July 15 :: Psalms 13-15; Acts 19:21-41

Psalm 13

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

How long, O LORD ? Will you forget me forever?
       How long will you hide your face from me?

How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
       and every day have sorrow in my heart?
       How long will my enemy triumph over me?

Look on me and answer, O LORD my God.
       Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;

my enemy will say, "I have overcome him,"
       and my foes will rejoice when I fall.

But I trust in your unfailing love;
       my heart rejoices in your salvation.

I will sing to the LORD,
       for he has been good to me.

July 14 :: Psalms 10-12; Acts 19:1-20

"So the word of the Lord was growing 

mightily and prevailing." 

- Acts 19:20

Events pointed out to show the cause 
& effect of the growth of the Word...
The What's and How's:

HOW: Paul speaks with reason and persuades

"And he entered the synagogue and continued speaking out boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God." - Acts 19:8 

WHAT: Paul performs miracles

"God was performing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out." - Acts 19:11-12

WHAT: Magicians try to use the name of Jesus in exorcism, but are ineffective because they are not devoted to Him.

"And the man, in whom was the evil spirit, leaped on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. This became known to all, both Jews and Greeks, who lived in Ephesus; and fear fell upon them all and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified."- Acts 19:15-16

HOW: Destruction of 138 years' worth of pay in magical spell books

"And many of those who practiced magic brought their books together and began burning them in the sight of everyone; and they counted up the price of them and found it fifty thousand pieces of silver."