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Fairhope-Satsuma Ginger Lilies

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IDOK DEVOTION for Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Pray for the Peace of Israel

On a Fairhope balcony in the years 2002 and 2003, a single pot of greenery bloomed, the blossoms were delicate, fragrant and wedding day white. Lack of attention – down right neglect – in 2004 and the little pot gave no blossoms. Yet in 2005, the little pot would not be left behind, she came to Satsuma and there she sat and she sat. But in time the meager stalks, by then reduced to bulbs, found a permanent home and her greenery flourished and flourished, but only the greenery – no blossoms, no fragrance, no wedding day white.
And this year, 2007, again the greenery flourished and even though the bed of ginger lilies had more than tripled in size and number, we wondered will the blossoms ever return.
Galatians 6: 9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Yesterday I digitally captured My First Satsuma Ginger Lily. I hope you can open and enjoy the picture. The Fragrance is back!!

Is there something in your life that you have been laboring over, praying over, hoping it would yield? Keep on tiling, keep on praying, keep on giving God time. Galatians 6: 9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

And if you have been transplanted from a place, a situation and you seem to be doing okay, the greenery is there, but the ‘fragrance’ is missing – give God time. You can bloom anywhere He has you – in His Time. Galatians 6: 9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
Father, thank You. Thank You for Ginger Lilies that bloom and thank You for Your Divine Lessons in the lilies. And I pray for any soul who reads today that feels out of place, transplanted from one place to another and who is still waiting to feel at home, give that one courage and hope today. I ask You to give Your People the will to be encouraged today, the will to trust You, the will to believe You, the will to wait upon You. And for these Zela. Janie B. W.C. The Ellis Family. Bev. Ed Litton and family. People of Peru. Vickie. Lisa W. John Thomas. Cole. Melannie and family. Taylor & family. Anita. Kathy. J Lloyd and family. Janet and Steve. Jennifer and Kevin. Cathy. Toy and family. Katelyn. Caleb and family. Bay and family. Jennifer B. John and Carolyn. Larry and Claudia and family. Jennifer L and family. Jeanette and Earl and family. Libby and family. Randy and Vivian and Chase. Chris. Callie. Madie. Ruth. Martha F and Bob. Rev and Mrs. Carpenter. Allyson and Glen and family and Kaitlyn. Brittney and Kersten and family. Marcia and Larry and family. Sharron and girls. Frankie and girls. Sheila and Andy. Carrie and Rachel and Jacob and family. Billy and Gina and boys. Lance and family. Grace and family. Tressa and Brad and family. Cindy K and family. Cindy L and family. Chuck. Windy and Jared and families. Helen and Dan and family. Jen and Larry and family. Chad and Brittany and family. Mollie and family. Jenny. Julia. Bobbie. Tj. Zack. Phillip. Jessica. Larry. Kayla. Trey. Jacob. Ashely. Lance. Christian. Cecil. Laura and family. Mary. Doris. Chassidy. Lisa M and Family. John and Sandy

Every IDOK and every IDOK son and daughter and grandchild.
Every IDOK Pastor and Family.
Every IDOK church.
Revival in America.
IDOKs Military Families.
IDOKs Troops -Shaun. Ethan. Tommy. Christopher. Raul. Desi. Robert. Billy. Josh. George. Jonathan. Buddy. Mark. Josh W. James. Bryan. Nick. Hawk. Tommy T. Brant W.
Injured and brought State side: Anthony. Hector
Military at home adjusting – Tim. Lee. Mack. The 226. Troy. Danny. Drew. Brad.
Civilian in Country – Mike.
we pray for courage and hope and healings and jobs and strength in family crisis, for direction and discernment, for Your Light to dawn in the dark night of depression and despair and for our IDOK Troops we always thank You and ask You again to protect them in mind and body and spirit and bring them home to us safe and sound and more in love with You than when they deployed. And all this we ask because we can in Christ Jesus. Thank You Father.
As I post this it is 106°F and clear in Balad, Iraq & the time there is 4:24 PM ADT – on September 12, 2007


HIS MINISTRY TO YOU

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Remembering Back – Looking Forward

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IDOK DEVOTION for Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Pray for the Peace of Israel

What’s it been – six years? Six years since we watched with our eyes what our minds refused to believe – planes flying into twin towers, destroying lives and dreams. What can we say on this anniversary?
Our God still reigns and we know every soul who trusted Him in the aftermath of this tragedy has found Him faithful!

I’ve been preparing a Wednesday Night Bible Study for our Young Folks at Myers. They delight us in that they like Study Guides – Work Sheets and so we by Father’s Grace prepare them. Read with me one of the sections of Scripture that we will be looking at with them in a couple of weeks.
I John 5:
9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son.
10 He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son.
11 And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
12 He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
13 These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God.

