Nehemiah 4 (résumé): Opposition to the rebuilding

The opponents of the Jews, Sanballat and Tobiah, ridiculed the Jews' building endeavors saying that the walls were so fragile that just a fox could break them down! Nehemiah didn't argue with them. He prayed asking God to turn their insults back on their own heads, and the building continued with the walls now reaching the half-way stage. In the light of this the opponents of God's people plotted to attack them so Nehemiah prayed and posted guards day and night. In the light of possible imminent attacks half the men worked and half the men guarded. Then too men worked with one hand but had a weapon in the other hand, but nothing could stop the Jews progressing with their building work for the glory of God.

Nehemiah 3 (résumé): The building of the Wall

This chapter relates how the re-building of the wall of Jerusalem was organized with different groups made responsible for different sections of the wall. This was team work with everyone doing their part for the benefit of all and for the glory of God. Thus sections such as the Sheep Gate, the Fish Gate, the Jeshanah Gate, the Valley Gate, The Dung Gate, the Fountain Gate, the Water Gate, the Horse Gate and the Inspection Gate and their respective sections of wall were divided between all the workers available and committed to the task.

Nehemiah 2 (résumé): Artaxerxes send Nehemiah to Jerusalem

In the 20th year of the reign of Artaxerxes Nehemiah was serving the king with wine when the king noticed that Nehemiah was low in spirit and asked him what was the matter. Nehemiah said that he was sad because his homeland's capital city of Jerusalem was in ruins and the gates had been burnt down. He then plucked up courage and asked the king to send him to Jerusalem to rebuild it. He asked for covering letters to guarantee him safe passage and to give him the supplies necessary for the building work, and God answered Nehemiah's prayers and the king granted his requests. However Sanballat and Tobiah, regional officials, were opposed to all this.

But Nehemiah therefore went to Jerusalem with King Artaxerxes' blessing and after being there 3 days he set out on a secret mission of appraisal of the precise situation of the city, but he told nobody of his plans at this stage. When he had a complete understanding of the situation Nehemiah approached the priests, nobles and officials of Israel calling them to join him in rebuilding the walls and telling them how God was with him in giving him the backing of the king, and the Jews agreed with Nehemiah's plan. But when Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem heard this news they mocked and ridiculed them suggesting that in fact they were conjuring up a rebellion. Nehemiah rejected their criticism saying that God would give them success in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. 

Pastor Frank Dyer

Frank Dyer served with EAB/ACEV between 1949 and 1987. Our school in Patos bears his name as does a street in Patos. Now we have just been informed that a street in the state capital of João Pessoa has also been named after him. ACEV also has a street named after it in the town of Tavares and Albert Mundy, EAB/ACEV's founder, also has a street named after him in Patos. All glory be to God for these recognitions of the service of these men of God.

On Tuesday there was a staggering battle between the police and the Red Command organized crime gang in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro which killed 132 and saw 81 arrested. The gang even attacked the police with small bombs dropped from drones! However my friend Pastor Antonio Carlos Costa of Rio de Janeiro says that the crux of the problem in the favelas is social and dealing with this is what will best solve the problem.

On Wednesday we had a lovely video meeting with Peter and Corinne White of Billericay Baptist Church catching up with their news and sharing our news with them.

I have finished the résumé of the 15th book of the Bible, Ezra, which means I have now covered nearly 35% of the chapters of the Bible with 413 chapters done out of 1,189. Now on to Nehemiah. 

Yesterday we made a nice visit to by nurse sister Joy at High Wycombe and had lunch with her. We then went with her to visit her 80-year-old husband Laurence who is in a care home with dementia. We were sad to see the condition he is in but happy to see him laughing a lot. He clearly recognized Philip and spoke his name but I am not sure if he recognized Liz and I. It was good to see that he is being well cared for.

Liz has given me an early Christmas present! It is an absolutely beautiful calendar! It is a QPR calendar! 😀

Destruction of the Amazon rain forest is at its third lowest level in history it has just been revealed. The minister of the environment Marina Silva is an evangelical Christian.

Nehemiah 1 (résumé): Nehemiah's prayer

The book of Nehemiah may well have been originally one book together with Ezra as it covers the same historical period when the Jews were returning to Jerusalem from their Babylonian exile. Nehemiah was an Israelite in Persia who led the re-building of Jerusalem's walls and led the spiritual renewal of God's people. He was cupbearer to King Artaxerxes. 

Nehemiah learns of the sorry situation in which Jerusalem finds itself with its walls broken down and its gates burnt. He learns that the survivors of the exile are in great trouble and disgrace. Nehemiah mourned, fasted and prayed about the situation because above all else Nehemiah was a man of prayer. Nehemiah therefore confessed his own sin and that of the people. He acknowledged their disobedience and wickedness. But he beseeched God's mercy and help as he is about to intercede with the king on behalf of Jerusalem and its people.

Ezra 10 (résumé): The people's confession of sin

As Ezra prayed and confessed sin in tears the people gathered round him weeping also. Then Shekaniah proposed a covenant to Ezra saying that the Israelites should divorce all foreign women sending them away with their children. And as Ezra considered this in mourning he spent a period in a total fast without food or water. Then everyone was summoned to Jerusalem and Ezra declared that Shekaniah was right and all foreign women and children were to be sent away. The book then closes listing all the 113 men who had fallen into the sin of inter-racial marriage.

Ezra 9 (résumé): Ezra's prayer about intermarriage

 Ezra was evaluating the spiritual state of Israel and the leaders informed him that widespread inter-marriage had been going on between pagan nationals and Israelites against the law of God. This practice was even rife amongst priests and Levites! This news devastated Ezra who tore his tunic and cloak and pulled his hair out, and at the time of the evening sacrifice with the people gathered round him he fell on his knees and prayed a prayer of confession. Ezra said before God that he was ashamed and disgraced. He admitted and confessed that his people had forsaken God's commands, practicing evil deeds of great guilt involving inter-racial marriage.

Return to Brazil

We are looking forward to our return to Patos in the state of Paraíba, in north-east Brazil next week. Our Euro trip has been excellent and perhaps the trip we have most enjoyed and felt blessed in over the years. Our thanks to Philip, Gylmara, Lucas and Luis for being so kind to us and thanks to everyone else who has helped and contributed to the success of our visit. May God bless you all and please pray for us as we return.

On our final Sunday in the UK on this trip we will be speaking this Sunday at Christ Church Chineham, Basingstoke, RG24 8LT at 10 am. Please join us if you can!

