Daily Devotion for November 19, 2019
Prayers
Scripture
Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever.
What do you give when you've given your all and it seems like you can’t make it through?
What do you do
When you've done all you can and it seems like its never enough?
And what do you say when your friends turn away and you're all alone?
Tell me what do you give
When you've given your all and it seems like you can't make it through ?
Well you just stand when there's nothing left to do;
You just stand watch the Lord see you through.
Yes after you've done all you can, you just stand.
Tell me how do you handle the guilt of your past?
Tell me how do you deal with the strain?
And how can you smile when your heart has been broken and filled with pain?
Tell me what do you give
When you've given your all and it seems like you can't make it through?
Child, you just stand, when there's nothing left to do;
You just stand watch the Lord see you through.
Yes after you've done all you can, you just stand, stand and be sure.
Be not entangled in that bondage, oh you just stand and endure;
God has a purpose, yes God has a plan
Tell me what do you do
When you've done all you can and seems like you can't make it through?
Child, you just stand, stand, you just stand, stand, stand, stand,
Through the storm, stand, stand through the rain.
Stand, through the hurt, stand, yeah through the pain, you just
Don't you stop, stand, and don't you bend, stand, don't give up.
Stand, no don't give in, you just
Hold on, stand, just be strong, stand.
God will step in, stand, and it won't be long, you just
After you've done all you can.
Music and Lyrics by Sylvester Stewart
A Prayer of St. Basil the Great
I bless you, O God most high and Lord of mercies, who forever works great and mysterious deeds for me, glorious, wonderful, and numberless; who provides me with sleep as a rest from my infirmities and as a repose for my body tired by labor. I thank you that you have not destroyed me in my transgressions, but in your love toward mankind you have raised me up, as I lay in despair, that I may glorify your majesty.
I entreat your infinite goodness, enlighten the eyes of my understanding and raise up my mind from the heavy sleep of indolence; open my mouth and fill it with your praise, that I may unceasingly sing and confess you, who is God glorified in all and by all, the eternal Father, the only-begotten Son, and the all-holy and good and life-giving Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
For Guidance
O God, be present with us always; dwell within our hearts. With thy light and thy Spirit guide our souls, our thoughts, and all our actions, that we may teach thy Word, that thy healing power may be in us and in thy church universal.
Blessing of Mark
O Sovereign and almighty Lord, bless all your people, and all your flock. Give your peace, your help, and your love unto us your servants, the sheep of your fold, that we may be united in the bond of peace and love, one body and one spirit, in one hope of our calling, in your divine and boundless love.
Think of the day ahead in terms of God with you, and visualize health, strength, guidance, purity, calm confidence, and victory as the gifts of His presence.
Today’s “Remember the Bible” Question
What does Philippians 4:6 tell us about anxiety?
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (ESV)
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Judith 15:14, 16:1-12 (NABRE)
The Song of Judith
Judith led all Israel in this song of thanksgiving, and the people loudly sang this hymn of praise:
trike up a song to my God with tambourines,
sing to the Lord with cymbals;
Improvise for him a new song,
exalt and acclaim his name.
For the Lord is a God who crushes wars;
he sets his encampment among his people;
he delivered me from the hands of my pursuers.
“The Assyrian came from the mountains of the north,
with myriads of his forces he came;
Their numbers blocked the wadies,
their cavalry covered the hills.
He threatened to burn my territory,
put my youths to the sword,
Dash my infants to the ground,
seize my children as plunder.
And carry off my virgins as spoil.
“But the Lord Almighty thwarted them,
by the hand of a female!
Not by youths was their champion struck down,
nor did Titans bring him low,
nor did tall giants attack him;
But Judith, the daughter of Merari,
by the beauty of her face brought him down.
“She took off her widow’s garb
to raise up the afflicted in Israel.
She anointed her face with fragrant oil;
fixed her hair with a diadem,
and put on a linen robe to beguile him.
Her sandals ravished his eyes,
her beauty captivated his mind,
the sword cut through his neck!
“The Persians trembled at her boldness,
the Medes were daunted at her daring.
When my lowly ones shouted,
and my weak ones cried out,
The enemy was terrified,
screamed and took to flight.
Sons of maidservants pierced them through;
wounded them like deserters’ children.
They perished before the ranks of my Lord.
Notes on the Scripture
Nobody will confuse this song with one of David’s great psalms. Whatever poetry might have existed in the original has been lost in translation. But it was important to the Hebrews, in their constant anxiety about attack from the great warlike empires that constantly arose on every side of them, to remember that God could and would lead them to victory, if they remained constant in their faith. They were, by and large, illiterate, and accounts of their successes needed to be memorialized in songs that could be recited or sung to the masses.
