Day 274...(Nehemiah 13; Isaiah 35; Acts 10)..."Water for the Thirsty"

In the midst of Isaiah, chapter 35, is the image of "streams in the desert." What a great metaphor regarding spiritual drink for those who are parched of thirst in the desert. A popular devotional was given that name. This is a wonderful thought for those spiritually thirsty. Jesus,later, teaches the woman at the well that "anyone who drinks of this water will never thirst again." (John 4:14) Spiritual thirst and quenching this thirst is a great teaching theme of the Bible. Here is the passage from Isaiah...

"Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert."

Day 273...(Nehemiah 11,12; Isaiah 34; Acts 9)..."Another Underestimated Biblical Hero"

Saul does become Paul as he is struck down with blindness on the Damascus Road. Is he immediately received by those disciples he was seeking to undo. No. He needed a trusted person to take him under his wing. The person was Barnabas. You can certainly say without Barnabas there were be no Paul. Is this not true of all great leaders? There is someone who can prop them up. Here is a brief account from the Message...

"Back in Jerusalem he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him. They didn't trust him one bit. Then Barnabas took him under his wing. He introduced him to the apostles and stood up for him, told them how Saul had seen and spoken to the Master on the Damascus Road and how in Damascus itself he had laid his life on the line with his bold preaching in Jesus' name."

Day 272..(Nehemiah 9,10; Isaiah 33; Acts 8)..."Saul to Paul"

Conversion is at the heart of the Christian story. No one has a conversion more dramatic than Paul. In fact he changes his name from Saul to Paul. Chances are we have heard more about the Damascus Road than Paul's unconverted side. Acts 8:1 gives us a glimpse of the ugly side of the pre-Paul...

"And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. The Church Persecuted and Scattered On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison."

From chief opponent to leader of the Church. What a change Damascus Road would make! The transforming power of God is amazing!

Day 271...(Nehemiah 7,8; Isaiah 32; Acts 7)..."Stephen Offers the Old Testament in Clif Notes"

Stephen offers a summary of the Old Testament in Acts 7. He is really underestimated in the early church story. Everyone knows Peter "the rock." And everyone knows Paul's fingerprint in the spread of the Early Church. I believe Stephen should be in the same company of saints. His face was an angel. He taught well. Stephen saw a vision of Heaven. His convictions were sure. He died for his faith and asked forgiveness for his executors. Here is the passage...

"When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. "Look," he said, "I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God." At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him, dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul. While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." Then he fell on his knees and cried out, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he fell asleep."

Day 270...(Nehemiah 5,6; Isaiah 31; Acts 6)..."A Very Significant Chapter"

All chapters of the Book of Acts tell a tremendous story of the coming of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the church. Acts chapter six is one of the most important development chapters the unfolding of the story. The church is booming in growth and this means needs are also multiplying with the advancement of the church. This setting also producing the first church problems...the neglect of the widows in the daily distribution of food. How would these mounting problems be solved?

They elected those full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom. This was also the beginning of matching gifts with needs. What a wonderful chapter to reflect on as churches transition in growth or even in decline. There is a way to meet the needs of God's people. We are well served to use the Biblical model of building a team.

Day 269...(Nehemiah 3,4; Isaiah 30; Acts 5)..."God's Ways Stand"

The theme of building walls dominates our reading today in Nehemiah and Isaiah. Another issue is the things of God will stand and there is nothing you can do to prevent God's work. If you are building against God it will not stand. Here is a sample from Isaiah...

"Therefore, The Holy of Israel says this: "Because you scorn this Message,Preferring to live by injustice and shape your lives on lies, This perverse way of life will be like a towering, badly built wall That slowly, slowly tilts and shifts, and then one day, without warning, collapses—Smashed to bits like a piece of pottery, smashed beyond recognition or repair, Useless, a pile of debris to be swept up and thrown in the trash."

This theme also appears in Acts. If things are of God they will stand. If not...they will fall.

