A Parent's Over-sight

You have ever been a good child, yet you are by nature a sinful, and a child of wrath, even as others.
Romans 3:23- For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Romans 3:10- As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 
As much as you have been praised for being good, you are yet bad- sinful, and a sinner in the sight of God, and in need of being cleansed by the blood of Christ.
James 2:10- For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. 
1 John 1:10- If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Colossians 1:14- In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
Pray, my dear child, that God, for Christ's sake, may pardon your sins and renew your heart, so that you may realize His love in all its fullness.
Romans 10:9- That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 
1 John 1:9- If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Don't conclude for a moment; that you are better than others, but remember that you are just the character that Christ calls on to repent.
John 3:16- For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Romans 6:23- For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Think not that because you were reared up in church as a baptized member , that this will avail you anything in the great day of accounts.
Titus 3:5- Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; 
Ephesians 2:8-9- For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
No doubt I have wronged you by not impressing these truths on your mind before this, but the best amend I can now make, is to warn you faithfully and entreat you earnestly, to seek the Lord while He may be found, and call upon Him while He is near.
Romans 10:13- For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. 
Matthew 7:7-8- Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.
You have long ago decided for yourself that your baptism has secured you nothing at all; and, let me assure you that your morality and good deeds, while most worthy and commendable, and well pleasing in the sight of God, are not sufficient to secure the salvation of your soul.
Romans 10:3- For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. 
Isaiah 64:6- But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
You are too young to have much actual transgression laid to your charge, but you are old enough- enlightened enough, to know good from  evil, therefore you are old enough for God to judge you and hold you accountable.
Romans 14:12- So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God. 
Hebrews 9:27- And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: 
You will be judged not according to age, but according to your knowledge of your duty.
Revelation 20:12- And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. 
Luke 16:15- And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God. 
James 4:17- Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.
I hope, my dear, to soon hear that God has led you out from the dark shadows of unbelief into the bright morning of His love; that you have found your way to the cross of Christ, and realized a happy peace to your soul.
John 1:12- But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 
John 20:31- But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. 
Act 16:31- And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. 
If you feel you are a sinner, and are honestly seeking deliverance, all the promises of the Bible are yours.
Galatians 3:22- But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.
1 John 5:13- These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. 
1 John  2:25- And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life.
Venture to the Saviour, and trust Him for His grace, for He has never sent one away who sought Him with the whole heart.
John 6:37- All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 
1 Timothy 2:4- Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
Whosoever will, may partake of the Water of Life freely.
John 3:15- That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 
John 4:14- But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. 
Revelation 20:15- And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.

-The Little Baptist by J. M. Martin

Healthy Minute- Dry Brushing

Dry brushing is brushing your skin with a natural bristle brush while it is dry to promote circulation and help eliminate toxins in the lymph system by stimulating it's flow. It's really easy, you start at your feet, or hands, and gently brush along the path of lymph drainage. Most people like to do this right before a shower.
The lymphatic system carries our white blood cells through the body. It is our "navy" that rids the body of waste and toxins and gets our infection fighting "soldiers" to where they need to go.
The lymphatic system is made up of lymph vessels and lymph nodes. Lymph is a clear fluid that runs through these vessels in only direction- into the nodes. The nodes drain the toxins and waste from our body. About 75% of the waste drains out our left armpit. Other locations are the neck and groin area.

Trouble can occur when these lymph nodes become blocked, locking the toxins in our body. By dry brushing, we help the lymph circulate and rid the body of toxins. It's best to do this right before you sweat. And, always drink a lot of water- dehydrated people don't sweat and this can cause problems of it's own!
The best brush is an all natural bristle brush, preferably with a handle so you can easily reach your legs and back. It can be done all over the body daily, or gently on the face once or twice a week. You should always start on the left side of the body (except in the stomach region, where you follow the flow of the colon from right to left).
It sounds a little weird, and maybe painful, but it's not. And it comes with a host of benefits!
It helps to remove the dead skin cells on the surface of your body, which makes your skin feel softer and look healthier. It's said to increase energy and circulation, and even lessen the appearance of cellulite.
The act of dry brushing is calming and can help reduce stress levels. It also helps with your kidney and spleen function and digestion, because when the lymph nodes are flowing normally your body can get rid of excess water and toxins helping your organs do their jobs.
For tips on how to, please watch the video below:

You can also watch this video, but I warn you that the lady wears a bikini and shows a picture of the lymphatic drainage flow that isn't modest! But, I wanted to include it because she shows exactly how to do it as you would during your home routine.

Believer's Heritage- Lorna Criss

This is the testimony of a friend of mine who is a missionary's wife in the Philippines. She is a Philipino national that I got to meet when I attended Bible School.

MY CONVERSION FROM ROMAN CATHOLICISM TO BIBLE CHRISTIANITY

Psalms 107:2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy.

I am prompted to write my personal testimony of my conversion from Roman Catholicism to Bible Christianity, because this coming Sunday, August 7, 2016, will be my 30 years since my conversion. I feel led to write out some details, so it's going to be a little bit long. I decided to write portions of it at a time. I hope you all will be patient enough to read this. It's my prayer to all who has never been converted that the Holy Spirit of God will speak to your heart and start searching for the truth. This is how it all started.

I was born in December 6, 1968, raised here in my hometown, Borongan E. Samar. My Mom was an Elementary school teacher and my Dad was a Supervisor for a government Telecommunication. I have two older brothers and one older sister. I am the youngest of four. At an early age I was taught that the Roman Catholic is the only right religion. My parents were very religious, we attended the Mass every Sunday, did confession and communion. My parents would sponsor (hermana/hermano) a certain Catholic Saint (statue) for a month/year at a time. Oftentimes this big statues would be in our living room. I remember looking in their eyes and being very scared. Also, I remember my Mom would wake us up at 4:00am to get ready to attend a procession in town followed by a Mass.

