THE LAME TAKE THE PREY The Lame Take the Prey A Daily Devotional Book by Peggy Verwey The Lame Take the Prey, 2nd Edition A Daily Devotional © 2008 by Peggy Verwey © 2020 2nd Edition by Peggy Verwey All rights reserved by Japan Mission ISBN 978-4-89060-104-2 (PDF) Published by Japan Mission 7-40 Monzen-cho, Ikoma-shi, Nara, Japan 630-0266 Tel: +81(0)743-73-1754 Fax: +81(0)743-73-1681 E-mail: [email protected] Website: japanmission.org Cover design by SonShine Works ISBN 978-0-900748-50-9 Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. JAPAN MISSION Japan Mission was founded by Neil and Peggy Verwey in 1957. It is a faith mission endeavouring to reach the seeking ones among the 127 million Japanese people. Japan Mission is interdenominational, not forming churches, but rather linking those reached through many avenues of ministry to already existing evangelical churches that believe and teach the fundamental doctrines of the Bible. The main emphasis of our work is to aid Japan’s approximately 7,800 churches, which have an average attendance of about 35 people. Because of their small congregations, the pastors are often in need of assistance with literature and their evangelistic programs. Areas of Outreach • Hospital Evangelism • Evangelistic Meetings • English Teaching Evangelism • International School Outreach • Bible & Literature Publication & Distribution • Audio Visual Outreach Other Books by Neil & Peggy Verwey • The Voice of Joy • No Greater Love • On All Bare Heights • On Eagles’ Wings • Even Unto Death • On Dry Ground • Half a Century in Japan Contact Information Japan Mission 7-40 Monzen Cho, Ikoma, Nara, Japan 630-0266 Tel: (0)743-73-1754 Fax: (0)743-73-1681 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.japanmission.org v vi Foreword When the Lord first laid it on my heart to attempt to write a devotional daybook, the words, “The lame take the prey” (Isaiah 33:23) would not leave my mind. These words are probably a reference to the passage in 2 Kings 7:3, in which the lepers found the food that the Syrians had left over and, in the midst of famine, were fed! I pray that someone who is conscious of a spiritual hunger, upon reading some passage contained in this book, will find their hunger satisfied. We find a similar thought in Isaiah 35:6, where it says, “… the lame shall leap like a deer.” I pray that someone who is feeling inadequate, even “lame,” when reading it, will take courage and press on to be a blessing to those that he or she may be seeking to contact for the Lord. My husband, Neil, and I arrived in Japan from our respective countries, he from South Africa and I from England, as missionaries at the end of 1951. After two years of a concentrated study of the Japanese language, we were married. Now, together with our son, David, and his wife Sue, who later joined us in the ministry, with their three sons, Jesse, Alex and Chris, who have also found the Lord – we are seeking to bring the precious Gospel to the needy Japanese. Without Neil and David’s help and encouragement, this book would not have become a reality. Aaron Wilson, our most efficient office manager, kindly laid out the book and helped in many ways. His wife, Crystal helped by proof-reading the text. It goes out with the earnest prayer that some part of it may be a blessing to someone, somewhere, and result in the salvation of precious souls. PEGGY VERWEY vii viii January 1 THE THRESHOLD OF A NEW YEAR “… the land which you cross over to posses is a land of hills and valleys, which drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning of the year to the very end of the year.” (Deuteronomy 11:11-12) We are now standing at the beginning of a new year, with its unknown future before us. But no matter what happens, we need to remember that every moment is in the Hands of our loving heavenly Father. This is true, not just of today, but of every day of the year ahead. As we face the coming year, maybe there are some concerns in our hearts as to what the future could hold. We may be recalling the difficult times we experienced in the past and also the times when we felt that we failed the Lord. Those memories we should, however, now leave in the Hands of the Lord. As we commit them to Him, they are dealt with and never need to be remembered again. You may be YOUNG as you face the challenge of another year and the way ahead may look very uncertain. There will doubtless be mountains to climb and valleys to go through. But what a privilege it is to remember that the future is in His Hands and He has promised to guide you every step of the way. You may be MIDDLE-AGED today and the future does not look as bright as it did when you were young. But remember, “He holds the key of all unknown” and the future is as bright as the Promises of God! You may be OLD at the beginning of this new year, but remember, as Dr. Dobson has so well expressed it in the title of one of his books, Old Age is Not for Sissies, there is nothing that is going to happen to you today (or in any of the future days) that you and God cannot handle together! For all ages let’s remember His ageless promise, “… the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard” (Isaiah 52:12). As we look ahead, may we have a deep consciousness of His presence and His undertaking and may we walk in faith with Him every step of the way. 9 January 2 IN A WAITING ROOM FOR HEAVEN “For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come.” (Hebrews 13:14) It was marvellous to hear Hanako Kimura, who was living in a senior citizens home, joyfully tell us one day, “I am now in a first class waiting room for heaven.” After the war, as a young girl of seventeen, she went to the devastated city of Hiroshima to be with her brother. He had been a soldier in the war and was said to be dying of tuberculosis. But Hanako was amazed to see, in spite of his physical weakness, how radiant he was when he spoke of his Savior, Jesus Christ. He told her that, when he first got back from the war, he had gone every morning to the local temple to worship. Then, one day, on the way home, a kind lady had greeted him and offered him a cup of goat’s milk. As there was a great shortage of food at that time, he had gladly accepted it. From that time on, she had given him goat’s milk every time he passed her door, and, being a Christian, the lady had taken the opportunity to tell him about Jesus. As a result, he had found Christ as his Savior too. Hanako says that his testimony had such a great influence on her life that she, too, had found Christ as her Savior. She later went to Bible college and subsequently joined the staff of the Japan Mission. There she had a wonderful ministry, telling sick people in various hospitals about her Savior. Now, she herself is handicapped with rheumatism and has to spend most of her time in a wheelchair. She still operates her computer, however, as a means of testifying for her Savior, but has to do so with her toes! Hanako especially delights to tell others about the tremendous way in which she found the Lord as her Savior and how even a cup of goat’s milk can be used by the Lord. No matter how handicapped we may be, we can follow her example and testify for our Savior, until He takes us to be with Himself. 10 January 3 THE BENEFITS OF FELLOWSHIP “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:24-25) We always need to remember that fellowship is a God-given gift and that we have significant privileges which come with our ‘new life’ in Christ. We have personal access to God through Jesus and can draw near to Him so easily, any moment of the day. It has been so well expressed by an anonymous writer: Go up to the mountain of blessing Alone with the Master in prayer; Then down to the work in the valley below, Your face with the love-light of Jesus aglow. We also need to remember that others benefit when we have fellowship with them. If we neglect getting together with them to share our faith, they and we will lose much blessing. Fellowship with other Christians builds strong relationships. Paul had such a close bond with the believers that when he had to leave them, we read that he said, “I have shown you in every way, laboring like this, that you must support the weak.