Donkey Haven news from Brazil is that a husband has been found for our female donkey Merrylegs! He is King Solomon! Our haven now exists in the light of the slaughter of donkeys in Brazil that has wiped our 94% of Brazil's donkeys. Animal lovers can help us save the Brazilian donkeys by sponsoring a donkey for just £10 a month to cover feed and care. Perhaps your Sunday School children might like to do this?

We believe in team work in the work of God. We have a team of 11 leaders leading our churches at a general national level. We have a team of 11 leaders leading our Patos church at a local level. We have a team of 8 leading our social action projects. We have a team of 5 leading our annual 10-day evangelistic outreaches. In other words EAB/ACEV always work in teams! We do not have one-man bands! Team work means a discerning of God's will together. Team work means a sharing of the load. Team work means opportunities for everyone. Team work guarantees continuity. Jesus didn't chose one disciple. He chose a team of 12!

Yesterday we went to the Vyne historic house and grounds owned by the National Trust, and it was a very interesting and healthy day. The Vyne was built between 1500 (when Brazil was discovered by the Portuguese) and 1520, and was visited by King Henry VIII. The 16th century construction transformed an earlier medieval manor house. The Chute family bought it in the 17th century and revamped it. All this is to show that old beautiful houses can be preserved and cared for. It was lovely to see many apple trees laden with fruit in the Vyne's grounds with Red Kites swooping overhead beside a lake.

Ezra 8 (résumé): 2nd returning exiles from Babylon

Now Ezra listed the heads of the families which returned with him from exile in Babylon during the reign of King Artaxerxes. They assembled at the Ahava canal and camped there for 3 days. Then Ezra noted a lack of Levites so he made a call-up to rectify this. Then Ezra proclaimed a fast to ask of God a safe journey as the Jews travelled without armed escort whilst trusting in God. Then Ezra entrusted to the leading priests all the silver and gold for the temple, and the entourage left the Ahava canal and arrived in Jerusalem where they rested for 3 days. After resting all the silver and gold was duly accounted for and the exiles that had returned sacrificed 12 bulls, 96 rams, 77 male lambs and 12 male goats. 

Ezra 7 (résumé): Ezra comes to Jerusalem

 About 60 years passed between chapter 6 and 7 of Ezra and now it is the reign of King Artaxerxes of Persia. It is now that Ezra appears in the narrative. Ezra was a priest, descendant of Aaron, who came to Jerusalem from Babylon with a new wave of returning exiles. Ezra was a teacher well versed in the Law of Moses, and the hand of God was on him. He came to Jerusalem in the 7th year of Artaxerxes together with priests, Levites, musicians, gate keepers and temple servants. King Artaxerxes gave Ezra a commissioning letter authorizing him to teach the law and use the gold, silver and free will offerings he received for the furtherance of the work of God and his people.  He also authorized substantial supplies from the treasurers of the Trans-Euphrates and exempted them from taxes or tributes. He also authorized Ezra to appoint magistrates and judges to govern in accordance with the Law. Ezra praised God for the king's extraordinary support and backing which he rightly saw a sign that the hand of the Lord was upon him. 

Ezra 6 (résumé): The decree of Darius

King Darius had the archives searched and indeed King Cyrus's decree was discovered on a scroll legitimizing the rebuilding of the Israelite temple as the Jews had said. Therefore King Darius ordered Tattenai to keep out of it and that the expenses of the work be funded by the royal treasury. He said that whatever the priests requested should be given without fail including what they needed in terms of animals for sacrifices. Darius yet said that anyone who disobeys his decree should be impaled on a beam of his house and have his house destroyed. Hence Tattenai and helpers were obliged to diligently obey orders and the temple's rebuilding was concluded in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius and the dedication of the temple was carried out with joy. They offered 100 bulls, 200 rams, 400 male lambs, and as a sin offering 12 male goats representing the 12 tribes of Israel.  And in the first month they celebrated the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread.

EAB Celebration

On Saturday the 87th EAB AGM and celebration was held and it was a real blessing. Thank you very much indeed to everyone who went! There was a very good number present.

First of all an EAB Board of Trustees meeting was held in the afternoon and that went very well with only Mary missing as she was caring for her 90-year-old husband Keith who had had a minor stroke the previous day. Get well soon Keith!

Next came the fellowship tea beautifully done by Hazel and team. There was enough to feed the 5,000 and all was delicious. We had a good time chatting to folk while we ate, and sadly it was at this point that I learnt that QPR had been beaten away to Derby 1 x 0. 😞

People kept arriving and it was a joy to see my best man Peter Miles arriving with his wife Marion. Peter is a friend since childhood who used to live in the next street to mine in North Kensington and we went to the same church Peniel Chapel. It was good to learn that he is still preaching at his local parish church. Pastor David Fiddy and his wife Margaret arrived from Wiltshire, my in-laws arrived from London and so it went on! The number present was most encouraging.

The celebration service was great. Roy led; Dave, Philip, Mike, Amy and Russel led the praise and worship; Liz and I spoke; Philip sang Psalm 84 in Portuguese to a Brazilian Bossa Nova rhythm; we prayed for Amy who will be doing a mission trip to Brazil in January, and so things came to a joyful close.

Yesterday we had a nice meal with my nurse sister Joy who came to spend time with us from High Wycombe. It was a lovely day.

Ezra 5 (résumé): Tattenai's letter to Darius

The prophets Haggai and Zechariah prophesied to the Jews in Judah and Jerusalem and so Zerubbabel and Joshua son of Jozadak restarted their building of the temple. Then the Trans-Euphrates governor Tattenai went and asked who had authorized this work? The Israelites replied saying that the reconstruction of the temple had been authorized by King Darius of Babylon in a decree, and who even returned many gold and silver articles that had been removed from the temple by Nebuchadnezzar so as to be available for the rebuilt temple. So Tattenai requested a search of the royal archives to see if this decree was indeed made. 

Worker needs Prayer

Please pray for our worker called Antonio Gelsheuchter who has had open heart bypass surgery after having a heart attack. Antonio is 60 years old and works with us up in the mountains at Imaculada where Lindon Carlos is the senior pastor.

Further deaths have occurred in Brazil in the poisoned alcoholic drinks scandal and 10 people have now died.

I am happy to have concluded my résumé of 2nd Chronicles which is the 14th book of the Bible. This means I have completed 403 chapters which is nearly 34% of the Bible done. Now on to Ezra!

Please pray for our 15-year-old granddaughter Beatriz (Bia) who has been diagnosed by a specialist in João Pessoa as having an extremely grave allergy to cats fur and grave allergies to maize, melon, coconut and oranges. Bia is the youngest daughter of Sacha.

Last night I was back to winning ways against Philip in chess winning another 2 games. 

