My Baby Promise: In Due time

Peninnah had children, but Hannah had none. (1 Samuel 1:2 NIV)

Dear Father, for a long time now, I have been labeled as 'the one with no child.' In my family, peer group, and office, and even in church, almost all my batch mates have children, except my wife and I.

So Father, only You can change this.

But to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, and the Lord had closed her womb. (1 Samuel 1:5 NIV)

Receiving a double portion is fine and wonderful. But what good is it if I can’t enjoy it with my own child?

Oh, dear Lord, please open my wife's womb. I am done asking why it is this way, but by Your grace, You have stretched my faith to ask you instead to open my wife's womb.

Oh Lord, You are always good. There are things I don't fully understand, but it doesn't mean You have been unkind. Just because my wife has not been pregnant all this time doesn't mean You are unkind. But You have given us this promise, not to tease us, but for You to fulfill as our hearts get prepared for it.

Because the Lord had closed Hannah’s womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her. (1 Samuel 1:6 NIV)

And Lord, this does not escape your attention, that because we are childless, our antagonists bully us and make fun of us. But for whatever reason they may have to provoke us, it really doesn't matter. What truly matters is that You come and end our childlessness.

Oh Lord, for the glory of Your name, for the honor of Your reputation, please open my wife's womb. Be glorified and worshiped by causing my wife to conceive.

This went on year after year. Whenever Hannah went up to the house of the Lord, her rival provoked her till she wept and would not eat. (1 Samuel 1:7 NIV)

My Lord, I keep on coming back here to this same thing, year after year after year. Sometimes, I forget what I started believing in the first place, and just see the taunting and provoking. Dear Lord, I don't want to lose sight of your promise. I want to move on from here... with our baby in my arms.

In her deep anguish Hannah prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly. And she made a vow, saying, “ Lord Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.” (1 Samuel 1:10, 11 NIV)

And so Lord, here I am, praying in deep anguish and bitter weeping. Please look on me and my wife, your servants, with favor, and feel our misery. Remember us, oh Lord, and give us a baby.

My Lord and my God, all that I am is Yours. We are all yours. The child to be born to us is Yours. We are all yours all the days of our lives. With child or not, we are still Yours, now and forever.

Early the next morning they arose and worshiped before the Lord and then went back to their home at Ramah. Elkanah made love to his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. So in the course of time Hannah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the Lord for him.” (1 Samuel 1:19-20 NIV)

Oh Lord, I will never slack in worshiping you. I go early to my church service hour, I will arise and prepare my heart for worship. And as my wife and I get together, please remember us.

How wonderful can it be that after praying this, in nine months hereon I'll have a baby! Hallelujah!

Dear Father, in due time, please cause my wife to conceive. This is something that only You can do.

Please remember our plea, our request, our petition, this very thing that we ask of you. And we know we have asked the right Person. Oh Father, we ask for our very own 'Samuel' - a baby as answer to our prayers for you are the God who hears.

And because you are a very mindful Father - you do not forget, nor would you ignore us – so then we will have a baby.

Hannah’s Epilogue:

I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the Lord. For his whole life he will be given over to the Lord.” And he worshiped the Lord there. (1 Samuel 1:27-28 NIV)

Each year his mother made him a little robe and took it to him when she went up with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice. Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, “May the Lord give you children by this woman to take the place of the one she prayed for and gave to the Lord.” Then they would go home. And the Lord was gracious to Hannah; she gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord. (1 Samuel 2:19-21 NIV)

The Curse of the Thief

I n the middle of audit week, our company accountants decided not to show up. As it turned out, they embezzled some money. What struck me the most was that the people who did it were not strangers; they were like mothers and aunts. We saw them almost every day, smile at them, laugh with them, and made plans together. As part of the management team, we ate out and had a friendly good time. It was heartbreaking to realize that the people in the news for some criminal activity had the same profile as those that I had warm and cuddly relations with. But loyalty goes up. My love for God supersedes any other relationship. I feel sad, yes, but I have no inkling to cover for them. If anything, I am upset because I was this close to them, and yet, clueless. My colleagues and I were mixed emotions. On one hand, we felt betrayed. The suspects were like family. We confided in them and planned activities with them in all sincerity and warmth. But maybe, just maybe, they were truthful and sincere...

Bishopric and Episkopé: The Ministry of Visitation

The KJV word is bishoprick , which is now archaic in spelling. Most Bible translators didn’t use the modern spelling ‘ bishopric,’ and that, for a good reason. #Acts1v20 For it is written in the book of Psalms: “Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell in it.”, and, “His bishopric, let another take.” A quick google search shows that bishopric means: the office or rank of a bishop. · a district under a bishop's control; a diocese. But looking closely at the Greek word, episkopé, reveals a deeper meaning: a visiting, an overseeing [Strong's]. Here's the kicker: bishopric k is not a desk job; it's fieldwork. An excellent, Spirit-filled bishop or pastor performs the act of visitation. How does one effectively "oversee" a flock? By being with them, by being among them. When God calls one to be a pastor of a people, the expectation is not like that of a manager who stays in the offic...