These things have been written that we may KNOW we have Eternal Life.
And on this anniversary of so many lives lost to physical death, don’t we need to remember and rejoice in the Assurance that in Christ Jesus we have ETERNAL LIFE? Don’t we need to Remember and confirm again that we KNOW that even though we die, we will live!
John 11: 25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
27 She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.
Let us not forget the tragedy of September 11, 2001 but lets move on in the TRIUMPH of Christ Jesus until each of us either close our eyes here and open them there or until we look up to see from whence came that Trumpet Sound.
I Corinthians 15: 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—
52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
Father, thank You for this morning that has already begun, help us make the most of this day. Help us redeem this day for Your Glory. Thank You for the promises You have given us in Your Word. Thank You for Eternal Life given us in You Christ Jesus. And we pray for those families of physical lives lost six years ago; we pray that they will seek You today for comfort and purpose and meaning. We pray for America that She will yet be revived; that She will remember that She was oh so willing to pray for a few days after 9-11 and that She will pray again. And we Your IDOKs come praying this morning for ourselves and for those listed here Zela . Janie B. W.C. The Ellis Family. Bev. Ed Litton and family. People of Peru. Vickie. Lisa W. John Thomas. Cole. Melannie and family. Taylor & family. Anita. Kathy. J Lloyd and family. Janet and Steve. Jennifer and Kevin. Cathy. Toy and family. Katelyn. Caleb and family. Bay and family. Jennifer B. John and Carolyn. Larry and Claudia and family. Jennifer L and family. Jeanette and Earl and family. Libby and family. Randy and Vivian and Chase. Chris. Callie. Madie. Ruth. Martha F and Bob. Rev and Mrs. Carpenter. Allyson and Glen and family and Kaitlyn. Brittney and Kersten and family. Marcia and Larry and family. Sharron and girls. Frankie and girls. Sheila and Andy. Carrie and Rachel and Jacob and family. Billy and Gina and boys. Lance and family. Grace and family. Tressa and Brad and family. Cindy K and family. Cindy L and family. Chuck. Windy and Jared and families. Helen and Dan and family. Jen and Larry and family. Chad and Brittany and family. Mollie and family. Jenny. Julia. Bobbie. Tj. Zack. Phillip. Jessica. Larry. Kayla. Trey. Jacob. Ashely. Lance. Christian. Cecil. Laura and family. Mary. Doris. Chassidy. Lisa M and Family. John and Sandy
Every IDOK and every IDOK son and daughter and grandchild.
Every IDOK Pastor and Family.
Every IDOK church.
Revival in America.
IDOKs Military Families.
IDOKs Troops -Shaun. Ethan. Tommy. Christopher. Raul. Desi. Robert. Billy. Josh. George. Jonathan. Buddy. Mark. Josh W. James. Bryan. Nick. Hawk. Tommy T. Brant W.
Injured and brought State side: Anthony. Hector
Military at home adjusting – Tim. Lee. Mack. The 226. Troy. Danny. Drew. Brad.
Civilian in Country – Mike.
Thank You that You have and are willing to provide every need; help each of us to discipline ourselves to receive. As other times we pray for our IDOK Troops that You keep them safe in mind and body and spirit; that You convince those who are not yet convinced that You are the ONLY Saviour and they need You. Bring them all home safe and sound to us we pray. And all this we ask based solely upon the Blood and Righteousness of Jesus. Amen and Amen.
As I post this it is 104°F and sunny in Baghdad, Iraq & the time there is 3:55 PM ADT – on September 11 , 2007

I don’t know the Author and you have probably read it before but ponder this again:

The Two Wolves

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.
He said, “My son, the battle is between two “wolves” inside Us all.
One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed,Arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride,Superiority, and ego.
The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility,Kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.
“The grand son thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?
“The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”


His Ministry to You

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Corner of Choice – Cloud of Witnesses

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IDOK DEVOTION for Monday, September 10, 2007

Pray for the Peace of Israel

Hebrews 12: 1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Cloud of Witnesses. I thought of this verse as I was reading a novel on Friday. I have not read a book just for the pleasure of reading in many years. Everything I have read for a long time now has been as you might expect Scripture, devotional books and Bible study work books. But I sat down with a novel on Friday morning and watched the screen of my mind as this love story played – Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. If you want to take a trip without leaving home, a Christian Novel is a great way to do that. Anyway, back to Friday morning. As I was watching Michael interact with Angel, not the name given her by her mother but one that she would eventually grow into, sitting on the edge of my seat I found myself ‘praying’ he would do the right thing. I wanted so much for him to continue manifesting the godly traits I had seen in him since our introduction. And there he was standing at the Corner of Choice, exasperated, frustrated, fired-up, and let-down, wondering what am I doing here and what am I going to do now? As he stood outside the Palace contemplating for the first time in his life to get rip-roaring drunk, I pleaded for him to resist. And when he walked on by, I let out a sigh of relief! And at that moment, I believe, the Holy Spirit reminded me of ‘Cloud of Witnesses’. I was Michael’s witness; his victory was important to me. I wanted him to be victorious; seeing him fail would have grieved me.

