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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.

Prayer for the Morning

Oh Lord, most heavenly Father, Almighty and everlasting God, who has safely brought me to the beginning of this day; I give you thanks for my creation, preservation, and all the blessings of my life. Grant that this day I fall into no sin, neither run into any kind of danger; but that all my doings, being governed by your will, may be righteous in your sight. Through Christ our Lord, I pray.

Prayer for Grace and Strength

Lord God, I pray that you will fill my heart with the blessing of your Holy Spirit. Grant me this day the strength to be temperate in all things, diligent in my duties, and patient under my afflictions. Direct me in all my ways. Give me grace to be just and upright in all my dealings; quiet and peaceable; full of compassion; and ready to do good to all people, according to my abilities and opportunities. For the sake of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,

Community of Prayer

Heavenly Lord, I know I am not alone saying these prayers or reading your Word this morning, but many people unknown to me, from all stations of life, have joined together in this brief moment of devotion. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be among the community of all who pray in the name of Christ this morning, and remain among us always.

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.

It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:10,12)

2 Samuel 21:15-22

Wars Against the Philistines

Once again there was a battle between the Philistines and Israel. David went down with his men to fight against the Philistines, and he became exhausted. And Ishbi-Benob, one of the descendants of Rapha, whose bronze spearhead weighed three hundred shekels [about 7 pounds] and who was armed with a new sword , said he would kill David. But Abishai came to David's rescue; he struck the Philistine down and killed him. Then David's men swore to him, saying, "Never again will you go out with us to battle, so that the lamp of Israel will not be extinguished."

In the course of time, there was another battle with the Philistines, at Gob. At that time Sibbecai (the Hushathite) killed Saph, one of the descendants of Rapha.

In another battle with the Philistines at Gob, Elhanan son of Jaare-Oregim (the Bethlehemite) killed Goliath (the Gittite), who had a spear with a shaft like a weaver's rod.

In still another battle, which took place at Gath, there was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He also was descended from Rapha. When he taunted Israel, Jonathan (son of David's brother Shimeah) killed him.

These four were descendants of Rapha in Gath, and they fell at the hands of David and his men.

Notes on the Scripture

These names make my head swim. It is interesting, though, to see the sheer number of tribes that still exist in the area, as the Middle East slowly makes a transition from tribal to national government.

Apparently someone named "Rapha" was a great Philistine leader, and David fought at least four battles against his descendents. In the first instance, we learn that David has gotten too old to be fighting in the heat of battle. He becomes exhausted and is almost killed; his men forbid him to fight alongside them any more.

In an interesting modern day parallel, Winston Churchill decided that he wanted to land at Normandy during the D-Day invasion. Nobody had the power to stop him; however, King George VI stated that if Churchill joined the invasion, he was going to go, too. Churchill backed down in horror.

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