"So I am telling you: Hands off these men! Let them alone. If this program or this work is merely human, it will fall apart, but if it is of God, there is nothing you can do about it—and you better not be found fighting against God!" That convinced them. They called the apostles back in. After giving them a thorough whipping, they warned them not to speak in Jesus' name and sent them off. The apostles went out of the High Council overjoyed because they had been given the honor of being dishonored on account of the Name. Every day they were in the Temple and homes, teaching and preaching Christ Jesus, not letting up for a minute."

Day 268...(Nehemiah 1,2; Isaiah 29; Acts 4)..."A Human Condition"

There is so much that could be written. Nehemiah begins planning to build a wall. The apostles proclaim God's power and good news. I noticed in Isaiah a word about having things backward. Is this not true of the human condition? We see things upside down or backwards. Here is the passage from the Message...

"Doom to you! You pretend to have the inside track. You shut God out and work behind the scenes, Plotting the future as if you knew everything, acting mysterious, never showing your hand. You have everything backward! You treat the potter as a lump of clay. Does a book say to its author, "He didn't write a word of me"? Does a meal say to the woman who cooked it, "She had nothing to do with this"?

The clay mistreats the potter, and a book takes the author's credit, a meal ignores the woman who cooked it...how absurd! Yet, we get it backwards with "author and finisher of our faith" so often! How ironic and revealing of our human nature.

Day 268...(Acts 3)..."Would You Rather have Money or Wholeness?"

The first physical miracle recorded in Book of Acts raises a question..."Would we rather have what we ask for or need?" The man asked for money he received something far better...he could rise up and walk! How many times do we ask for the wrong things? God's ways always surpass ours! Here is the story from the Message...

"Peter said, "I don't have a nickel to my name, but what I do have, I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk!" He grabbed him by the right hand and pulled him up. In an instant his feet and ankles became firm. He jumped to his feet and walked."

Day 267...Pentecost....(Acts 1,2)..."Timing is God's Work"

In the Message account of Acts chapter 1 is an interesting observation..."timing is God's business."
The disciples wanted to know when to expect the establishment of an earthly kingdom. Jesus responded with the words...

"When they were together for the last time they asked, "Master, are you going to restore the kingdom to Israel now? Is this the time?" He told them, "You don't get to know the time. Timing is the Father's business. What you'll get is the Holy Spirit. And when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the world."

Our world today is no different. We want to know when. Pentecost does not answer the "when" but rather the "how." The "how" comes through God's power the Holy Spirit. The fact we have Power to help us is all we need to know!

Day 266..(Ezra 9,10; Isaiah 28)..."Ezra's Prayer"

Ezra's prayer in the ninth chapter may be as brutally honest as any prayer in the Bible. The only other prayer is Psalm 51 with David's confession. He does not make it look better than it is and seems to indicate Israel is most fortunate in spite of obvious disobedience. Here is part of the prayer...

"My dear God, I'm so totally ashamed, I can't bear to face you. O my God—our iniquities are piled up so high that we can't see out; our guilt touches the skies. We've been stuck in a muck of guilt since the time of our ancestors until right now; we and our kings and priests, because of our sins, have been turned over to foreign kings, to killing, to captivity, to looting, and to public shame—just as you see us now."

Day 265...(Ezra 7,8; Isaiah 27)..."Ezra is Ready to Go"

In the Message translation there is a to the point message. Ezra was ready to go! There comes a time when conversation is no longer enough or developing strategy is not enough. This is the time to move on what God is seeking to do. Ezra sensed God was on his side and he was ready. This passage is an action passage...

"Blessed be God, the God-of-Our-Fathers, who put it in the mind of the king to beautify The Temple of God in Jerusalem! Not only that, he caused the king and all his advisors and influential officials actually to like me and back me. My God was on my side and I was ready to go. And I organized all the leaders of Israel to go with me."

What a wonderful message!

