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Reflection with Harry Davis

Every day is one day further from my first day and one day closer to my last day. Some people fear the close and wish once again for the beginning. But I fear not. For when I have climbed my last hill or hiked my last hike or fished my last creek or traveled my last trip abroad or hugged my last hug held my last hand or kissed my last kiss I will will have at least known those things and experiences.
See so many people are afraid to experience life to its fullest. Yes, there is still lots I I want to see and places I want to visit and people I want to meet and experiences I want to experience. At times I have held back because of fear of the unknown but you can not let the unknown dictate your future or you will never experience life. Yes, there are times that experiences bring pain and disappointment but they also bring joy, happiness, love and memories, mostly memories that you can share with those who you love and meet and those who choose not to experience life on their own.
Some people decide to live life through others but really what have they experienced and what do they have to share but what someone else has done. So today I say start something new and try something you have never done before and share your outcome with those closest to you so on that last day you can leave something of you behind that can never be destroyed. See it is not the money and stuff that really mean anything it is the stories, memories and love you leave behind. So why do I say I fear not for my last day which is unknown. Because I know where my future is and where my new first day will take place and although I love to be here with the ones I love I long to be home with my father in Heaven where a new life a better life begins. But until that day comes I will continue to climbed those hills, hike those hikes, fish those creeks hug those I love, hold the that hands of those dear to me and and kiss the ones closest. I will experience new experiences and share the new memories so that one day I will leave behind a part of who I am.

Todays Reflection
What will you leave behind? I pray today that your future also lies in Heaven but if not you still have time to change your future and you too can say I fear not for you will know that better life a waits you with bigger adventures than you could ever imagine.

Harry Davis – Rock Columbus

Where Were You When I needed You?

I will never forget that night. I will never forget the screams. I will never forget the sorrow. I will never forget their face. I will never forget the loss. Rewind just a few months prior, and we were celebrating the news that we were having twins. Though we were somewhat scared of the prospect of not only one but two children to take care of, it was welcome news to both Bianca and me as we had struggled through four previous miscarriages to get to this moment. After our first miscarriage, we had even received a prophecy that God would give us a double portion for the loss of our first child, so naturally, we took this as God keeping true to His promise. However, on that fateful night, everything changed.  

I had fallen asleep. I knew Bianca was cramping, but that didn’t matter, we prayed, and it was all going to be okay. Bianca also had, throughout the day, shown spotting of blood, but that didn’t matter, we had a Word from the Lord, and it was going to come to pass. The doctor had told us earlier that there was a possibility of losing one of the twins, but that was okay; we decreed and declared, God would not fail us… this time… right?  

As I leaped from the bed, it seemed to take an eternity to reach the restroom door that was a mere 10 feet away. My mind raced at the possibilities of what I was about to see, but nothing could prepare for what lay on the other side of that door. As I burst through the door, I saw Bianca holding one of the twins in her hands, apologizing profusely to him that she had let this happen somehow. I tried to console Bianca, but she was so distraught and heartbroken, there wasn’t much I could say… all I could do was hold her and weep. We then sat in our room stunned and in shock. I texted Pastor Eb and said, “The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away but blessed be the Name of the Lord.” He called us instantly and did his best to console us. After talking with him, we wrapped the babies up and placed them in a bag. I began to question God at this point. I said, “You told us there would be a double portion, yet here we are…and here I am bagging up my child like a common piece of trash! You said that You would be there for us, but where are You now. Is this how You treat Your people? Why does it seem like You are there for everyone else, but Where are You in moments I need You most?” Do you know what He said to me? Absolutely nothing, and it broke me.  

I did not talk to God for several days, but the strange thing… I knew He was there. Even Bianca felt Him during our time of grief. A woman in our congregation, at the time, said that God had shown her Jesus sitting next to Bianca, and He was holding her. God was showing us that He never left us. He was showing us that even in our anger, grief, and disappointment, that He would be there for us and still hold true to His promise.  

I began to ask God, “Why did this happen?” His response to me was, “Your view is limited, and that is why I only showed you. My promise to you and not what it would take to get to that promise. It is the journey to the promise that is the hardest.” God began to show me, throughout His Word, examples of this. From Abraham, who was promised seed that was numbered with the stars in the sky and the sands of the earth yet only seeing one son of promise in Isaac (Genesis 16-22). To Joseph, to whom he had shown, through dreams, his own family bowing before him. Yet the road to get to this promise was paved with betrayal, slavery, temptation, and injustice before God brought Him to the promise (Genesis 37-50). He then showed me Moses and said, “Remember the anger you showed towards me after losing the twins? Moses had that same anger towards the Children of Israel, and through his actions, His anger became wrath towards Me as He disobediently struck the Rock twice (Exodus-Deuteronomy). From that one act, Moses never tasted my promise for him but had to settle for a distant look” (I believe Moses may have died from a broken heart.) God told me, “Be careful not to let your anger turn to wrath towards Me, lest I fulfill through your children what was meant to be fulfilled by you.” I was taken aback by the magnitude of this statement, and I knew that my finite mind would never fully understand the plans and purposes of an infinite God. 

