[Ohio-Communities-of-Faith] DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR MONDAY APRIL 11

[Donnie Parrett]

DONNIE DAILY GEMS FOR MONDAY APRIL 11

MEMORY SCRIPTURE FOR THE WEEK

Ezra 7:27
Blessed be the LORD God of our fathers, which hath put such a thing as this
in the king's heart, to beautify the house of the LORD which is in
Jerusalem:

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WORD OF WISDOM

I don't trip, I just do random gravity checks.

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DAILY DEVOTION

For Such a Time as This


When Mordecai left the king's presence, he was wearing royal garments of
blue and white, a large crown of gold and a purple robe of fine linen.
(Esther 8:15, NIV)

	 In the book of Esther, an official named Haman occupied a very
influential position with the king of Persia. He convinced the king to issue
a decree that on a certain date all the Jews throughout the kingdom should
be killed, and he so hated Mordecai, the cousin of Queen Esther, that on the
following day he was going to have Mordecai executed. Yet in one day, Haman
was exposed for his evil and killed, the decree was overruled, and Mordecai
was put in Haman's position.
You may be in a difficult situation-people are coming against you, your
finances don't look good, there's trouble in a relationship. You could be
upset and worried, but stay in peace. Because you honor God, He's fighting
your battles. Keep doing the right thing. Don't take matters into your own
hands. Let God be your vindicator, and in His time, the enemies you see
today you will see no more. What was meant for your harm will be turned to
your advantage.
	 
A Prayer for Today

"Father, thank You that when I believe, angels go to work, forces of
darkness are pushed back, and things begin to change in my favor. Thank You
that whether You do it tomorrow or next year, You will take care of my every
need. I believe it's on the way. In Jesus' Name, Amen."

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DAILY BIBLE READING

1 Kings 16-18 New King James Version
The Reigns of Elah, Zimri, Omri, and Ahab
16 Then the word of the Lord came to Jehu the son of Hanani, against Baasha,
saying: 2 "Inasmuch as I lifted you out of the dust and made you ruler over
My people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam, and have made
My people Israel sin, to provoke Me to anger with their sins, 3 surely I
will take[a] away the posterity of Baasha and the posterity of his house,
and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 4
The dogs shall eat whoever belongs to Baasha and dies in the city, and the
birds of the air shall eat whoever dies in the fields."

5 Now the rest of the acts of Baasha, what he did, and his might, are they
not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 6 So
Baasha [b]rested with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah. Then Elah his
son reigned in his place.

7 And also the word of the Lord came by the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani
against Baasha and his house, because of all the evil that he did in the
sight of the Lord in provoking Him to anger with the work of his hands, in
being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he killed them.

Elah Reigns in Israel
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha
became king over Israel, and reigned two years in Tirzah. 9 Now his servant
Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against him as he was in
Tirzah drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, steward[c] of his house
in Tirzah. 10 And Zimri went in and struck him and killed him in the
twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his place.

11 Then it came to pass, when he began to reign, as soon as he was seated on
his throne, that he killed all the household of Baasha; he did not leave him
one male, neither of his relatives nor of his friends. 12 Thus Zimri
destroyed all the household of Baasha, according to the word of the Lord,
which He spoke against Baasha by Jehu the prophet, 13 for all the sins of
Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, by which they had sinned and by which
they had made Israel sin, in provoking the Lord God of Israel to anger with
their [d]idols.

14 Now the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did, are they not
written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

Zimri Reigns in Israel
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri had reigned in
Tirzah seven days. And the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which
belonged to the Philistines. 16 Now the people who were encamped heard it
said, "Zimri has conspired and also has killed the king." So all Israel made
Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp. 17
Then Omri and all Israel with him went up from Gibbethon, and they besieged
Tirzah. 18 And it happened, when Zimri saw that the city was [e]taken, that
he went into the citadel of the king's house and burned the king's house
[f]down upon himself with fire, and died, 19 because of the sins which he
had committed in doing evil in the sight of the Lord, in walking in the way
of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he had committed to make Israel sin.