Ezra 4 (résumé): Opposition to the rebuilding of the Temple

When the enemies of Judah heard about the rebuilding of the temple they offered to help, but they were turned down. So the enemies set about to discourage the people of Judah and to make them afraid of continuing to build, and they bribed officials to try and thwart the work.

Later on at the beginning of the reign of Xerxes these enemies made an accusation against Judah to King Artaxerxes saying that the returned exiles were trouble makers and rebellious and that the royal revenues would suffer if they were allowed to reestablish themselves. King Artaxerxes reviewed the matter and agreed with the complaint. He therefore commanded the Jews to halt their rebuilding work and it stopped until the second year of the reign of Darius king of Persia.

Ezra 3 (résumé): Rebuilding the altar & the temple

The Israelites assembled in Jerusalem and Joshua son of Jozadak and Zerubbabel began to build the altar for burnt offerings, and once built they started offering sacrifices morning and evening and then they celebrated the Festival of Tabernacles. After this they resumed regular sacrifices according to the law of Moses even though the temple was not yet rebuilt.

Then they paid the masons and carpenters to rebuild the temple and organized the bringing of cedar logs from Lebanon as authorized by King Cyrus of Persia. Then they started the rebuilding of the temple supervised by the Levites. When the foundations were laid the priests and Levites praised the Lord saying: He is good; his love towards Israel endures for ever! Then all the people gave a great shout because the foundations had been laid. The older priests and Levites wept whilst others shouted for joy making a noise that could be heard afar off. 

Ezra 2 (résumé): List of first exiles to return

This chapter contains a census of the 42,360 exiles initially returning to Jerusalem plus 7,337 slaves, male and female singers, 736 horses, 245 mules, 435 camels and 6,720 donkeys. The census focuses especially on the priests, Levites and musicians essential for the temple to function, which was the aim of this first group of returning exiles, but some would-be priests were excluded because they could not prove their priestly descent and credentials. Some gave freewill offerings totalling 500 kg of gold, 2.8 tons of silver and 100 priestly garments for the rebuilding and functioning of the temple.

Ezra 1 (résumé): Cyrus helps the exiles to return

The book of Ezra is a book about Israel re-emerging as a nation after the 70 year Babylonian exile. This book picks up exactly where 2 Chronicles ended. The first section covers the initial return of the exiles from Babylon to Jerusalem over the first 6 chapters, culminating with the re-building of the temple. The second section from chapters 7-10 covers the second return of exiles led by Ezra who was a priest. 

Persia conquered Babylon in 539 BC led by King Cyrus the Great bringing to the end the exile of Israel. Chapter 1 relates the decree of Cyrus, given to him by God, which authorizes the release of the Israelites to go and rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Cyrus encouraged people to give the returning exiles silver, gold, goods and livestock as freewill offerings for the Jerusalem temple, and many made their contributions. Cyrus also gave those returning to Jerusalem 5,400 silver and gold articles that had been seized from the temple by Nebuchadnezzar. 

2 Chronicles 36 (résumé): The fall of Jerusalem

Now Josiah's son Jehoahaz became king of Judah at the age of 23 but his reign only lasted 3 months because the king of Egypt dethroned him and replaced him with his brother Eliakim whom he renamed Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim reigned for 11 years and did evil in the sight of the Lord. Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon put him in bronze shackles and took him to Babylon together with articles from the temple. Jehoiakim was succeeded by his son Jehoiachin and he reigned for just 3 months and 10 days until Nebuchadnezzar took him to Babylon and replaced him with his uncle Zedekiah. He reigned for 11 years and did evil before God and did not humble himself before the prophet Jeremiah who spoke God's word to him, and the nation became consistency spiritually lost. God sent messages consistently to Judah but these were not heeded and they even mocked God's messengers so that the Lord perceived that there was no remedy for the people's perverseness. Hence God brought up the king of Babylon against them and they killed the young men of Judah with the sword and many more with them. They carried off the treasures from the temple, set fire to the temple, burnt the palaces and destroyed everything of value. Those who were not killed were carried into exile in Babylon until 70 years were completed according to the word spoken by Jeremiah, until the kingdom of Persia came to power.

Sponsored Child

Another person asked for information about a man who was her sponsored child in our school in the town of Juru many years back. Today he is 26, got married in June, and they are expecting a baby girl. He is very well and very happy, and sent profuse thanks for when he was a sponsored EAB Action Child. Today he lives in São Paulo where he works at a sugar-making processing plant.

Yesterday we had a nice lunch and chat in the Basingstoke shopping centre with my music teaching sister Jean. I explained to my sister about the Bolsa Família benefit for the very poor which was a wonderful thing President Lula introduced 22 years ago. I also explained to her the SUS health system which is Brazil's NHS, only in Brazil you can see your GP easily! Our grandson John David is a GP. I also explained the role of Agentes Comunitárias de Saúde which are community health visitors.

Last night QPR won away to Swansea 1 x 0 and are now up to 8th in the Championship. In chess my son beat me twice. He is learning fast!

I have heard from Brazil that sister Amélia, wife of Pastor Arnóbio, who used to be pastor back in the 80s of the Patos Congregational Church, went to be with the Lord yesterday, aged 77. Please pray for Pastor Arnóbio. I also am told by Pastor Rafael that the Lord blessed the Life Squad evangelizing the Men's Prison yesterday and one prisoner made a commitment to Christ. Please pray that this will be a genuine conversion.

Don't forget the EAB 87th AGM, tea and celebration on Saturday night at 6 pm! See you there! 😀

2 Chronicles 35 (résumé): Josiah celebrates the Passover

Now King Josiah celebrated the Passover on the 14th day of the 1st month, in the 18th year of his reign. He ordered the slaughter of the Passover lambs and the consecration of the people. Josiah gave 30,000 lambs and goats for the Passover offerings and 3,000 cattle. Officials also contributed to the Passover voluntarily with lambs and cattle. Then the Passover lambs were slaughtered and roasted, and the priests were sacrificing burnt offerings till nightfall, and the musicians and gatekeepers were in their rightful places. Following the Passover the Festival of Unleavened Bread was celebrated for 7 days. Never had there been a celebration of the Passover like this since the days of the prophet Samuel and no other king had celebrated the Passover than had done King Josiah. 

So after Josiah had completely set the temple in order King Necho of Egypt came to battle with Josiah, and in the stand-off which ensued Josiah was killed and he was buried in Jerusalem. Jeremiah composed laments for Josiah and many laments were sung.

