DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR THURSDAY MAY 26:
WORD OF WISDOM
The easiest way to find something lost around the house is to buy a
replacement.
___
DAILY DEVOTION
Refusing to Help
"And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to
Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and
wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came
down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the
other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked
on him, and passed by on the other side."
Luke 10:30-32
In March of 1964, a young woman named Kitty Genovese was attacked on her way
home from work in New York City. Though many people saw or heard at least
part of the attack (various news reports and investigations put the number
between thirty-six and forty-nine), no one intervened, and only a few people
called the police. The attack was carried out over the space of half an
hour, and it is quite likely that Genovese's death could have been prevented
if only someone had been willing to intervene. But no one was willing to do
what it took to save her life. One of the bystanders even admitted to a
reporter, "I didn't want to get involved."
All around us there are people who are facing far worse than physical death.
The lost have no hope of salvation unless someone loves and cares for them
enough to reach out to them with the gospel. Yet too often, like the priest
and the Levite in the parable Jesus told, those who should be the first to
help find reasons not to do so. We are not told what motivated those two men
to cross to the other side of the road. Perhaps they feared for their
safety, or perhaps they simply didn't want to get their hands dirty. But
whatever the case, they failed to step up and answer the challenge of
helping someone in desperate need.
If those of us who are saved do not do our part to reach them, the lost have
no hope for eternity.
___
DAILY BIBLE READING
Job 16-18Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
Job Answers Eliphaz
16 Then Job answered:
2
"I have heard all these things before.
You men give me trouble, not comfort.
3
Your long speeches never end!
Why do you continue arguing?
4
I also could say the same things you say,
if you had my troubles.
I could say wise things against you
and shake my head at you.
5
But I would say things to encourage you
and give you hope.
6
"Nothing I say makes my pain go away.
But keeping quiet does not help either.
7
God, you surely took away my strength.
You destroyed my whole family.
8
You have made me thin and weak,
and people think that means I am guilty.
9
"God attacks me;
he is angry with me and tears my body apart.
He grinds his teeth against me.
My enemy looks at me with hate.
10
People have crowded around me.
They make fun of me and slap my face.
11
God has given me to evil people.
He let the wicked hurt me.
12
I was enjoying a quiet, peaceful life,
but then God crushed me.
Yes, he took me by the neck
and broke me into pieces.
He has made me his target.
13
With his archers all around me,
he shoots arrows into my kidneys.
He shows no mercy
and spills my gall[a] on the ground.
14
Again and again he attacks me.
He runs at me like a soldier in battle.
15
"I am very sad, so I wear this sackcloth.
I sit here in dust and ashes, feeling defeated.
16
My face is red from crying.
There are dark rings around my eyes.
17
I was never cruel to anyone,
and my prayers are pure.
18
"Earth, don't hide the wrong things that were done to me.[b]
Don't let my begging for fairness be stopped.
19
Even now there is someone in heaven who will speak for me.
There is someone above who will testify for me.
20
My friend speaks for me,
while my eyes pour out tears to God.
21
He speaks to God for me,
like someone[c] presenting an argument for a friend.
22
"In only a few years
I will go to that place of no return.
17 My spirit is broken;
I am ready to give up.
My life is almost gone;
the grave is waiting for me.
2
People stand around me and laugh at me.
I watch them as they tease and insult me.
3
"God, give me some support.
No one else will!
4
You have closed my friends' minds,
and they don't understand.
Please don't let them win.
5
You know what people say:
'A man neglects his own children to help his friends.'[d]
But my friends have turned against me.
6
God has made my name a bad word to everyone.
People spit in my face.
7
My eyes are almost blind from my grief.
My whole body is as thin as a shadow.
8
Good people wonder how this could happen.
The innocent are upset with anyone who is against God.
9
But those who do right will continue to do what is right.
Those who are not guilty grow stronger and stronger.
10
"But come on, all of you, and try to prove me wrong.
I don't find any of you to be wise.
11
My life is passing away, and my plans are destroyed.
My hope is gone.
12
Everything is confused-
night is day, and evening comes when it should be dawn.
13
"I might hope for the grave to be my new home.
I might hope to make my bed in the dark grave.
14
I might say to the grave, 'You are my father,'
and to the worms, 'my mother' or 'my sister.'
15
But you can't really call that hope, can you?
Does anyone see any hope for me?
16
Will hope go down with me to the place of death?
Will we go down into the dirt together?"
Bildad Answers Job
18 Then Bildad from Shuah answered:
2
"When will you stop talking?
Be sensible; let us say something.
3
Why do you think we are stupid,
like dumb cows?
4
Your anger is hurting no one but you.
Do you think this world was made for you alone?
Do you think God should move mountains just to satisfy you?
5
"Yes, the light of those who are evil will go out.
Their fire will stop burning.
6
The light in their houses will become dark.
The lamps next to them will go out.
7
Their steps, once strong and fast, become weak.
Their own evil plans make them fall.
8
Their own feet lead them into a net.
They fall into its hidden pit and are caught.
9
A trap catches them by the heel,
and it holds them tight.
10
A rope is hidden on the ground to trip them.
A trap is waiting in their path.
11
On every side terrors frighten them.
Fears follow every step they take.
12
Disaster is hungry for them.
Ruin stands close by, waiting for them to fall.
13
Diseases will eat away their skin.
Death itself[e] will eat their arms and legs.
14
They will be taken away from the safety of their tents
and be led away to meet death, the king of terrors.
15
Nothing will be left in their tents,
which will be sprinkled with burning sulfur.
16
Their roots below will dry up,
and their branches above will die.
17
People on earth will not remember them.
Their names will be forgotten.
18
They will be forced from light into darkness.
They will be chased out of this world.
19
They will leave behind no children, no descendants.
None of their people will be left alive.
20
People in the west will be shocked at what happened to them.
People in the east will be numb with fear.
21
This is what will happen to the homes of those who are evil.
This is the place of those who don't know God!"
Footnotes:
a.Job 16:13 gall The bitter contents of the gall bladder, which is near the
liver. Here, it means something bitter and painful.
b.Job 16:18 Earth . done to me Literally, "Earth, don't cover my blood." See
Gen. 4:10-11.
c.Job 16:21 someone Literally, "son of man."
d.Job 17:5 You know . friends Literally, "He promises a share to his friends
and his children's eyes go blind."
e.Job 18:13 Death itself Literally, "Death's firstborn," a name for a deadly
disease, or the worms that eat a dead body.
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
Copyright C 2006 by Bible League International