It took us some time, but we remembered God’s promise to us and decided to trust Him with our whole hearts. We began to see 11:11 everywhere, and God led us to Hebrews 11:11, “By faith, Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past age because she judged Him faithful who had promised.”  

One day, God told me to ask Bianca, “If God never gave you a child, would you still worship Him?” She began to cry and said, “Yes.” Two weeks later, we found out we were pregnant again, and on August 31, 2016, our beautiful daughter, Kailea, was born. Due to her being premature, she was in the NICU for 6 weeks, and on October 8, 2016, we went and picked her up from the hospital to bring her home, and after we buckled her in the car seat, I turned on the car and the clock read 11:11. Talk about God speaking. On August 16, 2019, God fulfilled the rest of his promise with the birth of our little Melina.  

My friends do not lose hope with many of us who have suffered through recent trials and losses. Do not lose sight of the fact that God is still faithful even in times that we do not understand and comprehend… He is still faithful to bring His promise to you to pass. It will cost you something though, your pride for humility; your independence for surrender. 2 Corinthians 4:17 says, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” Romans 5:3-4 says, “Not only that but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.”  So never lose hope because, without hope, you cannot have faith, and without faith, you cannot please God. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is the substance of things HOPED for and the evidence of things not seen.”   

I know the pain may still be too close for some of you, but know that He’s there, and He’s closer than you think. Just know that when you’re ready to pick up the pieces, He will be right there to help you and when you decide to turn those pieces over to Him… He will create a masterpiece.   

 

 

Shrouded In Darkness:  Divine Protection By Pastor Brandon Johnson

Shrouded In Darkness:  Divine Protection  

“Dad…Dad, wake up! Bianca needs you upstairs. There is  something wrong with Kailea.” These were the words that our oldest daughter, Destiny, said to me early Wednesday morning. Startled out of my sleep, I rushed upstairs, afraid of what I would find. On my way upstairs, a story that Bianca had shared with me years ago popped into my head. It was a story about a couple who  took in their son for his immunizations, and that evening the mother told Bianca that she literally watched as the “light left his  eyes.” The mother said their son has been autistic since that moment. This story had only come to my mind because Kailea had just had her immunizations that day to prepare for kindergarten. In my short trip upstairs, that story played at least twice in my head, not helping matters. I arrived in the room to find concerned looks all around. When I saw Kailea, I knew this was not normal. Her face was gray, her eyes were slightly open,  and she was trying to talk but could not form words. When we would call her name, it seemed as if something was turning her away from us while it seemed that she was fighting to turn her head towards us. My mother-in-law described it best, “You could  see something trying to suck Kailea’s mind back like she was  being pulled away.” I laid my hands on her, and we began to pray for her. We took her downstairs to our room so we could keep a close eye on her. Bianca became angry and said that this was an attack by the enemy to steal our daughter from us. I believe this to be true, especially since Pastor Eb, Pastor Percell, and I had only finished the “Shrouded In Darkness” series a few days prior.  Also, this was not the only attack; by the time the last part of our series had finished, I had only the use of one hand and one good leg due to flared arthritis within the joints. So we prayed for  Kailea again and anointed her with oil. This time we took authority and commanded the foul spirit to leave our daughter alone. I picked up my Bible and turned to Psalms 91, and began  to read it over her:

He who dwells in the secret place of the Highest Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 

2I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” 

3Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the [a]fowler And from the perilous pestilence. 

4He shall cover you with His feathers, 

And under His wings you shall take refuge; 

His truth shall be your shield and [b]buckler. 

5You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, 

Nor of the arrow that flies by day, 

6Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, 

Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday. 

7A thousand may fall at your side, 

And ten thousand at your right hand; 

But it shall not come near you.

8Only with your eyes shall you look, 

And see the reward of the wicked. 

9Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, Even the Highest, your dwelling place, 

10No evil shall befall you, 

Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling; 

11For He shall give His angels charge over you,  

To keep you in all your ways.  

12 In their hands they shall [c]bear you up,  

Lest you [d]dash your foot against a stone.  

13 You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra,  

The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot. 

14 “Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver  him; 

I will [e]set him on high because he has known My name. 15He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; 

I will be with him in trouble; 

I will deliver him and honor him. 