Bedford

Today we went to Bedford with our good friend Marian Rashleigh who very kindly drove us there and back. In Bedford we saw old Peniel Chapel friends whom I have known all my life. They are Michael and Joan Heard aged 98 and 88 respectively. They are so well and it was great to see them and have lunch and fellowship with them chatting about the work of the Lord. On the journey I saw a Buzzard and a number of Starlings.

Last night we had a lovely British roast beef meal at the house of Ben and Miriam Price. Miriam is a Brazilian from Princesa Isabel. They met when Ben came to Brazil with a group from the London School of Theology in 1996 and I conducted their wedding 2 years later. For a number of years they led our church at Ibiara. It was great to have a good chat together and to learn about Ben's greatly improved health. Praise God!

I am thrilled to hear from Patos that one of the young people, Danrlei, who had withdrawn from the church, is back! Glory to God! We faithfully prayed for him in the Thursday night prayer meetings for a long time, putting his name on the flip chart list... and God has answered our prayer. 

2 Chronicles 34 (résumé): Josiah's reforms and discovery of the Book

Josiah was 8 when he became king of Judah and he reigned for 31 years. He did what was right before God and ruthlessly combatted paganism smashing its altars, idols and poles. He purged Judah of paganism even burning the bones of pagan priests on their altars. He then repaired the temple and used the money received in the temple to pay the carpenters and builders. The Levites oversaw the workers from job to job. Then amidst their work renovating and restoring the temple Priest Hilkiah found the Book of the Law and reported it to King Josiah. When Josiah heard the words of the Law he tore his robes and sought God as to its meaning, sad because it had been previously ignored and had not been obeyed. Then they went and consulted Hulda the prophetess and she said that all the curses of the book would come upon the people because of their disobedience, but because the king had been humble and contrite he would die before God's judgement fell upon his people and not have to see it. So King Josiah renewed the covenant with the Lord and he made all the people pledge themselves to it. He removed paganism from the land and all were faithful to God under his leadership. 

2 Chronicles 33 (résumé): Manasseh king of Judah

Manasseh was 12 when he became king and he reigned for 55 years. He was a wicked king completely the opposite to his father Hezekiah. He revived pagan Baal and Asherah worship, he sacrificed his own children burning them alive, and he practiced divination, witchcraft and spiritism which all greatly angered God. Manasseh completely led the people of God astray. God spoke to Manasseh but he would not take heed. So God brought the Assyrians against him and they took him prisoner, put a hook in his nose, and took him in shackles to Babylon. There Manasseh humbled himself and cried to God who had mercy on him and restored him to Jerusalem. There he rebuilt the outer wall and installed military commanders in all the fortified cities. He then greatly reduced paganism, removed the image he had previously put in the temple, and reintroduced worship and sacrifice to the Lord. When Manasseh died he was succeeded by his son Amon, at the age of 22, who only reigned for 2 years and did evil in the sight of God reintroducing paganism. He was assassinated and replaced by his son Josiah. 

Love is in the air

You may remember me talking about our new Donkey Haven at Green Pastures and the young female donkey that we have. Well I have just spoken to Orlando in Patos who tells me of a possible young male donkey acquisition. We hope the couple will be very happy if things work out! 😊This donkey haven is a Christian response to 94% of Brazilian donkeys having been killed for the Chinese market.

Thanks to Linda Elliot in Canada, and Roberto Tiburtino, Veronica Morais and Manoel B. Lucena in Brazil for their kind comments on this blog. 

We have just got back to Basingstoke from an excellent weekend in Essex. First we went to Leigh on Sea to visit our dear friend in Christ Sid Wilder who will be 93 next Sunday. We have known Sid for over 50 years and he has been a fine supporter of EAB. Sid is reaching the end of his life on earth, but it was a joy to share with him news of the work in Brazil which clearly filled his heart with joy. His peaceful faith amidst his suffering greatly spoke to our hearts.

We then went and had a lovely meal with Mark and H'tay of the Danbury Mission followed by a meeting with their home group in which we shared about our life and ministry. Then today we spoke at both morning services of Danbury Mission, followed by a lovely fellowship lunch at Geoff and Maggy Spence's house followed by a long slow drive home in heavy rain.

Sadly QPR lost at home to Millwall 2 x 1 yesterday! 😖

Bad news from our neighbouring state of Pernambuco where a coach accident killed 17 and injured another 17. The driver lost control of the coach, hit some rocks and turned the coach over. 

2 Chronicles 32 (résumé): Sennacherib threatens Jerusalem

After all Hezekiah's faithfulness Sennacherib king of Assyria came and invaded Judah as he aimed to conquer Jerusalem. So Hezekiah reinforced the defenses of Jerusalem and controlled the water supplies so that is wasn't readily available to the Assyrians. He also worked on encouraging his people to trust in God despite the vast superiority of the encroaching army. Sennacherib ridiculed Judah's trust in God saying Assyria was unbeatable. Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah therefore cried to the Lord for help and God sent an angel who annihilated all the Assyrian fighting men, officers and commanders. This led to Hezekiah being highly regarded internationally. 

Then Hezekiah became seriously ill but he prayed and God healed him. However he filled with pride over this which angered God until Hezekiah repented. Hezekiah's wealth and honour grew and grew in silver, gold, spices, grain, wine and olive oil, and he acquired great numbers of flocks and herds. Hezekiah succeeded in all he undertook. When he finally died it was his son Manasseh who succeeded him.

Essex

This coming weekend we will be speaking at the Danbury Mission, 54 Maldon Road, Danbury, Chelmsford, CM3 4QL in Essex. There will be 2 services on the Sunday at 9 am and 11 am and I will be speaking at both. Please be there if you can. We will also be taking part in a house group at Colchester on the Saturday night linked to this church. On the way to these meetings we will be going to visit EAB supporter Sid Wilder who is unwell.

Liz went to London by train yesterday to do some shopping with her sister Esther. She enjoyed her day.

I have received news of someone in one of our churches who was tricked into giving £2,500 to thieves through an online scam. I recommend that all our pastors give a word of warning about scams to their people.

2 Chronicles 31 (résumé): Contributions for Worship

 After the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread had been celebrated the people went to the towns of Judah in a campaign against paganism smashing the pagan stones, destroying the high places and cutting down the Asherah poles of the Canaanite goddess of fertility. (Asherah is mentioned 40 times in the Old Testament. This goddess clearly was an attraction to the Israelites and therefore a stumbling block to them with apparently licentious rites and "sacred" prostitution.)

Then King Hezekiah reorganized the work and ministry of the priests and Levites in the temple and personally contributed from his own possessions in terms of offerings. He then ordered the people to contribute in the support of the priests and Levites to that they could dedicate themselves to the work of the Lord, and they gave generously a tithe of everything producing great heaps of contributions, so they prepared storerooms for this. Kore was in charge of the free-will offerings given to God and a list is given of people responsible for the distribution of the tithes and gifts. Thus Hezekiah always worked wholeheartedly for God and for this reason he prospered.