20 Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and the treason he committed, are they
not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

Omri Reigns in Israel
21 Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts: half of the people
followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king, and half followed Omri.
22 But the people who followed Omri prevailed over the people who followed
Tibni the son of Ginath. So Tibni died and Omri reigned. 23 In the
thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel, and
reigned twelve years. Six years he reigned in Tirzah. 24 And he bought the
hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver; then he built on the
hill, and called the name of the city which he built, Samaria,[g] after the
name of Shemer, owner of the hill. 25 Omri did evil in the eyes of the Lord,
and did worse than all who were before him. 26 For he walked in all the ways
of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin by which he had made Israel
sin, provoking the Lord God of Israel to anger with their idols.[h]

27 Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and the might that he
showed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of
Israel?

28 So Omri rested with his fathers and was buried in Samaria. Then Ahab his
son reigned in his place.

Ahab Reigns in Israel
29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri
became king over Israel; and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in
Samaria twenty-two years. 30 Now Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight
of the Lord, more than all who were before him. 31 And it came to pass, as
though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam
the son of Nebat, that he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal, king
of the Sidonians; and he went and served Baal and worshiped him. 32 Then he
set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in
Samaria. 33 And Ahab made a [i]wooden image. Ahab did more to provoke the
Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before
him. 34 In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation
[j]with Abiram his firstborn, and with his youngest son Segub he set up its
gates, according to the word of the Lord, which He had spoken through Joshua
the son of Nun.

Elijah Proclaims a Drought
17 And Elijah the Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab, "As
the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew
nor rain these years, except at my word."

2 Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 3 "Get away from here and
turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan. 4
And it will be that you shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the
ravens to feed you there."

5 So he went and did according to the word of the Lord, for he went and
stayed by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan. 6 The ravens
brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the
evening; and he drank from the brook. 7 And it happened after a while that
the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.

Elijah and the Widow
8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 9 "Arise, go to Zarephath,
which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there
to provide for you." 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came
to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was there gathering sticks. And he
called to her and said, "Please bring me a little water in a cup, that I may
drink." 11 And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said,
"Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand."

12 So she said, "As the Lord your God lives, I do not have bread, only a
handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in a [k]jar; and see, I am
gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and
my son, that we may eat it, and die."

13 And Elijah said to her, "Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but
make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make
some for yourself and your son. 14 For thus says the Lord God of Israel:
'The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry,
until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.' "

15 So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah; and she and he
and her household ate for many days. 16 The bin of flour was not used up,
nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the Lord which He
spoke by Elijah.

Elijah Revives the Widow's Son
17 Now it happened after these things that the son of the woman who owned
the house became sick. And his sickness was so [l]serious that [m]there was
no breath left in him. 18 So she said to Elijah, "What have I to do with
you, O man of God? Have you come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and
to kill my son?"

19 And he said to her, "Give me your son." So he took him out of her arms
and carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his
own bed. 20 Then he cried out to the Lord and said, "O Lord my God, have You
also brought tragedy on the widow with whom I lodge, by killing her son?" 21
And he stretched himself out on the child three times, and cried out to the
Lord and said, "O Lord my God, I pray, let this child's soul come back to
him." 22 Then the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child
came back to him, and he revived.

23 And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper room into
the house, and gave him to his mother. And Elijah said, "See, your son
lives!"

24 Then the woman said to Elijah, "Now by this I know that you are a man of
God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is the truth."

Elijah's Message to Ahab
18 And it came to pass after many days that the word of the Lord came to
Elijah, in the third year, saying, "Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will
send rain on the earth."

2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab; and there was a severe famine
in Samaria. 3 And Ahab had called Obadiah, who was [n]in charge of his
house. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly. 4 For so it was, while Jezebel
[o]massacred the prophets of the Lord, that Obadiah had taken one hundred
prophets and hidden them, fifty to a cave, and had fed them with bread and
water.) 5 And Ahab had said to Obadiah, "Go into the land to all the springs
of water and to all the brooks; perhaps we may find grass to keep the horses
and mules alive, so that we will not have to kill any livestock." 6 So they
divided the land between them to explore it; Ahab went one way by himself,
and Obadiah went another way by himself.

7 Now as Obadiah was on his way, suddenly Elijah met him; and he recognized
him, and fell on his face, and said, "Is that you, my lord Elijah?"

