give account

Develop A World Vision  – Matthew 28:19-20 (ESV)  “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”  Matthew 28:19-20

“God often goes to the gutter to find the recipient for His grace. He lifts him out, washes him and transforms him – making him into a child of God fit for His kingdom. That is God’s grace.”  Chuck Smith

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A history of these Daily Devotions along with other valuable Resources can be found at: lylebrennan.com. 

This daily devotion contains, sequentially: Memory Verse (#1 above),  Daily Quote (#2 above): and, below: Daily Devotion from “Thoughts From The Diary of A Desperate Man” by Walter A. Henrichsen (“Walt”), Scripture Reading  (read the entire Bible in 1 year), and Prayer Requests. 

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Accountability

Day Two Hundred Thirteen

“Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.” Hebrews 13:17

God designed the church in such a way that you have people who are willing to watch for your soul “as they that must give account”.  God does this to protect you.  Only two people can destroy you: you and God.  Others cannot hurt you. The purpose of accountability is to protect you from yourself.

The Bible describes three types of accountability.  The first calls attention to overt sin, usually regarding the negative commands and heresy.  For example, in II Samuel 12, Nathan calls King David to account for his adultery and murder.   In Galatians 2 Paul rebukes Peter because of false doctrine.  The second regards things that are not sin but may be counter-productive to your walk with Christ. Paul’s counsel to the Corinthians illustrates this.280   The third type addresses decision making, as illustrated by Jehoshaphat and Ahab seeking counsel from the prophet.281

In the first, your accountability comes to you whether you want them to or not. Scripture commands that they confront you.  In the second, your accountability comes to you because you ask them to.  In the third, you go to them; they do not come to you.  Remember, biblical accountability is conferred, not usurped. Those who seek to hold you accountable do you a favor.  As you hold others accountable, you can never know the degree to which they allow it.  Finally, accountability usually is not reciprocal and does not have to be.

God gave you accountability as an expression of His grace.  You must decide the degree to which you want to appropriate that grace.

280 cf. 1 Corinthians 10, esp. vv. 23-33

281  cf. I Kings 22:6-8

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Psalm 57-59 Romans 4 (New King James Version)

Psalm 57-59

Prayer for Safety from Enemies

To the Chief Musician. Set to [a]“Do Not Destroy.” A Michtam of David when he fled from Saul into the cave.

57 

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me!

For my soul trusts in You;

And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge,

Until thesecalamities have passed by.

2 

I will cry out to God Most High,

To God who performs all thingsfor me.

3 

He shall send from heaven and save me;

He reproaches the one who [b]would swallow me up. Selah

God shall send forth His mercy and His truth.

4 

My soul isamong lions;

I lie amongthe sons of men

Who are set on fire,

Whose teeth arespears and arrows,

And their tongue a sharp sword.

5 

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;

LetYour glory beabove all the earth.

6 

They have prepared a net for my steps;

My soul is bowed down;

They have dug a pit before me;

Into the midst of it they themselveshave fallen. Selah

7 

My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;

I will sing and give praise.

8 

Awake, my glory!

Awake, lute and harp!

I will awaken the dawn.

9 

I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples;

I will sing to You among the [c]nations.

10 

For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens,

And Your truth unto the clouds.

11 

Be exalted, O God, above the heavens;

LetYour glory beabove all the earth.

The Just Judgment of the Wicked

To the Chief Musician. Set to [d]“Do Not Destroy.” A Michtam of David.

58 

Do you indeed speak righteousness, you silent ones?

Do you judge uprightly, you sons of men?

2 

No, in heart you work wickedness;

You weigh out the violence of your hands in the earth.

3 

The wicked are estranged from the womb;

They go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies.

4 

Their poison islike the poison of a serpent;

They arelike the deaf cobra thatstops its ear,

5 

Which will not heed the voice of charmers,

Charming ever so skillfully.

6 

Break[e] their teeth in their mouth, O God!

Break out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord!

7 

Let them flow away as waters whichrun continually;

Whenhe bends his bow,

Let his arrows be as if cut in pieces.

8 

Let them belike a snail which melts away as it goes,

Likea stillborn child of a woman, that they may not see the sun.

9 

Before your pots can feel the burningthorns,

He shall take them away as with a whirlwind,

As in His living and burning wrath.

10 

The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance;

He shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked,

11 

So that men will say,

“Surely there isa reward for the righteous;

Surely He is God who judges in the earth.”

The Assured Judgment of the Wicked

To the Chief Musician. Set to [f]“Do Not Destroy.” A Michtam of David when Saul sent men, and they watched the house in order to kill him.

59 

Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;

[g]Defend me from those who rise up against me.

2 

Deliver me from the workers of iniquity,

And save me from bloodthirsty men.

3 

For look, they lie in wait for my life;

The mighty gather against me,

Not formy transgression nor formy sin, O Lord.

4 

They run and prepare themselves through no fault of mine.

Awake to help me, and behold!