2 Chronicles 30 (résumé): Hezekiah celebrates the Passover

King Hezekiah decided to celebrate the Passover which hadn't been done for many years. However it was celebrated a month late because neither priests or people were prepared earlier. Hezekiah sent out a proclamation to all Judah and Israel calling everyone to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. He called on all who had escaped Assyrian exile to not be stiff-necked but to submit to the Lord. However many people in Israel scorned and ridiculed the messengers, but some humbled themselves and went to Jerusalem. There was unity in Judah to follow the way of the Lord. So a large crowd gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover and accompanying Feast of Unleavened Bread. They slaughtered the Passover lambs and offered up burnt offerings in the temple. Hezekiah interceded for those from northern Israel who had not come adequately prepared and God forgave them. After the Passover the people celebrated the Feast of Unleavened Bread for twice as long as usual such was the happiness and rejoicing! Hezekiah provided 1,000 bulls plus 7,000 sheep and goats and the officials provided 1,000 bulls and 10,000 sheep and goats, and there was great jubilation. There had been nothing like this since the days of Solomon. 

2 Chronicles 29 (résumé): Hezekiah purifies the Temple

Hezekiah was 25 when he became king of Judah and he reigned for 29 years doing what was right before God. Upon taking up office he immediately opened the temple doors and repaired them. He then called the priests and Levites to personal consecration and the consecration of the temple. He told them to remove all defilement from the temple because the time had come for them to reverse all the evil practiced by Ahaz and their fathers. Hezekiah then told the priests and Levites that he intended to make a covenant with God. They then consecrated themselves and set about purifying the temple removing everything unclean which they found there from the previous reign, and the consecration of the temple lasted 8 months. Then King Hezekiah went up to the temple with all the officials and sacrificed 28 animals. They sacrificed the animals to the sound of triumphant music and then they knelt down and worshipped with fervent praise. Then the general assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings and they sacrificed 70 bulls, 100 rams and 200 male lambs and the total number of animals sacrificed was 600 bulls and 3,000 sheep and goats, and the priests were helped by the Levites to cope with the workload. Thus the service of the temple was reestablished.

Community Church

We went to speak last night to members of the Hub Community Church in Basingstoke who will be going next year in July to visit the work of ACEV/EAB in the interior of northeast Brazil. The group is made up of 10 young people and their leaders Ben and Miriam Price and Rhoda Lawes. We had a good time sharing about the work of the Lord showing them videos of the carnival camp, action school, market garden, drama group etc. This group's visit will be a good missions eye-opener for them.

On the way home last night we saw a hedgehog which is an important member of British fauna. A hedgehog is a spiny mammal of the Erinaceinae subfamily, of which there are 17 species, and they are nocturnal. 

2 Chronicles 28 (résumé): Ahaz king of Judah

 Ahaz came to the throne aged 20 and reigned for 16 years, but he did evil in the sight of the Lord. He strongly involved himself in paganism, Baal worship and infant sacrifice. In the light of this God delivered him into the hand of the Arameans and they took many prisoners to Damascus. He also was given into the hands of the Israelites and Judah suffered heavy casualties. In one day 120,000 Judean soldiers were killed and the Israelites took captive 200,000 Judean wives and children plus lots of plunder. However God was angered by these kidnappings and called for their return. Then some of the leaders confronted those returning from battles in Judah concerning their treatment of the people of Judah and they clothed the naked, gave them food and drink and healing balm. 

Then King Ahaz asked the Assyrians for help. The Edomites attacked Judah again and carried away prisoners, and the Philistines also raided towns. Thus the Lord had humbled Judah because king Ahaz had promoted wickedness in Judah. Yet Ahaz's attitude only got worse, his unfaithfulness to the Lord increased as he offered sacrifices to the gods of Damascus. Ahaz became increasingly pagan and opposed to the temple of God which greatly angered the Lord. Then Ahaz died and his son Hezekiah replaced him.

2 Chronicles 27 (résumé): Jotham king of Judah

 Jotham was 25 when he came to the throne and he reigned in Jerusalem for 16 years. He did what was right before God and did not commit the errors of his father concerning the temple. He did important work rebuilding the upper gate of the temple and built towns in the hill country of Judah. Jotham conquered the Ammonites and they paid him 3.4 tons of silver, 1,600 tons of wheat and 1,350 tons of barley. Jotham grew powerful because he walked steadfastly before the Lord. Then he died and his son Ahaz succeeded him. 

2 Chronicles 26 (résumé): Uzziah king of Judah

Uzziah was 16 when he became king and he reigned for 52 years doing what was right in the eyes of the Lord. Uzziah went to war against the Philistines and God helped him, and the Ammonites brought him tribute as his fame spread and his power grew.

Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem and fortified them. He also built towers in the wilderness and dug cisterns for his livestock. He also had a well-trained army of 307,500 men and he equipped them with shields, spears, helmets, armour, bows and slings as he became very powerful.

However as his power increased this led to pride which was his downfall as he became unfaithful to God. He illicitly went into the temple to burn incense on the altar and the priests confronted him as it was their job and not his. He was therefore struck with leprosy on the forehead which remained with him till he died. He was relieved of his responsibilities, lived in a separate house and his son Jotham took control of the palace and the government. Then he died and Jotham succeeded him as king.

Children's Day

 October 12th is both Children's Day and that of the national patron saint. As we don't believe in patron saints we of course concentrate on Children's Day. Hence Saturday afternoon saw the Patos church packed out to capacity with joyful children praising the Lord and learning Bible stories about Jesus. I have seen many videos which are lovely! A parallel service was held at Green Pastures with the same joy in praising the Lord.

Yesterday we left Basingstoke for the city of Bristol which has a population of half a million people. We arrived at the Ivy church before anyone else an hour early! The service was lovely with Philip singing before I spoke. Afterwards we had a lovely lunch with Pastor Phil Watkins and his Irish wife Shirley before going on to the Bristol Pentecostal Holiness Church for a fellowship tea followed by a beautiful service at which I again spoke. It was nice to meet their new pastor and family from the USA.

What was especially good about our visit to Bristol on top of everything else was the presence of friends from Wales from Bridgend and Swansea.

I have seen here on Brazilian Globo TV the programme 'Altas Horas' with the participation of our friend and evangelical Christian singer Kleber Lucas together with the famous singer Caetano Veloso. It was beautiful hearing them singing 'Deus cuida de mim' (God cares for me).

