DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR FRIDAY JUNE 10:
WORD OF WISDOM
It is very difficult to open a closed mind.
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DAILY DEVOTION
Death is Not the Final Chapter
Death is not the final chapter in your story. John 11:25-26 assures us that
in death we will step into the arms of the One who declared "I am the
resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even though they die;
and whoever lives by believing in me will never die."
Winston Churchill believed this. The prime minister planned his own funeral.
Two buglers were positioned in the dome of St. Paul's Cathedral. At the
conclusion of the service the first played taps, the signal of a day
completed. The second played reveille, the song of a day begun. Death is no
pit but a passageway, a corner turn. Isaiah wrote "Your dead will live.all
you dead and buried, wake up! Sing! The earth is bursting with life, giving
birth to the dead" (Isaiah 26:19). So play on bugler.play on!
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DAILY BIBLE READING
Psalm 31-35Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
To the director: A song of David.
31 Lord, I come to you for protection.
Don't let me be disappointed.
You always do what is right, so save me.
2
Listen to me.
Come quickly and save me.
Be my Rock, my place of safety.
Be my fortress and protect me!
3
Yes, you are my Rock and my protection.
For the good of your name, lead me and guide me.
4
Save me from the traps my enemy has set.
You are my place of safety.
5
Lord, you are the God we can trust.
I put my life[a] in your hands.
Save me!
6
I hate those who worship false gods.
I trust only in the Lord.
7
Your kindness makes me so happy.
You have seen my suffering.
You know about the troubles I have.
8
You will not let my enemies take me.
You will free me from their traps.
9
Lord, I have many troubles, so be kind to me.
I have cried until my eyes hurt.
My throat and stomach are aching.
10
Because of my sin, my life is ending in grief;
my years are passing away in sighs of pain.
My life is ending in weakness.
My strength is draining away.
11
My enemies despise me,
and even my neighbors have turned away.
When my friends see me in the street,
they turn the other way.
They are afraid to be around me.
12
People want to forget me like someone already dead,
thrown away like a broken dish.
13
I hear them whispering about me.
They have turned against me and plan to kill me.
14
Lord, I trust in you.
You are my God.
15
My life is in your hands.
Save me from those who are persecuting me.
16
Please welcome and accept your servant.[b]
Be kind to me and save me.
17
Lord, I am praying to you.
Don't let me be disappointed.
The wicked are the ones who should be disappointed.
Let them go to the grave in silence.
18
Those evil people brag
and tell lies about those who do right.
They are so proud now,
but their lying lips will be silent.
19
Lord, you have hidden away many wonderful things for your followers.
You have done so many good things for those who trust in you.
You have blessed them so that all the world can see.
20
Others make plans to hurt them.
They say such bad things about them.
But you hide your people in your shelter and protect them.
21
Praise the Lord, because he showed me how wonderful his faithful love is
when the city was surrounded by enemies.
22
I was afraid and said, "I am in a place where he cannot see me."
But I prayed to you, and you heard my loud cries for help.
23
Love the Lord, all of you who are his loyal followers.
The Lord protects those who are loyal to him.
But he punishes those who brag about their own power.
He gives them all the punishment they deserve.
24
Be strong and brave,
all of you who are waiting for the Lord's help.
A maskil of David.
32 It is a great blessing
when people are forgiven for the wrongs they have done,
when their sins are erased.[c]
2
It is a great blessing
when the Lord says they are not guilty,
when they don't try to hide their sins.
3
Lord, I prayed to you again and again,
but I did not talk about my sins.
So I only became weaker and more miserable.
4
Every day you made life harder for me.
I became like a dry land in the hot summertime. Selah
5
But then I decided to confess my sins to the Lord.
I stopped hiding my guilt and told you about my sins.
And you forgave them all! Selah
6
That is why your loyal followers pray to you while there is still time.
Then when trouble rises like a flood, it will not reach them.
7
You are a hiding place for me.
You protect me from my troubles.
You surround me and protect me,
so I sing about the way you saved me. Selah
8
The Lord says, "I will teach you
and guide you in the way you should live.
I will watch over you and be your guide.
9
Don't be like a stupid horse or mule that will not come to you
unless you put a bit in its mouth and pull it with reins."
10
Many pains will come to the wicked,
but the Lord's faithful love will surround those who trust in him.
11
Good people, rejoice and be very happy in the Lord.
All you who want to do right, rejoice!
33 Rejoice in the Lord, good people!
It is only right for good people to praise him.
2
Play the lyre and praise the Lord.
Play the ten-stringed harp for him.
3
Sing a new song[d] to him.
Play it well and sing it loud!
4
The Lord's word is true,
and he is faithful in everything he does.
5
He loves goodness and justice.
The Lord's faithful love fills the earth.
6
The Lord spoke the command, and the world was made.
The breath from his mouth created everything in the heavens.
7
He gathered together the water of the sea.
He put the ocean in its place.
8
Everyone on earth should fear and respect the Lord.
All the people in the world should fear him,
9
because when he speaks, things happen.
And if he says, "Stop!"-then it stops.[e]
10
The Lord can ruin every decision the nations make.
He can spoil all their plans.
11
But the Lord's decisions are good forever.
His plans are good for generation after generation.
12
Great blessings belong to those who have the Lord as their God!
He chose them to be his own special people.
13
The Lord looked down from heaven
and saw all the people.
14
From his high throne he looked down
at all the people living on earth.
15
He created every person's mind,
and he knows what each one is doing.
16
A king is not saved by the power of his army.
A soldier does not survive by his own great strength.
17
Horses don't really bring victory in war.
Their strength cannot help you escape.
18
The Lord watches over his followers,
those who wait for him to show his faithful love.
19
He saves them from death.
