Read To Me Daily Semester 2Sample

2SAMUEL 5-6:
In yesterday’s story, General Abner defected to David, but it cost him his life on the same day at the hands of Joab, the commander of David's forces and the brother of the slain Asahel. One result was also that Ishbosheth was murdered by two army captains who thought that they would be rewarded for doing David a favor.

PSALM 109a:
Today we read the first half of Psalm 109. If you are feeling that you are surrounded by people who gang up against you and slander you, then today’s poem is perfect for you. One of the verses in this psalm was quoted by Peter about Judas in Acts 1. You are certainly given permission by this Psalm to pray for vindication and justice, but contrast this with what Romans 12 says about praying for your enemies— which we also read today. Note this: In the NLT, verses 6 through 19 contain a very long quote of slander against the Psalm-writer, David. Or, in GNT, these verses are part of David’s prayer for vindication.

Re-reading ROMANS 12:
Chapter 12 marks the beginning of the practical part of Paul’s letter to the Roman Christians. This whole section of Romans packs a big punch. As I said yesterday, verses 1-2, which form the topic sentence for this section, are must-memorize verses. If everything that Paul said before now is true, then THIS is the logical and appropriate response of how we are to live. This is how we ought to respond to God's wonderful kindness to us. And these two verses reveal a major truth about how the transformation of our minds takes place, and what must happen first before we are able to discern God's will in our decisions.

Let’s pray.
O Lord Jesus, You have shown such mercy and grace to us. Through the blood of your sacrifice on the cross, you have made it possible to be put right with God. You took the punishment that should have been ours. You have fulfilled all the promises made to the Jews, and also the prophecies about the blessings that were to be given to the Gentiles. You have loved us all with an everlasting love, and nothing can separate us now from your love and the Father’s love for us. So we ask, “What can we do in return?” Paul answers: We must offer our very being to You as a living sacrifice. We will consider ourselves to be dead with You, Jesus. And now we are raised with You also, so that your spirit will fill us and lead us into a life that is pleasing to You. Lord, we have failed in many ways. We will confess our sins now. As You forgive us, open our eyes to what we should do and how we should live today.