Return from London

 It is nice to be back in Basingstoke after spending a week in London. Today we had a nice family get-together of Liz's brother David and sisters Esther and Eunice. Also at the gathering was Phillip, the son of David, plus his partner Emma whom we met for the first time together with her daughter Lily, as well as Megan who is Phillip's daughter. We found Emma and Lily charming. Everyone else we had met before.

We travel tomorrow morning for 2 ministry opportunities in Bristol which is just under a 2-hour drive west of Basingstoke. 

News from Brazil says that the police now know that all the poisonings of people with adulterated alcoholic drinks by methanol was bought at petrol stations, because in Brazil methanol is an alternative as a fuel in the place of petrol.

2 Chronicles 25 (résumé): Amaziah king of Judah

Amaziah came to the throne of Judah aged 25 and he reigned for 29 years being half-hearted in the things of God, and he executed those who had murdered his father.

Then King Amaziah gathered an army from Judah of 300,000 men in order to go to war against the Edomites (the men of Seir). He added to them 100,000 men which he hired from Israel to the tune of 3.4 tons of silver! However a man of God told Amaziah to send the Israelites home because God was not with them, and this he did reluctantly in the light of the heavy loss involved, and the men from Ephraim were livid at being sent home.

Then Amaziah attacked the Edomites and killed 10,000 of them before he killed another 10,000 by pushing them off a cliff! Meanwhile the redundant Israelites caused a lot of trouble in Judah raiding towns, killing 3,000 people and seizing great quantities of plunder. However strangely after defeating the Edomites he started worshipping their gods which angered the Lord a lot, and he sent a prophet to tell him that he would be destroyed. 

Tensions always existed between Israel and Judah, and stupidly  Amaziah of Judah challenged Israel's king's son to a battle. King Jehoash of Israel replied comparing himself to a cedar tree whilst comparing Amaziah to a thistle bush, telling him that just because he had beaten the Edomites he was now arrogant and proud, and he laughed off the challenge. However Amaziah insisted on a battle which he lost completely and Jerusalem was plundered. Some years later Amaziah was killed. 

2 Chronicles 24 (résumé): King Joash repairs the temple & then backslides

Joash reigned as king of Judah for 40 years and whilst priest Jehoiada was alive Joash lived correctly before God and Jehoiada chose him 2 wives. Then Joash decided to restore the temple and instructed the Levites and priests to collect the temple tax to this end, but they heard but didn't act, and the damage caused by Athaliah's sons remained. So the king placed a collection chest at the gate of the temple to collect the temple tax and the people gave gladly to the Lord. With this income the workers were paid to repair the temple and they repaired the temple according to its original design and all the temple's articles were restored. Thus as long as Jehoiada was alive burnt offerings were presented before God, but things changed once he died at the age of 130. 

Then the temple was abandoned, God was forgotten and Asherah poles and idols were worshipped. So the spirit of God came upon Jehoiada's son Zechariah who declared that because Joash had forsaken God he had forsaken Joash, so they stoned the prophet to death. Hence the Aramean army came with a few men, killed Joash, invaded Jerusalem and Judah and killed all the leaders. Amaziah, Joash's son, succeeded him as king.

2 Chronicles 23 (résumé): Joash crowned king aged 7

The parallel to this chapter is 2 Kings 11. Priest Jehoiada and his wife Jehosheba had custody of young 7-year-old Joash who was the only surviving son of the late King Ahaziah of Judah. He survived the massacre of his brothers by queen Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah and was kept safe in hiding.

When Joash was 7 Priest Jehoiada made alliances with different commanders and heads of families so as to depose Athaliah from leadership of Judah and install the young Joash as the rightful heir to the throne. They brought Joash to the temple, crowned him king, gave him a copy of the covenant and shouted long live the king! When the wicked Athaliah saw what was happening she tore her robes shouting treason, but the troops put her to death. Then the king and all the people made a commitment to the Lord and went and tore down the temple of Baal smashing the altars and idols and killing priest Mattan of Baal. Then Priest Jehoiada placed the oversight of the temple into the hand of the Levite priests. They then took Joash from the temple and placed him on the throne in the palace and the people rejoiced because they were free of Athaliah and that Joash was king.

Letter from Juru

 After last Sunday's service at Devizes I spoke with a couple from the village of Durrington 2 miles from Stonehenge. This couple are EAB school sponsors and were child sponsors in the early days of EAB child sponsorship. They asked me if I could give them a sort of update on how their sponsored boy is today aged 26. So I traced the boy (now man) to Juru and asked the EAB/ACEV pastor Esequias there to find out how he was. By Tuesday I already had a lovely letter with photos from the ex-sponsored boy and I translated it for the couple. It was great to learn that the ex-sponsored man is doing very well, is very happy with a nice girlfriend, has a job as a personal trainer in a gym, and still has the letters and gifts received as a child from his sponsors of which he sent photos! We thank God for EAB school/child sponsors who really make a difference in poor children's lives.  

Please put Saturday, October 25th at 6 pm in your diary when we will be holding EAB's 87th annual AGM, tea (6 pm) and celebration (7 pm). Liz and I will be speaking about other aspects of EAB's work than what we are talking about around the churches. The event will be as usual at the Lighthouse Community Church, Hardley, near Southampton. SO45 3NZ.

The latest edition #104 of the EAB biannual magazine InTouch will be with you by post in the coming weeks, but it is already available on our website at www.eabrazil.org . Our thanks again to Dave Flowers and Marian Rashleigh for their excellent work in producing another edition. 

Yesterday Liz enjoyed a lovely day in the centre of London with her sisters Eunice and Esther. I stayed in Harrow with my brother-in-law Jon as somebody has to hold the fort and do the work! 😜

I have started reading book number 9 in the Blitz Detective series by my friend Mike Hollow. This edition, kindly given to me by my sister Jean, is called the Soho Murder.

2 Chronicles 22 (résumé): Ahaziah king of Judah

Ahaziah, Jehoram's youngest son, succeeded his father as king as he was his only surviving son, and he reigned for a year. He followed the evil pathway of Ahab doing evil in the sight of the Lord. Ahaziah went to visit Joram son of Ahab, and he was captured at Samaria where he was put to death. When Ahaziah's mother found out about her son's killing she proceeded to destroy the whole royal family of the house of Judah. Only one child escaped death and that was Joash the son of Ahaziah who was hidden away at the temple for 6 years. 

2 Chronicles 21 (résumé): Jehoram king of Judah

Jehoshaphat was buried in Jerusalem and his son Jehoram succeeded him as king as his first born of 6 sons. Once well established in the throne he murdered all his brothers and some officials of Israel. He married a daughter of Ahab and did evil before God as did Ahab. 