You and I have witnesses that sit on the edge of their seats daily watching us at the Corner of Choice; which way will we turn – left or right? I believe these witnesses can be identified as the Angelic host (both holy and unholy) and two groups of people – our brothers and sisters in Christ and the unsaved of the world. Michael is only a character in a book and yet I wanted him to win. I wanted him to remain faithful to God. Can you imagine how much the Angels of God want us to win? Can you envision how they must stand ‘breathless’ at times hoping with all that is within them that we make the right choice? Can you envision how the unholy ones must ‘celebrate’ when we come to the Corner of Choice and turn LEFT instead of RIGHT? Can I envision how it grieves you or discourages you or troubles you when I approach the Corner of Choice and turn LEFT? Can you envision how it grieves me when you approach that Corner and turn LEFT? But in all this Cloud of Witnesses there is ONE more that we must considered – Our Triune God? What does He experience when we turn LEFT? What does HE experience when we turn RIGHT? Please ponder this and in your pondering, pray. Pray for a Revelation from Him that will encourage you daily to turn Right at every Corner.
Michael was only a character in a book but he has been a great reminder to me that I am ‘Character’ in Father’s Eternal Book and I have a Cloud of Witnesses watching, daily; so do you.

Father, it’s been a good weekend and I thank You. Thank You for Francine Rivers and this experience that You have given me in the words of her book. I pray for our IDOKs that we will take to heart this Cloud of Witnesses and this command from You to lay aside, to turn away from these sins that cripple us, wound us and grieve You. Holy Spirit cause us to ponder this not for a ‘guilt trip’ but for encouragement and strength to make right choices and daily grow stronger and stronger in faith, stronger and deeper in love with You. Thank You for Zela’s report that her grandfather is better and has returned home and now we pray for Zela that this illness that has come upon her will soon be gone. And we continue to pray that Becky and Bill and all the family will be comforted as they grieve; may their grieving be holy and may their assurances of seeing Jody again be firm. Send along side people to help them in practical ways especially this first year. All of us reading these words and praying alongside have more on our minds than space to write and even though it is not all spelled out here, You know and You care; of that we are confident and in that confidence we come with these Janie B. W.C. The Ellis Family. Bev. Ed Litton and family. People of Peru. Vickie. Lisa W. John Thomas. Cole. Melannie and family. Taylor & family. Anita. Kathy. J Lloyd and family. Janet and Steve. Jennifer and Kevin. Cathy. Toy and family. Katelyn. Caleb and family. Bay and family. Jennifer B. John and Carolyn. Larry and Claudia and family. Jennifer L and family. Jeanette and Earl and family. Libby and family. Randy and Vivian and Chase. Chris. Callie. Madie. Ruth. Martha F and Bob. Rev and Mrs. Carpenter. Allyson and Glen and family and Kaitlyn. Brittney and Kersten and family. Marcia and Larry and family. Sharron and girls. Frankie and girls. Sheila and Andy. Carrie and Rachel and Jacob and family. Billy and Gina and boys. Lance and family. Grace and family. Tressa and Brad and family. Cindy K and family. Cindy L and family. Chuck. Windy and Jared and families. Helen and Dan and family. Jen and Larry and family. Chad and Brittany and family. Mollie and family. Jenny. Julia. Bobbie. Tj. Zack. Phillip. Jessica. Larry. Kayla. Trey. Jacob. Ashely. Lance. Christian. Cecil. Laura and family. Mary. Doris. Chassidy. Lisa M and Family. John and Sandy

Every IDOK and every IDOK son and daughter and grandchild.
Every IDOK Pastor and Family.
Every IDOK church.
Revival in America.
IDOKs Military Families.
IDOKs Troops -Shaun. Ethan. Tommy. Christopher. Raul. Desi. Robert. Billy. Josh. George. Jonathan. Buddy. Mark. Josh W. James. Bryan. Nick. Hawk. Tommy T. Brant W.
Injured and brought State side: Anthony. Hector
Military at home adjusting – Tim. Lee. Mack. The 226. Troy. Danny. Drew. Brad.
Civilian in Country – Mike.
Thank You for answering on behalf of each of these, especially our IDOK Troops; keep them safe and bring this war to a successful conclusion we pray and bring each of them home to us safe and sound and more in love with You than when they deployed. And Holy Spirit since You have reminded me I believe, we pray for any of them who have not yet exchanged their sins for Your Righteousness – please help them do that soon and it is in Jesus name we pray. Amen and Amen.
As I post this it is 79°F and sunny expected to get much hotter as the day goes along in Baghdad, Iraq
& the time there is 7:51 AM ADT – on September 10, 2007


HIS MINISTRY TO YOU

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HELP

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IDOK DEVOTION for Friday, September 7, 2007

Pray for the Peace of Israel

Psalm 121
A Song of Ascents.
1 I will lift up my eyes to the hills—
From whence comes my help?
2 My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.

