DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR FRIDAY AUGUST 14:
WORD OF WISDOM
Whoever decided a Liquor Store is more essential than a Hair Salon is
obviously a bald-headed alcoholic.
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DAILY DEVOTION
A Barrier Breaker
"I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not
of the world any more than I am of the world..."
(John 17:14, NIV)
The Scripture speaks of how we are in the world, but we are not of the
world. You may be in a limited environment, but you don't have to be of it.
Don't let that environment get in you. If you see struggle, lack, and
poverty long enough, your mind can become conditioned to thinking, This is
who I am. I'll never have enough. No, that's where you are, that's not who
you are. That may be what's been normal. The good news is, you're a barrier
breaker.
Some people try to put you in a box. They'll tell you such things as,
"You'll never afford a nice house, never get well, never meet the right
person." Because their thinking is limited, they'll try to put their
limitations on you. You have to put your foot down and say, "I refuse to be
mediocre because people around me are mediocre. I am a barrier breaker. I'm
going to set a new standard."
A Prayer for Today
Father, thank You that You didn't create me to be average or to live a
mediocre life. Thank You that You've given me the power, the favor, and the
talent to break out and go further than the limitations around me. I believe
that I am a barrier breaker, and I will set a new standard. In Jesus' Name,
Amen.
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DAILY BIBLE READING
Jeremiah 26-29 New King James Version (NKJV)
Jeremiah Saved from Death
26 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of
Judah, this word came from the Lord, saying, 2 "Thus says the Lord: 'Stand
in the court of the Lord's house, and speak to all the cities of Judah,
which come to worship in the Lord's house, all the words that I command you
to speak to them. Do not diminish a word. 3 Perhaps everyone will listen and
turn from his evil way, that I may relent concerning the calamity which I
purpose to bring on them because of the evil of their doings.' 4 And you
shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord: "If you will not listen to Me, to
walk in My law which I have set before you, 5 to heed the words of My
servants the prophets whom I sent to you, both rising up early and sending
them (but you have not heeded), 6 then I will make this house like Shiloh,
and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth." ' "
7 So the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking
these words in the house of the Lord. 8 Now it happened, when Jeremiah had
made an end of speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all
the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him,
saying, "You will surely die! 9 Why have you prophesied in the name of the
Lord, saying, 'This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be
desolate, without an inhabitant'?" And all the people were gathered against
Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.
10 When the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the
king's house to the house of the Lord and sat down in the entry of the New
Gate of the Lord's house. 11 And the priests and the prophets spoke to the
princes and all the people, saying, [a]"This man deserves to die! For he has
prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your ears."
12 Then Jeremiah spoke to all the princes and all the people, saying: "The
Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city with all
the words that you have heard. 13 Now therefore, amend your ways and your
doings, and obey the voice of the Lord your God; then the Lord will relent
concerning the doom that He has pronounced against you. 14 As for me, here I
am, in your hand; do with me as seems good and [b]proper to you. 15 But know
for certain that if you put me to death, you will surely bring innocent
blood on yourselves, on this city, and on its inhabitants; for truly the
Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing."
16 So the princes and all the people said to the priests and the prophets,
"This man does not deserve to die. For he has spoken to us in the name of
the Lord our God."
17 Then certain of the elders of the land rose up and spoke to all the
assembly of the people, saying: 18 "Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the
days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and spoke to all the people of Judah,
saying, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts:
"Zion shall be plowed like a field,
Jerusalem shall become heaps of ruins,
And the mountain of the [c]temple
Like the [d]bare hills of the forest." '
19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah ever put him to death? Did he
not fear the Lord and seek the Lord's favor? And the Lord relented
concerning the doom which He had pronounced against them. But we are doing
great evil against ourselves."
20 Now there was also a man who prophesied in the name of the Lord, Urijah
the son of Shemaiah of Kirjath Jearim, who prophesied against this city and
against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah. 21 And when
Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty men and all the princes, heard his
words, the king sought to put him to death; but when Urijah heard it, he was
afraid and fled, and went to Egypt. 22 Then Jehoiakim the king sent men to
Egypt: Elnathan the son of Achbor, and other men who went with him to Egypt.
23 And they brought Urijah from Egypt and brought him to Jehoiakim the king,
who killed him with the sword and cast his dead body into the graves of the
[e]common people.