Day 264...(Ezra 5,6; Isaiah 26)..."Temple Rebuilt Finally"

The temple was rebuilt and consecrated again after opposition, discouragement, and confusion of exile. What a powerful symbol for the remnant to again connect with their tradition...even Passover. Here is the passage from the Message...

"So the leaders of the Jews continued to build; the work went well under the preaching of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah son of Iddo. They completed the rebuilding under orders of the God of Israel and authorization by Cyrus, Darius, and Artaxerxes, kings of Persia. The Temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius. And then the Israelites celebrated—priests, Levites, every last exile, exuberantly celebrated the dedication of The Temple of God. At the dedication of this Temple of God they sacrificed a hundred bulls, two hundred rams, and four hundred lambs—and, as an Absolution-Offering for all Israel, twelve he-goats, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. They placed the priests in their divisions and the Levites in their places for the service of God at Jerusalem—all as written out in the Book of Moses.On the fourteenth day of the first month, the exiles celebrated the Passover."

Building for the Lord takes time, patience, endurance and most of all obedience.
We can learn this lesson from the Book of Ezra.

Day 263...(Ezra 3,4; Isaiah 25)..."Joy Heard for Miles...Negative Vibes for 15 Years"

In the rebuilding of the foundation of the temple you could hear the joy for miles. Here is the report...

"When the workers laid the foundation of The Temple of God, the priests in their robes stood up with trumpets, and the Levites, sons of Asaph, with cymbals, to praise God in the tradition of David king of Israel. They sang antiphonally praise and thanksgiving to God: Yes! God is good! Oh yes—he'll never quit loving Israel! All the people boomed out hurrahs, praising God as the foundation of The Temple of God was laid. As many were noisily shouting with joy, many of the older priests, Levites, and family heads who had seen the first Temple, when they saw the foundations of this Temple laid, wept loudly for joy."

The enemies sought to bring the rebuilding of the temple to a stop. They brought negative energy for 15 years to stop the rebuilding effort. Building is difficult enough without opposition. Such was the life of Israel coming out of exile. It was never easy. Here is the sad report from the Message...

"So these people started beating down the morale of the people of Judah, harassing them as they built. They even hired propagandists to sap their resolve. They kept this up for about fifteen years"

Day 262...(Ezra 1,2; Isaiah 24)..."Book of Ezra"

Of all the books of the Bible, I may know the least about the book of Ezra. Here is some quick background from the NIV Study Bible. This book is possibly written by the same author of 1,2 Chronicles and Nehemiah. The book was written around 440 B.C. and resembles Nehemiah.
It is very interesting to me that Ezra and Nehemiah are viewed as the same author as evidenced by only one introduction for both in the NIV.

In today's reading, chapter two provides a list of detail the exiles who returned. This can also be found in Nehemiah 7. One major theme of both books is restoration. As I am seeking to understand more about Ezra, I will share more as we read along.

Day 261...(2 Chronicles 36; Isaiah 23)..."Three Straight Bad Kings=Exile"

What do you get when you have three bad kings in a row? Exile. There is also an interesting word as 2 Chronicles draws to a close. God gave Israel their chances. He was patient. After several refusals, God's wrath came and here is the account...

"The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word to them through his messengers again and again, because he had pity on his people and on his dwelling place. But they mocked God's messengers, despised his words and scoffed at his prophets until the wrath of the LORD was aroused against his people and there was no remedy."

Day 260...(2 Chronicles 34,35; Isaiah 22)..."A Very Popular Good King"

Josiah would be in the top five kings of all time. He ended the pollution of idol worship and restored the passover just to name a few accomplishments. His death came suddenly by an arrow. The grief was great for the king. I searched for the lament written for him by Jeremiah but have not found in the canon of the Bible. It would be interesting to see this lament as great people are often remembered in song. Here is the account...