Times of trouble evolved with rebellion by the Edomites and revolt by Libnah. Jehoram also built pagan high places and led the people into prostitution. (It is clear to me that the repeated attraction of falling into paganism by the people of Israel/Judah had a lot to do with sex) 

Then Elijah sent Jehoram a letter condemning his evil ways taking the people into prostitution and murdering his own brothers. He told him that God would now target Jehoram's family as a consequence and also give him an incurable bowel disease! So the Philistines attacked Judah and kidnapped all his family, and Jehoram's bowel disease got steadily worse till be died with it in great pain. Jehoram reigned for 8 years and died to no one's regret.

2 Chronicles 20 (résumé): Jehoshaphat defeats Moab and Ammon

 Jehoshaphat now was faced with a possible invasion from the Moabites and Ammonites which made up a vast army. So he did what was right, consulted God as to what to do and proclaimed a fast for all Judah. Then before the general assembly of Judah King Jehoshaphat cried out to God in his distress beseeching him to hear them and save them. Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel and he told the people not to be afraid of the vast army because 'the battle is not yours but is the Lord's!' He told Judah to face the enemy the following day and he would be with them. So Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and praise him for the splendour of his holiness saying: 'Give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures forever'. As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the invaders and they panicked into fighting and killing each other! When the men of Judah looked at the enemy all they saw were dead bodies. They then proceeded to retrieve the plunder which took them 3 days to do, and everyone returned joyful to Jerusalem where they praised God in the temple. 

So Jehoshaphat came to the end of his 25-year reign at the age of 60 and he had largely done what was right in the eyes of the Lord. However before he died Jehoshaphat made an alliance with king Ahaziah of Israel whose ways were wicked. They made a trading fleet of ships together but God caused them to be wrecked before they set sail because of the alliance with wickedness.

2 Chronicles 19 (résumé): Jehoshaphat appoints Judges

King Jehoshaphat of Judah was criticized for his alliance with the wicked Ahab, but this reprimand was reduced in severity because on the other hand he had combatted paganism and had set his heart on seeking God.

Then Jehoshaphat appointed judges in the fortified cities of Judah to judge carefully without injustice, partiality or bribery. In Jerusalem he appointed Levites, priests and heads of families to also judge faithfully and wholeheartedly in the fear of the Lord. He also appointed chief priest Amariah to rule in all cases concerning the Lord and Zebadiah to be over any matter concerning the king.

2 Chronicles 18 (résumé): Micaiah prophesies against Ahab

King Jehoshaphat of Judah made an unholy alliance with King Ahab of Israel and Ahab asked if Jehoshaphat would go with him in war against Ramoth Gilead. Jehoshaphat answered that first they should seek the counsel of God. So Ahab consulted 400 prophets who contaminated by a deceiving spirit all guaranteed victory in the battle. Jehoshaphat questioned the prophecy in unison so Ahab begrudgingly spoke to one further prophet named Micaiah whom he said he didn't like because he never prophesied positively in his direction. Micaiah, the prophet of the Lord, prophesied the death of Ahab in battle and the scattering of Israel's army, but he was not heeded and Ahab and Jehoshaphat went ahead to Ramoth Gilead. However Ahab disguised himself going into battle, but a random arrow had a direct hit on Ahaz between his breastplate and armour and by sunset he was dead.

Devizes

On Sunday we ministered at the church in Devizes, Wiltshire where David Fiddy (ex football referee!) is the pastor and he didn't give us a red card! The service was lovely. A real blessing. After the service David's wife Margaret served us a delicious meal at their home together with their children Nathanael and Bethany.

Thanks to Deaconess Deborah Maria, Deacon Dedé and Brother Roberto Tiburtino for their kind comments on this blog. Please remember that if you don't post your name I have no way of knowing who wrote. Last week someone wrote in England a comment (I deduced this from the wording) but I don't have a clue who it was which is a pity. 

It is getting gradually colder in England so Brazilian readers will be interested to read that when I go out I wear a vest, a shirt, a thick cardigan and a thick coat! 4 layers of clothing to protect from the cold!

This week we are in London at Liz's sister Eunice's house and her husband Jon. On Sunday we will be in Bristol ministering at 10:30 am at the Bristol Ivy Church (BS6 5JD) and ministering at 5 pm at the Bristol Pentecostal Holiness Church (BS10 6EA). Please be at one of these venues if you can!

The Brazilian contaminated alcoholic drinks crisis grows with 225 cases under investigation and 16 of these cases have thus far been confirmed. Drinks contaminated with Methanol (cheap alcohol) sell for half normal prices and makers of legitimate alcoholic drinks fear the government will end up banning all sales so as to contain the growing crisis which is killing people.

We will be leaving the UK a month today and returning to Brazil.

On Sunday I saw 3 Red Kites. 

EAB is 87 years old

 EAB's commitment to north-east Brazil (the poorest and most needy region) is 87 years old since our founders Albert and Daisy Mundy landed at Recife docks on September 2nd 1938. From there the Mundys headed for the interior of the State of Paraiba so as "to go where nobody else wanted to go!" It is a hot area of annual severe droughts where there is great need of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in word (evangelism, church planting, Bible teaching, training leadership) and deed (drilling wells, running schools, building toilets, setting up chicken runs and market gardens) for the glory of God. You can help support EAB by donating at https://www.justgiving.com/evangelicalactionbrazil/donate

On Friday we went out for a lovely meal to celebrate Isla's 7th birthday. Isla is the daughter of our niece Lisa and granddaughter of my sister Jean.

Yesterday we visited the grave of my parents. My Father died in 2002 on a visit to Patos and my Mother died in 2017 in Basingstoke. We also visited our niece Sarah's grave.

I went to a milkshake shop with my grandson Lucas which sells 180 types of milkshake! I tried one but I didn't like it.

QPR won against Bristol City yesterday coming from behind to win away from Loftus Road 2 x 1. This means QPR are undefeated in 6 consecutive matches with 4 wins and 2 draws, and are now 6th in the Championship which is in the playoffs section. I hope they keep this up for when I see them play Ipswich on November 1st together with my son Philip and grandson Lucas.

2 Chronicles 17 (résumé): Jehoshaphat king of Judah

 Jehoshaphat succeeded his father Asa as king of Judah and he strengthened himself against Israel stationing troops in all the fortified cities. The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he sought God and was devoted to the Lord, not consulting the Baals and removing the high places and the Asherah poles. In the 3rd year of his reign Jehoshaphat sent officials to teach in Judah together with some Levites and priests. They went round Judah teaching the people with the Book of the Law of the Lord. The fear of God came upon the surrounding kingdoms and they never went to war against Jehoshaphat, some Philistines brought gold and silver as tribute, and the Arabs brought him 7,700 rams and 7,700 goats as Jehoshaphat became increasingly more powerful.  He kept experienced fighting men in Jerusalem. 