24 Nevertheless the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, so
that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to
death.
Symbol of the Bonds and Yokes
27 In[f] the beginning of the reign of [g]Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king
of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, 2 "Thus says the
Lord to me: 'Make for yourselves bonds and yokes, and put them on your neck,
3 and send them to the king of Edom, the king of Moab, the king of the
Ammonites, the king of Tyre, and the king of Sidon, by the hand of the
messengers who come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah. 4 And command
them to say to their masters, "Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of
Israel-thus you shall say to your masters: 5 'I have made the earth, the man
and the beast that are on the ground, by My great power and by My
outstretched arm, and have given it to whom it seemed proper to Me. 6 And
now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of
Babylon, My servant; and the beasts of the field I have also given him to
serve him. 7 So all nations shall serve him and his son and his son's son,
until the time of his land comes; and then many nations and great kings
shall make him serve them. 8 And it shall be, that the nation and kingdom
which will not serve Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and which will not
put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation I will
punish,' says the Lord, 'with the sword, the famine, and the pestilence,
until I have consumed them by his hand. 9 Therefore do not listen to your
prophets, your diviners, your [h]dreamers, your soothsayers, or your
sorcerers, who speak to you, saying, "You shall not serve the king of
Babylon." 10 For they prophesy a lie to you, to remove you far from your
land; and I will drive you out, and you will perish. 11 But the nations that
bring their necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I
will let them remain in their own land,' says the Lord, 'and they shall till
it and dwell in it.' " ' "
12 I also spoke to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words,
saying, "Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve
him and his people, and live! 13 Why will you die, you and your people, by
the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the Lord has spoken
against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? 14 Therefore do
not listen to the words of the prophets who speak to you, saying, 'You shall
not serve the king of Babylon,' for they prophesy a lie to you; 15 for I
have not sent them," says the Lord, "yet they prophesy a lie in My name,
that I may drive you out, and that you may perish, you and the prophets who
prophesy to you."
16 Also I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying, "Thus says
the Lord: 'Do not listen to the words of your prophets who prophesy to you,
saying, "Behold, the vessels of the Lord's house will now shortly be brought
back from Babylon"; for they prophesy a lie to you. 17 Do not listen to
them; serve the king of Babylon, and live! Why should this city be laid
waste? 18 But if they are prophets, and if the word of the Lord is with
them, let them now make intercession to the Lord of hosts, that the vessels
which are left in the house of the Lord, in the house of the king of Judah,
and at Jerusalem, do not go to Babylon.'
19 "For thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the pillars, concerning the
Sea, concerning the carts, and concerning the remainder of the vessels that
remain in this city, 20 which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take,
when he carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah,
from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem- 21
yes, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels
that remain in the house of the Lord, and in the house of the king of Judah
and of Jerusalem: 22 'They shall be carried to Babylon, and there they shall
be until the day that I visit them,' says the Lord. 'Then I will bring them
up and restore them to this place.' "
Hananiah's Falsehood and Doom
28 And it happened in the same year, at the beginning of the reign of
Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year and in the fifth month, that
Hananiah the son of Azur the prophet, who was from Gibeon, spoke to me in
the house of the Lord in the presence of the priests and of all the people,
saying, 2 "Thus speaks the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: 'I have
broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. 3 Within two full years I will bring
back to this place all the vessels of the Lord's house, that Nebuchadnezzar
king of Babylon took away from this place and carried to Babylon. 4 And I
will bring back to this place [i]Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of
Judah, with all the captives of Judah who went to Babylon,' says the Lord,
'for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.' "
5 Then the prophet Jeremiah spoke to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of
the priests and in the presence of all the people who stood in the house of
the Lord, 6 and the prophet Jeremiah said, "Amen! The Lord do so; the Lord
perform your words which you have prophesied, to bring back the vessels of
the Lord's house and all who were carried away captive, from Babylon to this
place. 7 Nevertheless hear now this word that I speak in your hearing and in
the hearing of all the people: 8 The prophets who have been before me and
before you of old prophesied against many countries and great kingdoms-of
war and disaster and pestilence. 9 As for the prophet who prophesies of
peace, when the word of the prophet comes to pass, the prophet will be known
as one whom the Lord has truly sent."