5 

You therefore, O Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel,

Awake to punish all the [h]nations;

Do not be merciful to any wicked transgressors. Selah

6 

At evening they return,

They growl like a dog,

And go all around the city.

7 

Indeed, they belch with their mouth;

Swords arein their lips;

For they say,“Who hears?”

8 

But You, O Lord, shall laugh at them;

You shall have all the [i]nations in derision.

9 

I will wait for You, O You [j]his Strength;

For God ismy [k]defense.

10 

[l]My God of mercy shall come to meet me;

God shall let me see my desireon my enemies.

11 

Do not slay them, lest my people forget;

Scatter them by Your power,

And bring them down,

O Lord our shield.

12 

Forthe sin of their mouth andthe words of their lips,

Let them even be taken in their pride,

And for the cursing and lying whichthey speak.

13 

Consume themin wrath, consume them,

That they maynot be;

And let them know that God rules in Jacob

To the ends of the earth. Selah

14 

And at evening they return,

They growl like a dog,

And go all around the city.

15 

They wander up and down for food,

And [m]howl if they are not satisfied.

16 

But I will sing of Your power;

Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning;

For You have been my defense

And refuge in the day of my trouble.

17 

To You, O my Strength, I will sing praises;

For God ismy defense,

My God of mercy.

Footnotes:

• Psalm 57:1 Heb. Al Tashcheth
• Psalm 57:3 snaps ator hounds me,or crushes me
• Psalm 57:9 Gentiles
• Psalm 58:1 Heb. Al Tashcheth
• Psalm 58:6 Break away
• Psalm 59:1 Heb. Al Tashcheth
• Psalm 59:1 Lit. Set me on high
• Psalm 59:5 Gentiles
• Psalm 59:8 Gentiles
• Psalm 59:9 So with MT, Syr.; some Heb. mss., LXX, Tg., Vg. my Strength
• Psalm 59:9 Lit. fortress
• Psalm 59:10 So with Qr.; some Heb. mss., LXX, Vg. My God, His mercy;Kt., some Heb. mss., Tg. O God, my mercy;Syr. O God, Your mercy
• Psalm 59:15 So with LXX, Vg.; MT, Syr., Tg. spend the night

Romans 4

Abraham Justified by Faith

4 What then shall we say that Abraham our father[a] has found according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has somethingto boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was [b]accounted to him for righteousness.” 4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted [c]as grace but as debt.

David Celebrates the Same Truth

5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, 6 just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works:

7 

“Blessed are thosewhose lawless deeds are forgiven,

And whose sins are covered;

8 

Blessed is theman to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.”

Abraham Justified Before Circumcision

9 Doesthis blessedness then comeupon the circumcised only,or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness. 10 How then was it accounted? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised. 11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while stilluncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also, 12 and the father of circumcision to those who not only areof the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while stilluncircumcised.

The Promise Granted Through Faith

13 For the promise that he would be the heir of the world wasnot to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if those who are of the law areheirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect, 15 because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there isno transgression.

16 Therefore it isof faith that it might beaccording to grace, so that the promise might be [d]sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all 17 (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did; 18 who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.” 19 And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. 22 And therefore “it was accounted to him for righteousness.”

23 Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, 24 but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

Footnotes:

• Romans 4:1 Or (fore)father according to the flesh has found?
• Romans 4:3 imputed, credited, reckoned, counted
• Romans 4:4 according to
• Romans 4:16 certain

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PRAYER REQUESTS 

Please Pray for Geo, a banker, who was deployed by the military to the mid-east. Pray God would keep him safe and that God would bring Geo closer to Him; and, that Geo would share God with all his company and those who come in contact with him. 

Please Pray for Brother David Porter’s sponsoring “Refuge for Women” an upcoming “Refuge Uniting In Prayer” meeting scheduled for August 14th. Pray for the for those involved in assisting women, the women who are victims and those warring with the sex trafficking industry in Las Vegas. 

Praise Report: Sister Diane’s grandson, Logan, had eye surgery and is full of giggles and smiles. As they will not know the results from the surgery for some time, please continue to Pray for Logan. 

Please Pray for Brother Walt’s son, Elijah, Emilia, Elijah’s girl friend, and their new baby. Pray that Walt be reunited with his son and family. 

Please Pray for Gemma that she be delivered from evil and receive Jesus as her Savior. 

Please continue to Pray for Brother Mark P, a missionary in the Philippines. He said they have an issue with a senior leader who was living another life unknown to them, in deep sin. This leader was second under Mark over the entire ministry.  Mark asks for Prayer, specifically, in 2 areas:

  1 – That Marks keeps his own heart and hands Holy; and 

  2 – … that this individual needs to Repent. 

I would like to add to Mark’s Prayer Request… we need to Pray

for Mark, Mark’s wife, this individual and for all that are touched by him. … And Note: We can only look to One Perfect Example in our lives… Jesus. (People will let us down, but He will never let us down.)