"The king said to his servants, "Get me out of here—I'm badly wounded." So his servants took him out of his chariot and laid him down in an ambulance chariot and drove him back to Jerusalem. He died there and was buried in the family cemetery. Everybody in Judah and Jerusalem attended the funeral. Jeremiah composed an anthem of lament for Josiah. The anthem is still sung by the choirs of Israel to this day. The anthem is written in the Laments."

Day 259...(2 Chronicles 33,34; Isaiah 21)..."A Bad King Repents"

Many kings are summarized in 1,2 Kings and 1,2 Chronicles. The overview is usually stated by the phrase "good king" or "bad king"..."doing good" or "doing evil" in the sight of the Lord. In at least one case one "bad king" repented. Manasseh had such and experience. The repentance goes like this from the Message...

"Then God directed the leaders of the troops of the king of Assyria to come after Manasseh. They put a hook in his nose, shackles on his feet, and took him off to Babylon. Now that he was in trouble, he went to his knees in prayer asking for help—total repentance before the God of his ancestors. As he prayed, God was touched; God listened and brought him back to Jerusalem as king. That convinced Manasseh that God was in control."

Day 258...(2 Chronicles 31,32; Isaiah 20)..."Steel in the Spines"

Hezekiah could sure inspire. Against a great threat he gave a pep talk that made his troops "with steel in their spines." Wow what an image. He also stated convincingly that God's power always created a majority among mere men. Here is the account from the Message translation...

"Hezekiah rallied the people, saying, "Be strong! Take courage! Don't be intimidated by the king of Assyria and his troops—there are more on our side than on their side. He only has a bunch of mere men; we have our God to help us and fight for us!"Morale surged. Hezekiah's words put steel in their spines."

Day 257...(2 Chronicles 29,30; Isaiah 19)..."Preparation and Abundance"

Hezekiah found favor with the Lord! He was a good king. In our reading today, he prepares methodically the cleansing of the temple. (He would have been a great Methodist!) After a methodical time, the temple is then ready. The people come and they are generous. Here is the account from the Message translation...

"Hezekiah then made this response: "The dedication is complete—you're consecrated to God. Now you're ready: Come forward and bring your sacrifices and Thank-Offerings to The Temple of God." And come they did. Everyone in the congregation brought sacrifices and Thank-Offerings and some, overflowing with generosity, even brought Whole-Burnt-Offerings, a generosity expressed in seventy bulls, a hundred rams, and two hundred lambs—all for Whole-Burnt-Offerings for God! The total number of animals consecrated for sacrifice that day amounted to six hundred bulls and three thousand sheep. They ran out of priests qualified to slaughter all the Whole-Burnt-Offerings so their brother Levites stepped in and helped out while other priests consecrated themselves for the work. It turned out that the Levites had been more responsible in making sure they were properly consecrated than the priests had been. Besides the overflow of Whole-Burnt-Offerings there were also choice pieces for the Peace-Offerings and lavish libations that went with the Whole-Burnt-Offerings. The worship in The Temple of God was on a firm footing again! Hezekiah and the congregation celebrated: God had established a firm foundation for the lives of the people—and so quickly!"

Day 256...(2 Chronicles 27,28; Isaiah 18)..."Bad to Worse"

Kings behavior is so revealing of the snare of power. Ahaz not only did not humble himself from his fall but made things bad to worse. He refused to change course. Here is the account from the Message...

"But King Ahaz didn't learn his lesson—at the very time that everyone was turning against him, he continued to be against God! He offered sacrifices to the gods of Damascus. He had just been defeated by Damascus; he thought, "If I worship the gods who helped Damascus, those gods just might help me, too." But things only went from bad to worse: first Ahaz in ruins and then the country. He cleaned out The Temple of God of everything useful and valuable, boarded up the doors of The Temple, and then went out and set up pagan shrines for his own use all over Jerusalem. And not only in Jerusalem, but all over Judah—neighborhood shrines for worshiping any and every god on sale. And was God ever angry!"