10 Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke off the prophet Jeremiah's neck
and broke it. 11 And Hananiah spoke in the presence of all the people,
saying, "Thus says the Lord: 'Even so I will break the yoke of
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all nations within the space
of two full years.' " And the prophet Jeremiah went his way.
12 Now the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, after Hananiah the prophet had
broken the yoke from the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying, 13 "Go and
tell Hananiah, saying, 'Thus says the Lord: "You have broken the yokes of
wood, but you have made in their place yokes of iron." 14 For thus says the
Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: "I have put a yoke of iron on the neck of
all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and
they shall serve him. I have given him the beasts of the field also." ' "
15 Then the prophet Jeremiah said to Hananiah the prophet, "Hear now,
Hananiah, the Lord has not sent you, but you make this people trust in a
lie. 16 Therefore thus says the Lord: 'Behold, I will cast you from the face
of the earth. This year you shall die, because you have taught rebellion
against the Lord.' "
17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.
Jeremiah's Letter to the Captives
29 Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from
Jerusalem to the remainder of the elders who were carried away captive-to
the priests, the prophets, and all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had
carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2 (This happened after
Jeconiah[j] the king, the queen mother, the [k]eunuchs, the princes of Judah
and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the smiths had departed from Jerusalem.) 3
The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah
the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon, to
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, saying,
4 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who were carried
away captive, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem to
Babylon:
5 Build houses and dwell in them; plant gardens and eat their fruit. 6 Take
wives and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons and give
your daughters to husbands, so that they may bear sons and daughters-that
you may be increased there, and not diminished. 7 And seek the peace of the
city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the
Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace. 8 For thus says the Lord
of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who
are in your midst deceive you, nor listen to your dreams which you cause to
be dreamed. 9 For they prophesy falsely to you in My name; I have not sent
them, says the Lord.
10 For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I
will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return
to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the
Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12
Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your
heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back
from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the
places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the
place from which I cause you to be carried away captive.
15 Because you have said, "The Lord has raised up prophets for us in
Babylon"- 16 therefore thus says the Lord concerning the king who sits on
the throne of David, concerning all the people who dwell in this city, and
concerning your brethren who have not gone out with you into captivity- 17
thus says the Lord of hosts: Behold, I will send on them the sword, the
famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like rotten figs that cannot
be eaten, they are so bad. 18 And I will pursue them with the sword, with
famine, and with pestilence; and I will deliver them to trouble among all
the kingdoms of the earth-to be a curse, an astonishment, a hissing, and a
reproach among all the nations where I have driven them, 19 because they
have not heeded My words, says the Lord, which I sent to them by My servants
the prophets, rising up early and sending them; neither would you heed, says
the Lord. 20 Therefore hear the word of the Lord, all you of the captivity,
whom I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon.
21 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son
of Kolaiah, and Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy a lie to you in
My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of
Babylon, and he shall slay them before your eyes. 22 And because of them a
curse shall be taken up by all the captivity of Judah who are in Babylon,
saying, "The Lord make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon
roasted in the fire"; 23 because they have done disgraceful things in
Israel, have committed adultery with their neighbors' wives, and have spoken
lying words in My name, which I have not commanded them. Indeed I know, and
am a witness, says the Lord.
24 You shall also speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying, 25 Thus speaks
the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: You have sent letters in your
name to all the people who are at Jerusalem, to Zephaniah the son of
Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying, 26 "The Lord has made
you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest, so that there should be officers
in the house of the Lord over every man who is demented and considers
himself a prophet, that you should put him in prison and in the stocks. 27
Now therefore, why have you not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth who makes
himself a prophet to you? 28 For he has sent to us in Babylon, saying, 'This
captivity is long; build houses and dwell in them, and plant gardens and eat
their fruit.' "
29 Now Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the hearing of Jeremiah the
prophet. 30 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying: 31 Send to
all those in captivity, saying, Thus says the Lord concerning Shemaiah the
Nehelamite: Because Shemaiah has prophesied to you, and I have not sent him,
and he has caused you to trust in a lie- 32 therefore thus says the Lord:
Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite and his [l]family: he shall
not have anyone to dwell among this people, nor shall he see the good that I
will do for My people, says the Lord, because he has taught rebellion
against the Lord.