Please continue to Pray for Brother John LaPorte’s roommate, Brother Freddy, whose commitment to Christ caused his wife to separate from him for 6 years. The couple have 2 daughters and stayed single all this time. Within the recent past, it appears his wife, Arlene, has been Saved and the couple are beginning the reconciliation process. They are planning to reunite the family again under one roof in the next few months.  Please Pray for their total reconciliation with God at their helm. 

Please continue Pray for our President and ALL our government leaders of both parties. Pray they would submit their authority to His Authority and ask for His Wisdom in directing the affairs of our nation.  Please Pray that God would open their eyes and they would be obedient to His Will. 

Please continue to Pray for a group of well-known Southern Nevada commercial real estate brokers and associates recently in a one-car accident. The occupants had all been drinking alcohol.  One passenger died leaving 3 young daughters, one suffered serious head trauma, two had mild trauma, and the driver has been charged.  Please Pray for the driver and all those effected by this tragedy …that God would direct their eyes to Him, The King of Mercy, Grace and Salvation. 

Please  continue to Pray for Brother Frank Sun, a Taiwanese, that owns several businesses in China and Taiwan.  He recently preached the Gospel in his Taiwan company inviting his employees to accept salvation. He says that half of his Taiwan staff are now Christians. Please Pray Frank will continue to be bold in his sharing Christ in all his companies and that he will be faithful to disciple the new Believers. 

Please continue to Pray for Brother Walt and His Friday Bible Study.

Please continue to Pray for the Women’s Resources ministry in Las Vegas that they would lead women to the Lord and save babies. 

Please continue to Pray for Dave Ubank and his family. They are ministering and rescuing children and families in Syria directly affected by  Isis – Pray for their protection and their ministry.  For a short 2 minute video about Ubanks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_htIgIvgDM[/embedyt

Please continue to Pray for Jim Nelson and family ministering in China. 

Please continue to Pray for our Brothers’ and Sisters’ struggling with various addictions. Pray that God would reveal Himself to them that all things are possible through Him… He can Cure any addiction … He is our Great Creator, He is our Savior, He is our Healer …He is our All and All!  

Please continue to Pray for Sister Fabiola and her children in Mexico. And, please continue to Pray for her church caught up in the tragedies surrounding the murder of her husband, x-husband and one of her children.

Please continue to Pray for Alejandro Corral, his son Alejandro Jr., and his aunt Josefina. 

Please continue to Pray for Brother Steve Venable dealing with ALS. 

Please continue to Pray for our Persecuted Brothers and Sisters and their families that are suffering and giving their lives for our Faith.  10 WAYS TO PRAY FOR OUR PERSECUTED CHRISTIAN FAMILY.. Pray our brothers and sisters will:

1. Sense God’s presence (Heb. 13:5) 

2. Know we are praying for them (2 Tim. 1:3) 

3. Experience God’s comfort (2 Thess. 2:16–17) 

4. See God open doors to evangelism (Col. 4:3) 

5. Boldly share the gospel (Acts 4:29) 

6. Mature in their faith (Col. 1:28–29) 

7. Be granted wisdom in covert ministry work (Acts 9:23–25) 

8. Remain joyful amid suffering (Acts 5:41) 

9. Forgive and love their persecutors (Matt. 5:44) 

10. Be rooted in God’s Word (2 Tim. 3:16–17)

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Stand with your Brothers and Sisters in Prayer and Support. (See: The Voice of the Martyrs: https://www.persecution.com)

Please continue to pray for Biblical “headship” in families.

Please continue to Pray for all our children. 

Please continue to Pray that there would be a resurgence of Biblical “Fear of the Lord” in the church and in each of us… “to fear the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom.”

Please continue to Pray for our nation that God would open all our eyes to the sin that is drowning us. Abortion, sex outside of marriage, hatred & divisiveness, greed, pride, only to name a few.  Please Pray and Fast for our nation to turn from this evil that is enveloping us.   

II Chronicles‬ ‭7:14‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”

Please continue to Pray for Brother Ron Brink’s son who had 3+ military tours in Iraq and Afghanistan and who is now suffering brain damage and PTSD.  Pray for God’s Healing Power to fall upon Johnathon. (Ron is a 20 plus year missionary in Mexico with Touch Baja… for info on Touch Baja and how to touch the Mexican people for Christ, see http://www.touchbaja.com.)

Please continue to Pray for the Sharon India Foundation (“SIF”) to assisting the poor of India.  Through SIF: Widows have received medical treatment and been given quality sewing machines and training on how to use them to make a living. Orphans have been given free education in their neighborhood slum areas.  After natural disasters relief has been provided in the nature of medical, food items, blankets, clothing and building materials.  Bore wells have been successfully dug to provide fresh water to affected areas.  Water purification systems have also been given out on a limited basis. Special shoes have been purchased for lepers with ulcerated feet.  Thousands of books have been translated to assist in the ever growing discipleship outreach of E-Squared (Evangelism and Edification/Disciples).  Sharon India Foundation has no administrative costs and 100% of all donations go directly to the Indian pastors and their ministries. (Let’s reach India and beyond for Christ…see how you can help: https://sharonindia.org.)