16With [f]long life I will satisfy him, 

And show him My salvation.” 

Many understand Psalms 91 to be a song of protection from pestilence, plagues, and fowlers, in other words, bad things from happening to them, but that was not the only reason I was using this Psalm.  

As I started preparing my sermon, “Shrouded In Darkness,” I  began to read the works of scholars who had a deep knowledge of the Greek and Hebrew in both the New and Old Testaments concerning demonic origins and oppression, and deliverance. What I  found amazed me and showed me how truly deep God’s Word really is and how seamlessly it weaves together.

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High:  

עליון) El Elyon) means Most High God, which is the same language found in Deuteronomy 32:8 when it says that the Highest God divided the human race into portions that were allotted to the lesser sons of God (the Bene Elohim: the watchers) while  God made Israel His portion. The Watchers fell and became hostile supernatural forces. So El Elyon is the Name of God that separates Him from the sons of God who fell, had children with the daughters of men (Genesis 6), and was worshipped among these nations. Their descendants, once they died, became disembodied spirits that could not be redeemed because of their hybrid nature and became what we know as demons today.  

3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the [a]fowler  And from the perilous pestilence.  

  

Pestilence in the 3rd verse is not what it seems throughout this  Psalm. Due to a missed translation by the Septuagint translators, the Hebrew word here is רֶּבֶּ ד) deber). December is actually a name  of a Canaanite deity and is used 50 times in the Bible, including  once again in verse 6 of this chapter where it says, “nor the  pestilence that stalks in darkness.”

V4 He will cover you with His Pinions (Feathers of Flight like in Isaiah 40:31), and under His wings, you will find refuge (like an Eagle protects her young). His faithfulness is a Shield and Buckler (small shield). 

This talk of God’s faithfulness and truth being a shield is very reminiscent of the language Paul uses in Ephesians 6:11-16 when talking of the Armor of God. We see another possible tie  to Ephesians 6 in verse 5 of Psalm 91, which reads, 

You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the ARROW that flies by day. 

Ephesians 6:16 says that it is with the Shield of Faith that you  will be able to extinguish the “Flaming Arrows of the evil one.” 

The ancient Canaanite deity referenced in verse 5 of Psalm 91 is, “Resheph” a deity depicted as an archer who would shoot flaming arrows at his enemies. 

“Nor the destruction that wastes at noonday.” 

The word, “destruction,” here is the Hebrew word, בֶ טֶק) Qeteb) believed arguably to be a Canaanite deity closely related to their  kind of taunting these deities in Hosea 13:14,

“I shall ransom them from the power of Sheol; I shall redeem them from Death (Mot). 

O Death (Mot), where are your plagues (Deber)? O Sheol, where is your sting (Qeteb)?  

Dr. Michael Heiser interprets this best when he says it’s like  God is saying, “Hey Mot, where’re your buddies, deber and qeteb? They weren’t too effective here, and now I’m going to  redeem the people out your hands.” 

This is the God we serve, the one who openly shames the enemy as He redeems His people. Colossians 2:15 reads, 

“He disarmed the rulers and authorities and disgraced them  publicly; He triumphed over them by Him.” 

Let’s return to Psalm 91:7-10, 

“A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. V8 You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked.  V9 Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place— The Most High, who is my refuge. V10 No evil shall be  allowed to befall you; no plague will come near your tent.”

Now let’s read the part that Satan quoted to Jesus (Matthew 4), beginning with verse 11: 

“For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. V12 On their hands, they will bear you  up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.” 

Satan conveniently left out verse 13 for a reason, 

“You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion  and the serpent you will trample underfoot.” 

I would have left it out as well if I were him, but he had to of known that Jesus knew the next verse, but Jesus chose to let  Satan experience this first hand at the Cross, Burial, and  Resurrection. 

It has been recorded within the Dead Sea Scrolls that David wrote over 4,000 Psalms. Only 4 of them were recorded as being for the “possessed,” and Psalms 91 was found among them.  

This is why I chose this Psalm to read over to my daughter that night. Psalms 91 is not about a guarantee that you’re not going to get sick or that you’re never going to have any troubles if you read it over yourself. Psalms 91 is a reminder to the Devil and  all demonic forces that they are defeated, and my family and I 

are under my Father’s protection as long as I dwell in that Secret  Place. 

The next day after this attack, our daughter woke up and slowly returned to her normal self. I believe this was due to fervent prayer, faith in God, and the use of God’s Word to remind Satan that we dwell in the Secret Place of the Most High, which means he has no place in our lives and he is defeated. 

  

– Pastor Brandon Johnson

 

 

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