He gives them strength when they are hungry.
20
So we will wait for the Lord.
He helps us and protects us.
21
He makes us happy.
We trust his holy name.
22
Lord, we worship you,
so show your great love for us.
[f] A song of David when he pretended to be crazy so that Abimelech would
send him away, which he did.
34 I will praise the Lord at all times.
I will never stop singing his praises.
2
Humble people, listen and be happy,
while I brag about the Lord.
3
Praise the Lord with me.
Let us honor his name.
4
I went to the Lord for help, and he listened.
He saved me from all that I fear.
5
If you look to him for help,
he will put a smile on your face.
You will have no need to be ashamed.
6
As a poor, helpless man I prayed to the Lord,
and he heard me.
He saved me from all my troubles.
7
The Lord's angel builds a camp around his followers,
and he protects them.
8
Give the Lord a chance to show you[g] how good he is.
Great blessings belong to those who depend on him!
9
The Lord's holy people should fear and respect him.
Those who respect him will always have what they need.
10
Even strong lions get weak and hungry,
but those who go to the Lord for help will have every good thing.
11
Children, come and listen to me;
I will teach you to respect the Lord.
12
Do you want to enjoy life?
Do you want to have many happy days?
13
Then avoid saying anything hurtful,
and never let a lie come out of your mouth.
14
Stop doing anything evil, and do good.
Look for peace, and do all you can to help people live peacefully.
15
The Lord watches over those who do what is right,
and he hears their prayers.
16
But the Lord is against those who do evil,
so they are forgotten soon after they die.
17
Pray to the Lord, and he will hear you.
He will save you from all your troubles.
18
The Lord is close to those who have suffered disappointment.
He saves those who are discouraged.
19
Good people might have many problems,
but the Lord will take them all away.
20
He will protect them completely.
Not one of their bones will be broken.
21
But troubles will kill the wicked.
The enemies of those who live right will all be punished.
22
The Lord saves his servants.
All who go to him for protection will escape punishment.
A song of David.
35 Lord, oppose those who oppose me.
Fight those who fight me.
2
Pick up your shields, large and small.
Get up and help me!
3
Take a spear and javelin
and fight those who are chasing me.
Tell me, "I will rescue you."
4
Some people are trying to kill me.
Disappoint them and make them ashamed.
Make them turn and run away.
They are planning to hurt me.
Defeat and embarrass them.
5
Make them like chaff blown by the wind.[h]
Let them be chased by the Lord's angel.
6
Make their road dark and slippery.
Let the Lord's angel chase them.
7
I did nothing wrong, but they tried to trap me.
For no reason at all, they dug a pit to catch me.
8
So let them fall into their own traps.
Let them stumble into their own nets.
Let some unknown danger catch them.
9
Then I will rejoice in the Lord.
I will be happy when he saves me.
10
With my whole self I will say,
"Lord, there is no one like you.
You protect the poor from those who are stronger.
You save the poor and helpless from those who try to rob them."
11
There are witnesses[i] trying to harm me.
They ask me questions that I know nothing about.
12
They pay me back evil for the good I have done.
They make me so very sad.
13
When they were sick, I was sad and wore sackcloth.
I went without eating to show my sorrow.
(May my prayers for them not be answered!)
14
I mourned for them as I would for a friend or a brother.
I bowed low with sadness, crying as I would for my own mother.
15
But when I had troubles, they laughed at me.
They were not really friends.
I was surrounded and attacked
by people I didn't even know.
16
They made fun of me, using the worst language.
They ground their teeth to show their anger.
17
My Lord, how long will you watch this happen?
Save my life from these people
who are attacking me like lions and trying to destroy me.
18
I will praise you in the great assembly.
I will praise you there among the crowds.
19
Don't let my lying enemies keep on laughing at me.
They have no reason to hate me.
Surely they will be punished for their secret plans.[j]
20
They have no friendly words for others,
but plan ways to hurt those who want to live in peace.
21
They are telling lies about me.
They say, "Aha! We know what you did!"
22
Lord, surely you can see what is happening.
So don't keep quiet.
Lord, don't leave me.
23
Wake up! Get up!
My God and my Lord, fight for me, and bring me justice.
24
Lord my God, judge me with your fairness.
Don't let those people laugh at me.
25
Don't let them think, "Aha! We got what we wanted!"
Don't let them say, "We destroyed him!"
26
Let my enemies be ashamed and embarrassed-
all those who were happy about my troubles.
Proud of themselves, they treated me as worthless.
So let them be covered with shame and disgrace.
27
To those who want the best for me,
I wish them joy and happiness.
May they always say, "Praise the Lord,
who wants what is best for his servant."
28
So, Lord, I will tell people how good you are.
I will praise you all day long.
Footnotes:
a.Psalm 31:5 life Literally, "spirit."
b.Psalm 31:16 Please . servant Literally, "Let your face shine on your
servant."
c.Psalm 32:1 erased Or "covered over" or "atoned."
d.Psalm 33:3 new song Whenever God did a new and wonderful thing for his
people, they would write a new song about it.
e.Psalm 33:9 And if . stops Or "He gives the command, and it stands!" The
word "stand" can mean "stand forever" or "stop."
f.Psalm 34:1 Psalm 34 In Hebrew, each verse in this psalm begins with the
next letter of the alphabet.
g.Psalm 34:8 Give . show you Literally, "Taste and see."
h.Psalm 35:5 wind This may be a wordplay, because the Hebrew word also means
"spirit."
i.Psalm 35:11 witnesses People who tell what they have seen or heard. Here,
these people were probably telling lies.
j.Psalm 35:19 Surely . plans Literally, "Will the people who hate me freely
wink their eyes?"
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
Copyright C 2006 by Bible League International
