Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem
Oh How I LOVED TV! That little 14" inch silvery square in the middle of the big mahogany cabinet dominated my life. Howdy Doody, Captain Kangaroo, Captain Bob the Artist, Roy Rodgers, Boomtown, Cartoons on Saturday Morning, Laurel and Hardy, The Three Stooges, and, the LOVE OF MY LIFE, "Zorro". TV was magical. I learned to draw and do animation from Captain Bob. I learned Spanish words from Zorro. I learned about The Wild West from Gunsmoke and about the Pioneers from Wagon Train. I met Ronald Reagan and Clint Eastwood. I even learned that laundry soap came from a place called "DEATH VALLEY". TV was magical. Mom would say:
"You watch too much TV! Go outside and get some fresh air!"
But TV was wonderful. Why go outside when I could learn so much from TV?
One day I overheard the grownups talking about my late uncle Arthur.
"oh, poor Uncle Arthur. He died from TV. He had to stay at the special TV hospital in Mattapan...you know the one with all the porches so the TV patients could get fresh air. They thought that fresh air was the only thing that could cure TV, but he died anyway."
YIKES! NO WONDER MOM DIDN'T WANT ME TO WATCH TOO MUCH TV! IT WAS A DEADLY DISEASE!!!!!
Of course, I later found out that they were talking about TB (Tuberculosis) rather than my beloved TV. (sigh of relief) Thank God.
For a long time, Simon The Sorcerer had a powerful position in the community. Probably he would have been called upon to heal diseases, help correct financial problems, find a suitable mate, etc, all using his magical arts and being paid handsomely for his services. I won't go so far as to say he was a phony, or that he was exploiting people, as the Scriptures don't say that. However, it does say that he believed the Apostles' message, so he wasn't a complete scoundrel. When he saw the Apostles' POWER, he naturally thought that this was a new kind of magic that he would add to his repertoire. And, the way one acquired new techniques and knowledge would have been the same as it is today. You pay for it.
But like me mistaking TV for the dreadful disease of TB, Simon mistook The Holy Spirit as just another form of "magic". Both TV and TB were countered by "fresh air", but there's where the similarity ceased. Miracles wrought by magic versus the POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT are so different, that Simon should have known better. In fact, it is possible he did, as his response to the Apostle's rebuke was immediate and appropriate.
"Please Pray For Me."
Come and Pray For the Peace of Jerusalem, For Our FRiends in Need, For Persecuted Believers, and For Our Beloved Nation.
"The counsel of the LORD stands forever, The plans of His heart from generation to generation. Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, The people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance..” Psalm 33 NASB
God Bless America!
Blessings To All Who Visit This Garden of Prayer.
This Symbol Represents Christians in The Middle East, who desperately need our Prayers.
Hallelujah and Amen
ML/LTOS