Something imperative in verse one – I will. Today I will choose to look UP. Today I WILL choose to know my help comes from the LORD. The LORD Who made the Heaven AND the earth – surely NO situation is too large, too hard, or too small that HE will not HELP me with it.
3 He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
And as I rest in this choice, He WILL NOT allow me to be moved to any place of harm. As long as I rest in this choice I will be safe. I can REST because He does NOT slumber – He never slips, He never loses attention, He never drops off to sleep; He never leaves us without HELP.
4 Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The LORD is your keeper;
The LORD is your shade at your right hand.
6 The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.
Yes, HE is our Watchman – to keep, to preserve, to guard – all this and more He is to you today! He is your COVERING over your right hand – He has got your back and all sides today – you can CHOOSE to do right today. Not even the power of the sun or the moon with all it’s gravitational pull can MOVE you today, if you choose to REST in YOUR WATCHMAN.
7 The LORD shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
8 The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore.
Yes, He is here to HELP, to preserve us, guard us, keep us, cover us, all the HELP we need wherever we go on this planet today and from this time forth — forevermore!
Father, as we begin this morning we first think of Becky and Bill and all the family as they grieve their temporary loss of Jody. We do not understand the sufferings in this present world but we KNOW YOU are our HELP. You are our Watchman and You are the ONE WHO cares for us above all others and so we pray for this family today for peace and comfort as only You can give them.
We thank You for the good report from Zela, that her grandfather has gone home from the hospital. We continue to pray for Janie and Jennifer and Toy as they endure the suffering of disease – we know You are their HELP and we are grateful for WHO YOU ARE to them, especially in this season. And we pray for these others too and we know You are equally their HELP in all situations. For our IDOK Troops You are their HELP and we are grateful and we entrust them to You today for safety and health and for their safe and sound return to us at the appointed time. Again we pray for revival in America and we pray for this Nation as we begin to seek and to vote into the Oval Office a new President in just over a year – Lord, we ask You to bring to the forefront, Your Choice and we pray that every Christian will take Your Choice to heart and to the voting booth. Lord, we need Your Choice for President, don’t let us miss him. And Father I pray for each and every IDOK today that today we will rest in the fact that You are our HELP and that not one of us will fail to choose You and Your HELP for us today and this we ask for Jesus sake. And Bev, she’s on my mind, thank You that she is always on Yours too and You are taking care of her. Thank You Father.
Zela and her Grandfather. Janie B. W.C. The Ellis Family. Bev. Ed Litton and family. People of Peru. Vickie. Lisa W. John Thomas. Cole. Melannie and family. Taylor & family. Anita. Kathy. J Lloyd and family. Janet and Steve. Jennifer and Kevin. Cathy. Toy and family. Katelyn. Caleb and family. Bay and family. Jennifer B. John and Carolyn. Larry and Claudia and family. Jennifer L and family. Jeanette and Earl and family. Libby and family. Randy and Vivian and Chase. Chris. Callie. Madie. Ruth. Martha F and Bob. Rev and Mrs. Carpenter. Allyson and Glen and family and Kaitlyn. Brittney and Kersten and family. Marcia and Larry and family. Sharron and girls. Frankie and girls. Sheila and Andy. Carrie and Rachel and Jacob and family. Billy and Gina and boys. Lance and family. Grace and family. Tressa and Brad and family. Cindy K and family. Cindy L and family. Chuck. Windy and Jared and families. Helen and Dan and family. Jen and Larry and family. Chad and Brittany and family. Mollie and family. Jenny. Julia. Bobbie. Tj. Zack. Phillip. Jessica. Larry. Kayla. Trey. Jacob. Ashely. Lance. Christian. Cecil. Laura and family. Mary. Doris. Chassidy. Lisa M and Family. John and Sandy Every IDOK and every IDOK son and daughter and grandchild. Every IDOK Pastor and Family. Every IDOK church. Revival in America. IDOKs Military Families. IDOKs Troops -Shaun. Ethan. Tommy. Christopher. Raul. Desi. Robert. Billy. Josh. George. Jonathan. Buddy. Mark. Josh W. James. Bryan. Nick. Hawk. Tommy T. Brant W. Injured and brought State side: Anthony. HectorMilitary at home adjusting – Tim. Lee. Mack. The 226. Troy. Danny. Drew. Brad. Civilian in Country – Mike.
As I post this it is 108°F and clear in Balad, Iraq & the time there is 3:06 PM ADT – on September 7, 2007


HIS MINISTRY TO YOU