Quote from Forum Archives on September 25, 2000, 5:47 pm

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

My mother used to read (and keep a copy laying around) of the
small, monthly devotional called Guideposts. Being the 21st
century, I can now find such things online, more often than not.
Every now and then, I still find Guideposts to be useful in my
arsenal of devotional reading, which complements my regular
reading of scripture. Today is another such example.

I remember a story about King David, and how he managed to
conquer the Philistines by pretending he was a "madman", hung
around Gaza (or somewhere in the Philistine region), gathering
information about the Philistine technology. You see, the
Philistines were the "evil country" of the day, the "instrument
of the devil", to use the terminology mentioned in the message
below.

King David realized that the Philistines knew how to mine and
process iron, to be used in weapons, and in this manner, they
dominated the world. David learned their technology, mastered
it, and then later used it to defeat the Philistines. You can
read all about David's adventures in 2 Samuel.

What does this have to do with us today? Well, for one thing, I
am an active proponent of the Internet. I think it is an
excellent tool for disseminating information. We can choose to
send out good stuff, or we can send out smutty trash, or many
things in between. To me, my charge is clear. As a soldier in
the Army of God, I choose to serve Him. So I use every weapon
that He gives me. The one thing I have to be careful about is to
first seek the counsel of God before charging into battle (to
continue the metaphor).

Dear Lord, help me to seek You first in everything, and use
every instrument available to point the way back to You (from all
of the places that I wander). Lead, not only me, but all who
would call on You, safely back to You, that we may spend this
lifetime, and eternity, with You. Thank you for every gift that
You provide.

I do pray for those seeking encouragement today. Please hear
their prayers. Please cleanse our country, from deep within,
that we may yet give our allegiance back to You, where it
belongs. Amen.

Brother Brian

spiritual.crosswalk.com/devo/guideposts?ref=lm

September 25

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen." - Hebrews 11:1

I didn't know much about the Internet, but what I had heard about
it had convinced me it was an instrument of the devil. It took an
experience of my good friend Bettye Weatherford to make me
realize how wrong I was.

Bettye has a disease called mastocytosis, a disorder of the mast
cells, which are part of the body's system of self-defense. It is
not a widespread or well-known illness. In fact, when Bettye was
diagnosed in 1986, she was told that hers was only the five
hundredth documented case in the world. It is a complicated and
painful disease, and Bettye needs to be hospitalized four weeks
out of every five. In addition, the rarity of her condition had
made her feel isolated and alone.

Then Bettye's son Bob discovered the Mastocytosis Society on the
Internet (www.mast.gil.com.au). The society publishes The
Mastocytosis Chronicles, written by and for mastocytosis
patients. When Bob asked for information, he received hundreds of
replies from patients, their families and friends, some from as
far away as Australia.

"Through them," Bettye says, "and the newsletter, which I receive
regularly, I've gained information not just for myself, but for
my doctors also. And now I have hope and faith that the ongoing
research will eventually find a cure for this disease."

As for me, my eyes have been opened to the ability of the
Internet to provide vast amounts of good, useful data, as well as
access to caring people who can help turn a bad situation around
to good. -

Prayer: Lord of the present and the future, increase my faith so
that I may accept the blessings You have waiting for me, whether
I first understand them or not.

--Drue Duke

=====
--
Brian Masinick, "The Mas", mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/
The Rules Have Changed...Get Paid to Surf the Web!
www.alladvantage.com/home.asp?refid=BKU-690

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