Being On God’s Side: The Nonpartisan Obedience And Submission of The Elect

My choice of candidate is only as good as when I vote. My vote is only as good as when it is counted. But when the tally comes, my choice is irrelevant – God decides who is king. Every person is to be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. (Romans 13: 1 NASB) Our future does not depend on the person who gets elected, but on the One who sits on the Throne. If God has already decided, then why do I need to vote? This sounds like the clay who talks back to the Potter, “Why did you make me this way?” [see Romans 9:19-20] Let’s admit it: Though we vote according to our conscience, our conscience is formed by information made available to us. We can only know so much about a candidate, but God knows all things. In choosing, our sense of compatibility and personal preference are at work. We like a certain candidate because we feel that we like something about them, or w...

My Top 3 Life Principles

Once, a scholar asked, “Mentor, which is the greatest principle of life?” The Master replied, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind. This is the first and greatest principle. And the second is like it: 'Love others as yourself.' All life-giving principles are based on these two.” (see Matthew 22:36-40) Love God, Love self and others, and Obey God. This metonymy was derived from the Lifebook, the Book of Principles – the Holy Bible . Who has a better say on life principles than the Author of life Himself? King Solomon’s take was this: Fear God and keep His commands, for this is the whole duty of man . (see Ecclesiastes 12:13) So now, my Top 3 List of Life Principles is complete: Love God, Love myself and others, and Obey God. Life begins and ends with God. My life principle #1: Love God with all that I am. How do I love God? By spending time with Him. I have le...

This Is How I Fight My Life's Battles

#2Chro20v22 NOW when they began to sing & to praise God , the L ORD set ambushes against the people who had come against Judah; and the enemy was defeated. Judah means praise. Now life comes with storms and hurdles that challenge our ability to praise God. They come against our worship. But we fight to maintain our ground to praise the Lord. We just have to praise God all the more. We've heard the story: King Jehoshaphat appointed singers to lead the army in praise and worship - right in front of the battle-clad army. What a battle plan. What a battle cry! So this is how we fight our life's battles: On our knees, in prayer and with songs of victory.

Unschooled + Been with Jesus = Miracles

(Acts 4:13) When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. (NIV) Background: A 40 year old man who was crippled all his life was able to walk by God's grace through Peter and John. The spiritual leaders of their time were amazed because the 2 didn't come from their school. In those days, only a few of the people were able to go to school. Although the apostles didn't hold any credentials, it didn't stop them from ministering God's power. They were noted for being 1) courageous 2) unschooled 3) ordinary 4) been with Jesus As such, then I have a shot in the ministry. -=w=- I do not advocate illiteracy. If the called of God can go to a Bible school, then by all means. This just proves that what really matters is the Presence of God, to learn at the feet of the Master.

Zechariah 4

Read the Whole Bible in 0ne Year. See Other Bible Versions for Fresh Insight. [The King Version for this chapter is coming soon…]

Genesis 7

And the Lord said to Noah, “Come - you and all your house - into the ark, for I have seen you righteous before Me in this generation. 2 Of every clean beast, you must take with you by sevens, the male and its female; and of beasts that are not clean by twos, the male and its female. 3 Of fowls of the air also by sevens, the male and its female, to keep their seed alive upon the face of all the earth. 4 For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty (40) days and forty (40) nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth.” 5 And Noah did according to all that the Lord commanded him. . 6 And Noah was six hundred (600) years old when the flood of waters was upon the earth. 7 And Noah went in, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him, into the ark, because of the waters of the flood. 8 Of clean beasts, and of beasts that are not clean, and of fowls, and of everything that creeps upon the earth...

John 14

Read the Whole Bible in 0ne Year. See Other Bible Versions for Fresh Insight. [The King Version for this chapter is coming soon…]

Sheep or Shepherd's Clothing?

#Mtt7.15 False prophets come dressed up like sheep. They identify with the common people, the masses. Face-to-face deception is easy when it's coming from "one of us." The gullible believes that the on-disguised false prophet sympathizes and empathizes with them, and the doctrine presented is somewhat appealing to their level. False prophets don't come in shepherd's clothing, but in sheep's clothing. It'll be easy to spot a spiritual leader from afar, but who would suspect a regular fellow church member right from the start? And because they are false, they plant seeds of doubt and question, making you confused and agitated. False prophets are hungry, ravenous, voracious, vicious and ferocious. In the process they attack the naive. They prey on the unwary. Take heed of the Chief Shepherd's warning: Watch out! Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. (Ma...

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