Humankind can be so blind to the obvious.

Day 255...(2 Chronicles 25,26; Isaiah 17)..."Getting the Big Head"

Uzziah's life tells the human story. When we follow the Lord, things ultimately become better than ever thought possible. Uzziah was blessed as a king. He then got "the big head." This led to his downfall. Even to a skin disorder. Here is the account...

"He became well known for all this—a famous king. Everything seemed to go his way. But then the strength and success went to his head. Arrogant and proud, he fell. One day, contemptuous of God, he walked into The Temple of God like he owned it and took over, burning incense on the Incense Altar. The priest Azariah, backed up by eighty brave priests of God, tried to prevent him. They confronted Uzziah: "You must not, you cannot do this, Uzziah—only the Aaronite priests, especially consecrated for the work, are permitted to burn incense. Get out of God's Temple; you are unfaithful and a disgrace!" But Uzziah, censer in hand, was already in the middle of doing it and angrily rebuffed the priests. He lost his temper; angry words were exchanged—and then, even as they quarreled, a skin disease appeared on his forehead."

Day 254...(2 Chronicles 23,24; Isaiah 16)..."A Swift Prophetic Word"

A prophet in the Old Testament told unpleasant news to the powerful and had to live with the consequences. In Zechariah's case the consequences were swift. He died with the words to the Lord..."make them pay." In a couple of passages, Zechariah came, spoke, and was killed. Here is the passage....

Then the Spirit of God moved Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest to speak up: "God's word: Why have you deliberately walked away from God's commandments? You can't live this way! If you walk out on God, he'll walk out on you." But they worked out a plot against Zechariah, and with the complicity of the king—he actually gave the order!—they murdered him, pelting him with rocks, right in the court of The Temple of God. That's the thanks King Joash showed the loyal Jehoiada, the priest who had made him king. He murdered Jehoiada's son. Zechariah's last words were, "Look, God! Make them pay for this!"

Day 253...(2 Chronicles 21,22; Isaiah 15)..."Worst King Ever"

Who was the worst king in the Old Testament? You can make a case for Jehoram. He turned quickly for the ways of Jehosophat and Asa...back to customs of other religions. Here is the way he is remembered in 2 Chronicles...

"The LORD aroused against Jehoram the hostility of the Philistines and of the Arabs who lived near the Cushites. They attacked Judah, invaded it and carried off all the goods found in the king's palace, together with his sons and wives. Not a son was left to him except Ahaziah, the youngest. After all this, the LORD afflicted Jehoram with an incurable disease of the bowels. In the course of time, at the end of the second year, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great pain. His people made no fire in his honor, as they had for his fathers. Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years. He passed away, to no one's regret, and was buried in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings."

Day 252...(2 Chronicles 19,20; Isaiah 14)..."One of my Favorite Prayers"

One of my favorite prayers is from Jehosaphat. I like the simplicity amidst the challenge. How many times have I come to that same place..."Lord, I do not know what to do but my eyes are on You."

"And now they've come to kick us out of the country you gave us. O dear God, won't you take care of them? We're helpless before this vandal horde ready to attack us. We don't know what to do; we're looking to you."

Day 251...(2 Chronicles 17,18; Isaiah 13)..."A Single Minded Leader"

He followed in his father's footsteps...Asa. Jehoshaphat was a single minded leader. He was loved by his people. In seeking a strategy for battle, his main question was doing what God wanted. Great leaders are single minded. The greatest leaders are single minded on God. Here is the accounto fhis single mindedness...

"God was on Jehoshaphat's side because he stuck to the ways of his father Asa's early years. He didn't fool around with the popular Baal religion—he was a seeker and follower of the God of his father and was obedient to him; he wasn't like Israel. And God secured the kingdom under his rule, gave him a firm grip on it. And everyone in Judah showed their appreciation by bringing gifts. Jehoshaphat ended up very rich and much honored. He was single-minded in following God; and he got rid of the local sex-and-religion shrines.