2 Chronicles 16 (résumé): Asa's last years

In the 36th year of Asa's reign king Baasha of Israel came up against Judah, so Asa sent gold and silver to king Ben-Hadad of Aran asking him to relinquish his alliance with Israel and form an alliance with Judah. Ben-Hadad agreed to this and sent the commanders of his forces against the towns of Israel causing Baasha to give up his plans and work against Judah. Then the prophet Hanani rebuked Asa for having put his trust in a human alliance with Ben-Hadad rather than depending upon God as he had done against the Cushites. For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. God therefore said that Asa had been foolish and would now be at war as a consequence. Then Asa contracted a foot disease for which he never sought God's help and in his 41st year he died. 

Allergies

Our 15-year-old granddaughter Beatriz (Bia) is undergoing a series of tests for allergies after a recent serious incident. Thus far she has been shown to be seriously allergic to cats' fur, corn on the cob and melon.

A little boy aged five was found wandering near an overturned car at Garanhuns, north-east Brazil, with his dead parents in the car and a dead horse nearby which clearly the car had hit. The little boy is fine. The death toll in the alcoholic beverages contaminated with methanol has risen to 5 in São Paulo, with further suspected cases all over Brazil.

Temperatures in Basingstoke today have a low of 7 degrees and a high of 17 degrees. It's cloudy but without rain.

Thank you Dedé, Orlando, Roberto Tiburtino and Pastor Manoel Oliveira Filho for your recent comments on this blog. 

On Wednesday evening QPR drew again, This time it was at home 0 x 0 against Oxford, leaving them 10th out of 24 in the Championship. To date this season we have won 3, drawn 3 and lost 2 matches.

We went for a nice lunch with my sister and music teacher Jean yesterday in the Basingstoke Shopping Centre.

I have just read in 2 Chronicles 15:7 - "Be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded!" May God bless and encourage you as you read God's word today.

We are now in the autumn in the UK and all the millions of trees are changing colours with the leaves turning from green to yellow, gold and brown. It is a period of spectacular natural beauty!

This Sunday we will be speaking at the Rock Community Church, Devizes, Wiltshire, SN10 1FE at 10:30 am. Please be there if you can. It will be good to see the pastor David Fiddy (ex football referee!) and family who were with us last year in northeast Brazil on a missions trip.

2 Chronicles 15 (résumé): Asa's reform

The Spirit of God came on Azariah and he said to Asa and all Judah and Benjamin: The Lord is with you when you are with him! If you forsake him he will forsake you! Be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded. These words encouraged Asa to combat paganism in Judah, and he repaired the altar of the Lord. Then Asa assembled all Judah in Jerusalem and he sacrificed 700 head of cattle plus 7,000 sheep and goats from the plunder brought back from the defeat of the Cushites, and the people went into a covenant to seek the Lord with all their heart and soul, but all who refused to enter this covenant were to be put to death. As part of Asa's reform he even deposed his own grandmother Maakah from her position as queen mother because of her bad involvement with pagan Asherah religion. Asa's heart was fully committed to God throughout his life and there was no more war until the 35th year of Asa's reign. 

2 Chronicles 14 (résumé): Asa king of Judah

Abijah died and his son Asa succeeded him as king and reigned for 10 peaceful years. Asa lived correctly before God and destroyed all aspects of paganism in Judah whilst also building up its fortified cities. Asa had an army of 300,000 men from Judah and 280,000 from Benjamin. Then the Cushites marched against Judah with an enormous army including 300 chariots, so Asa called to the Lord for his help saying they relied on God as they faced such a vast army. So the Lord struck down the Cushites and the people of God pursued them as they  fled as far as Gerar killing a great number of them on the way. Thus the men of Judah obtained a great deal of plunder destroying and looting all the villages around Gerar, and capturing droves of sheep, goats and camels.

2 Chronicles 13 (résumé): Abijah king of Judah

Abijah reigned for 3 years as king of Judah and he was engaged in war with Jeroboam of Israel. Abijah's army was half the size of Jeroboam's but he made a rousing speech condemning Jeroboam's rebellion and idolatry and focusing on God's promise of a Davidic dynasty. Thus God intervened on Judah's behalf because Judah's priests were the sons of Aaron and they presented regular burnt offerings and incense to the Lord. Judah was faithful to God but Israel was not, and when the priests blew their trumpets and the men of Judah raised the battle cry God gave the victory to Judah with 500,000 casualties amongst Israel's men because Judah relied on the Lord. So Jeroboam died but Abijah was very much alive and  married 14 wives with whom he had 22 sons and 16 daughters!    

2 Chronicles 12 (résumé): Shishak attacks Jerusalem

Once Rehoboam was well established as king of Judah he and all the nation abandoned God. As a consequence King Shishak of Egypt attacked Jerusalem with the support of Libyans, Sukkites and Cushites, and they captured the fortified cities of Judah coming as far as Jerusalem. So the prophet Shemaiah told Judah that God had abandoned them because they had abandoned God. The leaders of Judah admitted that God's action was just and in the light of them humbling themselves God said he would not destroy them but would teach them a lesson by letting them become subject to Shishak. So Shishak plundered all the wealth of the temple and royal palace in Jerusalem, but Rehoboam continued as king of Judah for 17 years although he had not set his heart on seeking the Lord, and there was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam before Rehoboam died and was succeeded by his son Abijah. 

Shopping

Yesterday Liz dragged me round the shops in Basingstoke and I bought my 2026 diary for 99 p made in Ireland! I also bought 7 pairs of socks for £14 in Marks & Spencer's which is £1 a sock! I also bought a Sunday best shirt there for £40! That one hurt! 😜

News from Brazil is good. Sunday night's service in Patos saw a church packed to capacity and richly blessed of God. Monday night's service at a farmstead in the municipality of São Mamede gathered 35 people to hear the Gospel in the open air. However the drought is biting very hard throughout the interior sertão caatinga of northeast Brazil and the Caroá region's pastor Valdemy reports that the reservoirs have dried up and if it wasn't for the EAB/ACEV wells the communities of the region would be totally destroyed and the churches would be decimated!

Last night I watched on TV Liverpool lose 1 x 0 away to Galatasaray with my son who supports Liverpool. It was a boring match far from QPR quality! 

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