Today's Readings and Stuff --- Friday, 08 June 2018

Happy Friday to all.  That used to mean more to me, back when in the work world.  Less so, now.  Of course, many  (like 1973-1984 and 2008-2013) of those years were six and seven day work weeks, normally, and many others (like 1992-2006) had me "on call" 24/7 anyway.  But in those days, Friday meant something.  Now, well, it means less.
It's caused me to take a look at the routines we establish. Yes, the term "routine" sometimes morphs into "stuff we do regularly that's lost much meaning" and that is certainly true.  On the other hand, "routine" also gets into stuff we develop the habit of doing without having to schedule it.  For example, our trash collection is on Thursday morning, generally around 10:00 hours. So, someone, meaning  Yours Truly, has the "honor" of going around our place on Wednesday afternoon/evening, collecting whatever trash isn't already in the can outside (like the week's accumulation of used cat litter that goes out every day or two), and then haul the can to the road for pickup.  After pickup, I haul the can back in.  We're not the kind that has all that much to haul off.  But it needs to go.  Having that as part of the week's routine gets to be automatic.  Same thing for church services on Sunday morning:  I don't have to put it in my scheduling calendar, it's become part of what I am.  At other times in life, I did things like, for example, spending my lunch gnawing on a sandwich at my desk while having a "quiet time" of prayer and Bible study:  everyone else in that office area went out for lunch.  So it became ingrained.
Other things, well, I'm not so sure.  I know people who rigorously have a routine of watching NFL football on Sunday afternoon.  Or NASCAR races.  When we lived in areas on Central Time, it was -- unfortunately -- all too common for some people (including a few of my fellows on the deacon board) to skip worship services, leaving after the adult Bible study, so as to catch the race start or the kickoff.  One church was large enough to have two worship services (and one had three) so some people would come early and leave afterward.  Just part of their routine, but it spoke  of priorities assigned and it bothered me.  Still does.


I can recall that at one time, one day a week was set aside for laundry.  Part of the routine.  Always was done on that day.  No other.  Just "wasn't done" that way.
Happens in churches too.  I've seen the upset in a few places when relatively small things in the "order of service", like the time of taking up an offering, were attempted.  "That's not the way we do things!" was heard, and some hard feelings too.

So the routines that we set up, the patterns of life that we arrange, matter.  They guide our lives, more perhaps than we realize.  If we start our day checking the news, the "body count" from the night before, our minds will be inclined in a certain direction.  If we begin the day in even a moment of prayer and even attention to the Scripture, a different direction.  Yes, the "stuff" of the day will still come, but perhaps our reactions to that "stuff" will be changed.   Perhaps we will be changed as well.  Worth a try.

==================================================
===================================================

2nd Kings 1

1  Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab.

2  And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baal–zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease.

3  But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baal–zebub the god of Ekron?

4  Now therefore thus saith the Lord, Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed.

5  And when the messengers turned back unto him, he said unto them, Why are ye now turned back?

6  And they said unto him, There came a man up to meet us, and said unto us, Go, turn again unto the king that sent you, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that thou sendest to enquire of Baal–zebub the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.

7  And he said unto them, What manner of man was he which came up to meet you, and told you these words?

8  And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

9  Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the top of an hill. And he spake unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down.

10  And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.

11  Again also he sent unto him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto him, O man of God, thus hath the king said, Come down quickly.

12  And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.

13  And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight.

14  Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight.

15  And the angel of the Lord said unto Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him unto the king.

16  And he said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to enquire of Baal–zebub the god of Ekron, is it not because there is no God in Israel to enquire of his word? therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.

17  So he died according to the word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram reigned in his stead in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; because he had no son.

18  Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

2nd Kings 2

1  And it came to pass, when the Lord would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.

2  And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the Lord hath sent me to Beth–el. And Elisha said unto him, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Beth–el.

3  And the sons of the prophets that were at Beth–el came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Lord will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.

4  And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the Lord hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho.

5  And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Lord will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he answered, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.

6  And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the Lord hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the Lord liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on.

7  And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan.to view: Heb. in sight, or, over against

8  And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground.

9  And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.

10  And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.

11  And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

12  And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.

13  He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan;

14  And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the Lord God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.

15  And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.

16  And they said unto him, Behold now, there be with thy servants fifty strong men; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master: lest peradventure the Spirit of the Lord hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he said, Ye shall not send.

17  And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, Send. They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him not.

18  And when they came again to him, (for he tarried at Jericho,) he said unto them, Did I not say unto you, Go not?

19  And the men of the city said unto Elisha, Behold, I pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth: but the water is naught, and the ground barren.barren: Heb. causing to miscarry

20  And he said, Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him.

21  And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the Lord, I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land.

22  So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spake.

23  And he went up from thence unto Beth–el: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head.

24  And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them.

25  And he went from thence to mount Carmel, and from thence he returned to Samaria.

=========================================
========================================

Psalm115

1  Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake.

2  Wherefore should the heathen say, Where is now their God?

3  But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.

4  Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands.

5  They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not:

6  They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not:

7  They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat.

8  They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them.

9  O Israel, trust thou in the Lord: he is their help and their shield.

10  O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord: he is their help and their shield.

11  Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord: he is their help and their shield.

12  The Lord hath been mindful of us: he will bless us; he will bless the house of Israel; he will bless the house of Aaron.

13  He will bless them that fear the Lord, both small and great.and: Heb. with

14  The Lord shall increase you more and more, you and your children.

15  Ye are blessed of the Lord which made heaven and earth.

16  The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord's: but the earth hath he given to the children of men.

17  The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into silence.

18  But we will bless the Lord from this time forth and for evermore. Praise the Lord.

=============================================
=============================================

Today, chapter 26 in the Acts of the Apostles.
This has a sad line in it, verse 28.  "almost persuaded".  I don't know about Agrippa's eternal destiny.  But I know of other persons who, likewise, were "almost persuaded".  I was one of them for a very long time.
But it gives our "song of the day", one I hadn't heard in a church house in a long time, even in an evangelistic campaign / "revival".  Almost Persuaded.
An account of the composing of that hymn is found here.

Acts 26

1  Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Thou art permitted to speak for thyself. Then Paul stretched forth the hand, and answered for himself:

2  I think myself happy, king Agrippa, because I shall answer for myself this day before thee touching all the things whereof I am accused of the Jews:

3  Especially because I know thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews: wherefore I beseech thee to hear me patiently.

4  My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first among mine own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews;

5  Which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.

6  And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers:

7  Unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come. For which hope's sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews.

8  Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?

9  I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

10  Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them.

11  And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities.

12  Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests,

13  At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.

14  And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.

15  And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.

16   But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;

17   Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,

18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

19  Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision:

20  But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.

21  For these causes the Jews caught me in the temple, and went about to kill me.

22  Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come:

23  That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles.

24  And as he thus spake for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad.

25  But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness.

26  For the king knoweth of these things, before whom also I speak freely: for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him; for this thing was not done in a corner.

27  King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest.

28  Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.

29  And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds.

30  And when he had thus spoken, the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they that sat with them:

31  And when they were gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying, This man doeth nothing worthy of death or of bonds.

32  Then said Agrippa unto Festus, This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed unto Caesar.