Day 250...(2 Chronicles 15,16; Isaiah 12)..."Plain Spoken Isaiah"

The Message translation tells the story! Stick with God and He will stick with you! This is a plain message that is very clear to for all.

"He said, "Listen carefully, Asa, and listen Judah and Benjamin: God will stick with you as long as you stick with him. If you look for him he will let himself be found; but if you leave him he'll leave you. For a long time Israel didn't have the real God, nor did they have the help of priest or teacher or book. But when they were in trouble and got serious, and decided to seek God, the God of Israel, God let himself be found. At that time it was a dog-eat-dog world; life was constantly up for grabs—no one, regardless of country, knew what the next day might bring. Nation battered nation, city pummeled city. God let loose every kind of trouble among them. "But it's different with you: Be strong. Take heart. Payday is coming!"

Day 249...(2 Chronicles 13,14; Isaiah 11)..."Hope in the Midst of Despair"

Isaiah, for the most part, begins with despair of going into exile. The hope is witnessed through a "shoot" like a sign of new life in the spring. There are also glimpses of the hope to come for the remnant. We also see this written again in Isaiah 65. Here is the glimpse in chapter 11...

"The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together,and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea. In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his place of rest will be glorious."

Day 248...(2 Chronicles 11,12: Isaiah 10)..."More Numerous than the Stars to a Remnant Will Survive"

A forecast of Israel becoming more numerous than the stars came true to Abraham. Isaiah had to bear the "bad news" following disobedience of the exile... only a remnant will survive. The Old Testament is a series of historical ups and downs. Humankind turning away from the Lord shapes the downward spiral and returning to the Lord shapes an upward spiral. The same is true today! Here is the passage....

"In that day the remnant of Israel, the survivors of the house of Jacob, will no longer rely on him who struck them down but will truly rely on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel. A remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob will return to the Mighty God. Though your people, O Israel, be like the sand by the sea, only a remnant will return."

Day 247...(1 Chronicles 9,10; Isaiah 9)..."A Top Ten Most Beautiful Bible Passage"

Perhaps after 1 Corinthians 13 and Ecclesiastes 3 would then be Isaiah 9:6-7 as the most beautiful words in the Bible. Or wait minute...maybe after Genesis 1, 23 Psalm, John 1:1-18, and John 14. Well, maybe in the top ten most beautiful passages in the Bible. Anyway...here are the eloquent words in Isaiah...

"To us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government there will be no end. He will reighn on David's throne and over his kingdom, and establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever."

Day 246...(2 Chronicles 7,8; Isaiah 8)..."Here is that Rule Again"

Here is that rule again! The Bible while profound can be simple in a passage such as this. The one rule revisited. We are to place God above all others. Here is this way it is stated...

"As for you, if you walk before me as David your father did, and do all I command, and observe my decrees and laws, I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father when I said, 'You shall never fail to have a man to rule over Israel.' "But if you turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. And though this temple is now so imposing, all who pass by will be appalled and say, 'Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this temple?' People will answer, 'Because they have forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them—that is why he brought all this disaster on them.' "

Day 245...(2 Chronicles 5,6; Isaiah 7)..."One of the Longer Prayers in the Bible"

When Solomon dedicates the long anticipated temple, he says a prayer. A very long prayer. I count 30 verses. This is a different prayer than The Lord's Prayer which is so brief. The prayer encompasses much like a pastoral prayer today.

How long should a prayer be? I suppose there is no biblical suggestion for length. Although most prayers are brief. This prayer of Solomon much like Jesus' prayer in John 17 is longer.

The tradition of prayers of dedication could also be born from such passages. Our Book of Worship includes suggested prayers of dedication. This prayer of Solomon could also be a model. Solomon acknowledges the past with his father David and prays this temple will please God and inspire people. The house for God is also a tangible reminder of the need of obedience.