny J. Crosby

DAILY READINGS: Deut. 3; Eccl. 3:16 to 4:16; Luke 7:1-29

God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children
of Israel, The LORD God of your fathers…hath sent me unto
you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all
generations. Exodus 3:15

A memorial is a monument, keeping in memory a past event or person.
As we travel life’s journey, we meet with varied experiences.
Some are memorable, some are bitt er and some impact you to such
an extent that you are no longer what you were before. The binding
theme to all of these events is the unfailing love and grace of our Lord
in every circumstance. Spare a few moments today and consider how
God has played a part in them and worship Him! —K. C. Ung

Thus far the Lord hath led me on, thus far His power prolongs my days,
And every evening shall make known, some fresh memorial of His grace.—I. W.

DAILY READINGS: Deut. 2; Eccl. 2:12 to 3:15; Luke 6:20-49

That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein
thou hast been instructed. Luke 1:4

Luke, the physician, gives us our Lord’s “progress report”. He is
laid in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes. He is in the temple
in Simeon’s arms, and at twelve, sitt ing with the doctors answering
their questions. At about thirty, He is in the wilderness rebuking the
devil, then in the synagogue with the Book in His hand. At thirtythree
He is in the upper room, then the garden, then before Pilate
and Herod, and then nailed to the tree. Resurrected He is at the
seashore, then at Bethany, and then in heaven. Today, He is in my
heart! —Robert E. Surgenor

O Lord, when we the path retrace, which Thou on earth hast trod,
To man Thy wondrous love and grace, Thy faithfulness to God. —J. G. Deck

DAILY READINGS: Deut. 1; Eccl. 1 to 2:11; Luke 6:1-19

And it came to pass, that for a whole year they assembled themselves
with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples
were called Christians fi rst in Antioch. Acts 11:25-26

Christians form, individually and collectively, the body of Christ
which is His church (1 Cor. 12:27; Col. 1:18). At Antioch in the fi rst
century, there did not exist any other named Christian group. How
sad that so many divisions have come since then. Yet the truth still
remains, the church which is His body, is comprised of born again
believers alone. Do you belong? —Duncan Maxwell

The Church’s one Foundation, is Jesus Christ her Lord;
She is His new creation, by water and the word:
From heaven He came and sought her, to be His holy bride;
With His own blood He bought her, and for her life He died. —S. J. Stone

DAILY READINGS: Numbers 35:9 to 36:13; Proverbs 31; Luke 5:17-39

Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise;
when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me.
Micah 7:8

It is inevitably the lot of the child of God to at least occasionally sit
in darkness. It is not easy to do. It suggests a helpless acceptance of
hostile circumstances which are not easy to change. However, it is
wonderful to know the Lord in the darkness. Because of that, we
do not run about in darkness but sit patiently and wait on Him. His
presence will comfort and assure and will be a light to us. Initially,
He brought us from the darkness of sin into the glorious light of
the gospel and He is able even now to bring us from the darkest
circumstances of life into the light and joy of His presence in our
hearts. —Roy Hill

He hath spoken in the darkness, in the silence of thy grief,
Sympathy so deep and tender, for thy heart’s relief. —F. H. Havergal

DAILY READINGS: Numbers 34 to 35:8; Proverbs 30; Luke 5:1-16

They read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the
sense, and caused them to understand the reading. Nehemiah 8:8

Ezra read the Word of God for six hours before making any comments,
and then he simply “gave the sense” of what he had read.
The result? A major revival. He realised that the Word of God is
far more important than all the words which men can add. Fellow
preacher, do we clearly read the Word before we add our own comments?
Let us not allow homiletic outlines or our own eloquence
obscure the written Word of God and its power. —David Croudace

Undimmed by time, the Word is still revealing,
To sinful men, Thy justice and Thy grace;
And questing hearts that long for peace and healing,
See Thy compassion in the Saviour’s face. —S. E. Taylor

DAILY READINGS: Numbers 33; Proverbs 29; Luke 4:16-44

He said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel
to every creature. Mark 16:15
For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity
is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the
gospel! 1 Corinthians 9:16

O that the compulsion of this commission would grip our every
heart, especially as we see the “day of salvation” drawing to a close.
Let’s preach the gospel however and wherever we can. Let’s preach
it in the market places, in the streets and lanes, the highways and
byways, our assembly buildings, among our friends, colleagues and
neighbours. Preach the gospel we must. —W. H. Burnett

Strength for thy labour the Lord will provide,
Tell the poor wanderer, a Saviour has died. —Fanny J. Crosby

DAILY READINGS: Numbers 32; Proverbs 28; Luke 4:1-15

So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts
unto wisdom. Psalms 90:12

Many have come to the end of their life and been willing to off er everything
they own for a few more moments of time. Of course it is impossible.
Time is a precious gift from God. We learn from this prayer
that Moses knew the value of this priceless commodity. Let both saint
and sinner take warning and learn that this life is no more than a
passing vapour, and only what’s done in light of eternity will last.
—E. MacLelland

Time is earnest, passing by;
Death is earnest, drawing nigh;
Sinner, wilt thou trifl ing be?
Time and death appeal to thee. —James Montgomery

DAILY READINGS: Numbers 30-31; Proverbs 26:13 to 27:27; Luke 3

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any
man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 1 Jn. 2:15

John in his old age is warning the children of God to guard their affection
for God. The word here translated world is “kosmos”. Here
it might be translated as “culture,” the world system of thought and
values. Beware of being infatuated with a culture which is dominated
and orchestrated by Satan. Along with this comes materialism, the
love of things, which can capture the heart. Remember, you will leave
all of this behind one day. Love God and heavenly things. Set your
mind and heart on things above, eternal things. —Donald Norbie

Lord crucified, O mark Thy holy cross on motive, preference, all fond desires;
On that which self in any form inspires, set Thou that sign of loss.
—Amy Carmicael

DAILY READINGS: Numbers 29; Proverbs 25 to 26:12; Luke 2:22-52

Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son,
and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted
is, God with us. Matthew 1:23

This is the name that summarizes so much of the Holy Scriptures.
Emmanuel, God with us. It has always been His heart’s desire to be
with us. To accomplish this He became the Saviour—God for us.
The end result of His salvation went beyond God with us—it is God
in us. And He is not only the Saviour, but the coming Sovereign of
the universe and we will be with Him then too. Oh to honour Him
and have Him central in our lives, so that each day will be one of
worship and wonder. —Les Rainey

Emmanuel, Emmanuel, wonderful, counselor, Lord of life, Lord of all;
He is the Prince of peace, mighty God, holy One, Emmanuel, Emmanuel.
—M.W.S.