8 And he answered him, "It is I. Go, tell your master, 'Elijah is here.' "

9 So he said, "How have I sinned, that you are delivering your servant into
the hand of Ahab, to kill me? 10 As the Lord your God lives, there is no
nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to hunt for you; and
when they said, 'He is not here,' he took an oath from the kingdom or nation
that they could not find you. 11 And now you say, 'Go, tell your master,
"Elijah is here" '! 12 And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from
you, that the Spirit of the Lord will carry you to a place I do not know; so
when I go and tell Ahab, and he cannot find you, he will kill me. But I your
servant have feared the Lord from my youth. 13 Was it not reported to my
lord what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the Lord, how I hid one
hundred men of the Lord's prophets, fifty to a cave, and fed them with bread
and water? 14 And now you say, 'Go, tell your master, "Elijah is here." ' He
will kill me!"

15 Then Elijah said, "As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I
will surely present myself to him today."

16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.

17 Then it happened, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said to him, "Is that
you, O troubler of Israel?"

18 And he answered, "I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father's
house have, in that you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and have
followed the Baals. 19 Now therefore, send and gather all Israel to me on
Mount Carmel, the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four
hundred prophets of [p]Asherah, who [q]eat at Jezebel's table."

Elijah's Mount Carmel Victory
20 So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets
together on Mount Carmel. 21 And Elijah came to all the people, and said,
"How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow
Him; but if Baal, follow him." But the people answered him not a word. 22
Then Elijah said to the people, "I alone am left a prophet of the Lord; but
Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men. 23 Therefore let them give
us two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces,
and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it; and I will prepare the
other bull, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it. 24 Then you
call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord; and
the God who answers by fire, He is God."

So all the people answered and said, [r]"It is well spoken."

25 Now Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one bull for yourselves
and prepare it first, for you are many; and call on the name of your god,
but put no fire under it."

26 So they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and
called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, "O Baal,
[s]hear us!" But there was no voice; no one answered. Then they [t]leaped
about the altar which they had made.

27 And so it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, "Cry [u]aloud,
for he is a god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a
journey, or perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened." 28 So they cried
aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with [v]knives and lances,
until the blood gushed out on them. 29 And when midday was past, they
prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. But
there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention.

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come near to me." So all the people
came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken
down. 31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the
tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying,
"Israel shall be your name." 32 Then with the stones he built an altar in
the name of the Lord; and he made a trench around the altar large enough to
hold two seahs of seed. 33 And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in
pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, "Fill four waterpots with water,
and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood." 34 Then he said, "Do it
a second time," and they did it a second time; and he said, "Do it a third
time," and they did it a third time. 35 So the water ran all around the
altar; and he also filled the trench with water.

36 And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening
sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, "Lord God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I
am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. 37 Hear
me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God,
and that You have turned their hearts back to You again."

38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the
wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the
trench. 39 Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and
they said, "The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!"

40 And Elijah said to them, "Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let one of
them escape!" So they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the Brook
Kishon and executed them there.

The Drought Ends
41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, "Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound
of abundance of rain." 42 So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went
up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face
between his knees, 43 and said to his servant, "Go up now, look toward the
sea."

So he went up and looked, and said, "There is nothing." And seven times he
said, "Go again."

44 Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, "There is a cloud,
as small as a man's hand, rising out of the sea!" So he said, "Go up, say to
Ahab, [w]'Prepare your chariot, and go down before the rain stops you.' "

45 Now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and
wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel. 46
Then the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah; and he girded[x] up his loins
and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

Footnotes
1 Kings 16:3 consume
1 Kings 16:6 Died and joined his ancestors
1 Kings 16:9 Lit. who was over the house
1 Kings 16:13 Lit. vanities
1 Kings 16:18 captured
1 Kings 16:18 Lit. over him
1 Kings 16:24 Heb. Shomeron
1 Kings 16:26 Lit. vanities
1 Kings 16:33 Heb. Asherah, a Canaanite goddess
1 Kings 16:34 At the cost of the life of
1 Kings 17:12 Lit. pitcher or water jar
1 Kings 17:17 severe
1 Kings 17:17 He died.
1 Kings 18:3 Lit. over the house
1 Kings 18:4 Lit. cut off
1 Kings 18:19 A Canaanite goddess
1 Kings 18:19 Are provided for by Jezebel
1 Kings 18:24 Lit. The word is good
1 Kings 18:26 answer
1 Kings 18:26 Lit. limped about, leaped in dancing around
1 Kings 18:27 with a loud voice
1 Kings 18:28 swords
1 Kings 18:44 Lit. Bind or Harness
1 Kings 18:46 Tucked the skirts of his robe in his belt in preparation for
quick travel