Saturday, June 14, 2008

SCRIPTURE READING: Genesis 15:9-14
9 GOD said, "Bring me a heifer, a goat, and a ram, each three years old, and a dove and a young pigeon."
10-12 He brought all these animals to him, split them down the middle, and laid the halves opposite each other. But he didn't split the birds. Vultures swooped down on the carcasses, but Abram scared them off. As the sun went down a deep sleep overcame Abram and then a sense of dread, dark and heavy.
13-16 GOD said to Abram, "Know this: your descendants will live as outsiders in a land not theirs; they'll be enslaved and beaten down for 400 years. Then I'll punish their slave masters; your offspring will march out of there loaded with plunder. But not you; you'll have a long and full life and die a good and peaceful death. Not until the fourth generation will your descendants return here; sin is still a thriving business among the Amorites." (The Message)

KEY VERSE: "I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions" (Gen. 15:14).

More than Enough


"Pastor, we didn't want to insult you by taking an offering. So we're giving you this nice briefcase." Those words from a somewhat disgruntled church leader left me speechless. It was Christmas. My family and I depended on that church's annual Christmas love offering to buy our family gifts. An empty briefcase wouldn't provide any presents for our kids.
I had failed to support that leader's plans for a political move on the district level of the church. He made it very clear that he was unhappy with me. The briefcase incident was step one in his strategy to punish me for failing to buy into his plans.
He obviously forgot that we were at that church under God's divine appointment. You see, one after another of the congregation came by the parsonage later that day with gifts. We heard over and over, "Pastor, we don't know why no love offering was taken. We've always had one." Then they gave us a gift. That Christmas was one of the best we ever experienced. By the way, our protagonist had some hardships and was ultimately reassigned to another state.
When we continue with Abram's story, we read that God did, indeed, bless him and his extended family with more than they could have imagined. And God also took care of their enemies.
-Gene Williams


SING TO THE LORD
Blow your wildest, then, O gale,
On my bark so small and frail.
By His grace I shall not fail,
For my anchor holds, my anchor holds.
"My Anchor Holds" by W. C. Martin


REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Developing Christian leaders in Ghana.


THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
God punishes those who would enslave His people, but blesses His people abundantly.


THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Song of Solomon 1-4

The Song—best of all songs—Solomon's song! The Woman
2-3 Kiss me—full on the mouth!
Yes! For your love is better than wine,
headier than your aromatic oils.
The syllables of your name murmur like a meadow brook.
No wonder everyone loves to say your name!
4 Take me away with you! Let's run off together!
An elopement with my King-Lover!
We'll celebrate, we'll sing,
we'll make great music.
Yes! For your love is better than vintage wine.
Everyone loves you—of course! And why not?
5-6 I am weathered but still elegant,
oh, dear sisters in Jerusalem,
Weather-darkened like Kedar desert tents,
time-softened like Solomon's Temple hangings.
Don't look down on me because I'm dark,
darkened by the sun's harsh rays.
My brothers ridiculed me and sent me to work in the fields.
They made me care for the face of the earth,
but I had no time to care for my own face.
7 Tell me where you're working
—I love you so much—
Tell me where you're tending your flocks,
where you let them rest at noontime.
Why should I be the one left out,
outside the orbit of your tender care?
The Man
8 If you can't find me, loveliest of all women,
it's all right. Stay with your flocks.
Lead your lambs to good pasture.
Stay with your shepherd neighbors.
9-11 You remind me of Pharaoh's
well-groomed and satiny mares.
Pendant earrings line the elegance of your cheeks;
strands of jewels illumine the curve of your throat.
I'm making jewelry for you, gold and silver jewelry
that will mark and accent your beauty.
The Woman
12-14 When my King-Lover lay down beside me,
my fragrance filled the room.
His head resting between my breasts—
the head of my lover was a sachet of sweet myrrh.
My beloved is a bouquet of wildflowers
picked just for me from the fields of Engedi.
The Man
15 Oh, my dear friend! You're so beautiful!
And your eyes so beautiful—like doves!
The Woman
16-17 And you, my dear lover—you're so handsome!
And the bed we share is like a forest glen.
We enjoy a canopy of cedars
enclosed by cypresses, fragrant and green.
1 I'm just a wildflower picked from the plains of Sharon, a lotus blossom from the valley pools.
The Man
2 A lotus blossoming in a swamp of weeds—
that's my dear friend among the girls in the village.
The Woman
3-4 As an apricot tree stands out in the forest,
my lover stands above the young men in town.
All I want is to sit in his shade,
to taste and savor his delicious love.
He took me home with him for a festive meal,
but his eyes feasted on me!
5-6 Oh! Give me something refreshing to eat—and quickly!
Apricots, raisins—anything. I'm about to faint with love!
His left hand cradles my head,
and his right arm encircles my waist!
7 Oh, let me warn you, sisters in Jerusalem,
by the gazelles, yes, by all the wild deer:
Don't excite love, don't stir it up,
until the time is ripe—and you're ready.
8-10 Look! Listen! There's my lover!
Do you see him coming?
Vaulting the mountains,
leaping the hills.
My lover is like a gazelle, graceful;
like a young stag, virile.
Look at him there, on tiptoe at the gate,
all ears, all eyes—ready!
My lover has arrived
and he's speaking to me!
The Man
10-14 Get up, my dear friend,
fair and beautiful lover—come to me!
Look around you: Winter is over;
the winter rains are over, gone!
Spring flowers are in blossom all over.
The whole world's a choir—and singing!
Spring warblers are filling the forest
with sweet arpeggios.
Lilacs are exuberantly purple and perfumed,
and cherry trees fragrant with blossoms.
Oh, get up, dear friend,
my fair and beautiful lover—come to me!
Come, my shy and modest dove—
leave your seclusion, come out in the open.
Let me see your face,
let me hear your voice.
For your voice is soothing
and your face is ravishing.
The Woman
15 Then you must protect me from the foxes,
foxes on the prowl,
Foxes who would like nothing better
than to get into our flowering garden.
16-17 My lover is mine, and I am his.
Nightly he strolls in our garden,
Delighting in the flowers
until dawn breathes its light and night slips away.
Turn to me, dear lover.
Come like a gazelle.
Leap like a wild stag
on delectable mountains!
1-4 Restless in bed and sleepless through the night, I longed for my lover.
I wanted him desperately. His absence was painful.
So I got up, went out and roved the city,
hunting through streets and down alleys.
I wanted my lover in the worst way!
I looked high and low, and didn't find him.
And then the night watchmen found me
as they patrolled the darkened city.
"Have you seen my dear lost love?" I asked.
No sooner had I left them than I found him,
found my dear lost love.
I threw my arms around him and held him tight,
wouldn't let him go until I had him home again,
safe at home beside the fire.
5 Oh, let me warn you, sisters in Jerusalem,
by the gazelles, yes, by all the wild deer:
Don't excite love, don't stir it up,
until the time is ripe—and you're ready.
6-10 What's this I see, approaching from the desert,
raising clouds of dust,
Filling the air with sweet smells
and pungent aromatics?
Look! It's Solomon's carriage,
carried and guarded by sixty soldiers,
sixty of Israel's finest,
All of them armed to the teeth,
trained for battle,
ready for anything, anytime.
King Solomon once had a carriage built
from fine-grained Lebanon cedar.
He had it framed with silver and roofed with gold.
The cushions were covered with a purple fabric,
the interior lined with tooled leather.
11 Come and look, sisters in Jerusalem.
Oh, sisters of Zion, don't miss this!
My King-Lover,
dressed and garlanded for his wedding,
his heart full, bursting with joy!
The Man
1-5 You're so beautiful, my darling, so beautiful, and your dove eyes are veiled
By your hair as it flows and shimmers,
like a flock of goats in the distance
streaming down a hillside in the sunshine.
Your smile is generous and full—
expressive and strong and clean.
Your lips are jewel red,
your mouth elegant and inviting,
your veiled cheeks soft and radiant.
The smooth, lithe lines of your neck
command notice—all heads turn in awe and admiration!
Your breasts are like fawns,
twins of a gazelle, grazing among the first spring flowers.
6-7 The sweet, fragrant curves of your body,
the soft, spiced contours of your flesh
Invite me, and I come. I stay
until dawn breathes its light and night slips away.
You're beautiful from head to toe, my dear love,
beautiful beyond compare, absolutely flawless.
8-15 Come with me from Lebanon, my bride.
Leave Lebanon behind, and come.
Leave your high mountain hideaway.
Abandon your wilderness seclusion,
Where you keep company with lions
and panthers guard your safety.
You've captured my heart, dear friend.
You looked at me, and I fell in love.
One look my way and I was hopelessly in love!
How beautiful your love, dear, dear friend—
far more pleasing than a fine, rare wine,
your fragrance more exotic than select spices.
The kisses of your lips are honey, my love,
every syllable you speak a delicacy to savor.
Your clothes smell like the wild outdoors,
the ozone scent of high mountains.
Dear lover and friend, you're a secret garden,
a private and pure fountain.
Body and soul, you are paradise,
a whole orchard of succulent fruits—
Ripe apricots and peaches,
oranges and pears;
Nut trees and cinnamon,
and all scented woods;
Mint and lavender,
and all herbs aromatic;
A garden fountain, sparkling and splashing,
fed by spring waters from the Lebanon mountains.
The Woman
16 Wake up, North Wind,
get moving, South Wind!
Breathe on my garden,
fill the air with spice fragrance.
Oh, let my lover enter his garden!
Yes, let him eat the fine, ripe fruits. (The Message)

All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
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