At the age of seven, my Dad decided to work abroad on a Commercial Ship to earn more money, because my oldest brother at that time was to start College. I remember my Mom crying many days and nights thinking of my Dad being so far away. But soon after that my Mom started having some friends over (barkadas) and drinking buddies, I guess, to ease her pain of loneliness. That's when my Mom started to be very close friend with Mano Dinoy. He is a faggot (Bible word for gay or bakla) and a trusted helper at the Priest Convent. My Mom became inseparable with him. Never a day that Mano Dinoy would not come to our house or my Mom would be in the Convent just hanging out or drinking tuba (firmented coconut juice made into liquor). Then the time came that my family became very good friends with the Priests and the Bishop at that time.

The Priest Convent became my second home and the same with a lot of the Priests. On my way home from school it was nothing for me to stop by at the Convent, go to their kitchen, and if I see food on the table, I'd help myself and eat. Many a time the Priest will come to our house to take showers whenever the Convent runs out of their running water. Many a night when the Priests were locked out (certain hours in the evening the gate of the Convent was locked) they would come knocking at our door to spend the night at our house. I'll never forget this one night, a certain man came knocking at my sister's and I bedroom window upstairs, I was scared to death. I ran to my Mom's bedroom when she realized it was one of the Priest who were locked out and wanting to spend the night at our house.
I was about in sixth grade when I had this memory. My Mom, some of her co-teacher friends and Priests would have parties in our house during the evening. It would get so late at night that my sister and I will help ourselves and sleep on the couch in our living room. Note, during those times (1979-1981) there was no electricity in our whole town. We were using oil lamps. My Mom would have parties in our house and late in the evening while sleeping in the couch I'd be awakened with a sweet music in the background (battery operated machine), I'd open my eyes and would see the Priests dancing with my Mom and her friends. Then, I'd just close my eyes again and go back to sleep. During this whole time, my Dad was working abroad and would only come home once a year for a month or so, or the longest I can remember was two years of work contract before I ever saw him again. (Matthew 23:14)

Then the time came I entered High School at St. Joseph's ( later on became St. Mary's College). I was a typical teenager who enjoyed family, friends and life. Everyday in school before the class started we were to recite the Rosary (oftentimes during my first year I lead the prayer). Each student went to confession during the first week of every month, so we can take our communion every first Friday of the month Mass. During my first year in High School for some reason I became the class president. One of my responsibilities were to make sure all my classmates attended the Mass every Sunday. After attending the Sunday Mass I'd be standing outside the Church and my classmates were to approach me so I can sign their card as a proof that they attended the Mass. Back then there were no Middle School. After a person graduated from Elementary, he/she can start four years in High School, then you can start College as early as sixteen years old.

I was about third year (9th grade) in High School when I started asking myself these two important questions in life. My first question was, "I wonder what will happen to me when I die and Where will I go?" Many times I'd close my eyes and be thinking of eternity and all I can see was total darkness. My second question, I always asked myself was, "l wonder when will I can experience a real happiness in my life that will last for a long time?" Every time my Dad comes home from a year or so of working abroad, I thought, I was the happiest girl on earth! Excitement of seeing him again and anxious to see what he has brought me. Two most unforgettable things he had bought me was, a pearl ring and an electric Casio piano keyboard, as his gifts for my High School graduation. I thought to myself, this is it, I am the happiest person on earth! But in a week or so, the excitement wears off and I am back to my old self longing for something that will make me happy again.

I started thinking that the emptiness I've been feeling would be filled with my religion. So, I started getting serious attending the Mass everyday. I started having a devotion with the Lady of Perpetual Help (Mary). I bought me a scapular and I'd wear it around my neck 24 hours a day. As part of my devotion to Mary I was to attend the Mass every Wednesday and after that I'd light a candle to the statue of Mary and recite my special prayer to her (Novena-prayer booklet). But the emptiness was still there, so I joined the devotion to St. Jude. The same thing, I have to attend the Mass every Thursday, light a candle and recite my Novena prayers to him. But the emptiness was still there. Our school was being run by the Catholic Nuns. So, I joined the Mother Ignacia Del Esperito Santo club (MIDES). One obligation to that was to attend the early morning Saturday Mass and afterwards, we would have some kind of a meeting at the Nun Convent. Oftentimes, I'd get in trouble from my Mom whenever I get home, because I have chores to do (laundry, clean the yard/backyard, wax and scrub the floor etc.) that Saturday, and I am no where to be found. But because I was seriously searching for something that would fill up that void in my heart, I did not care if my Mom got mad at me.

During this whole time, the Priests where still in and out of our home. Sometimes I'd come home with my Mom late in the evening from a party at the Priest Convent. Oftentimes, I'd wait outside at the Bishop's office/bedroom door waiting for my Mom to come out, because my Mom was having some kind of counseling. Whenever I'd do a confession, I'd look first who was at the confessional booth, thinking that the Priest might recognize me and tell my Mom the sins I have been doing, so I'd lessen my sins to confess.

As I was growing up I remember those times, three times a year in particular, my parents would have a feast of food on our table. First time was during the town fiesta (Sept. 8-Birthday of Mary). The second time was Christmas Day and the third time were during New Year's Day. No Holidays, Birthdays, Anniversaries celebrated. Except when my Mom was having a party for the Priests and the Bishop in our house. Lots of food on the table and lots of expensive wine and liquor that comes with it, all paid by my Mom.
During my last year in High school, my two older brothers and my older sister were already in the big City of Manila, going to College. During this time, it was just my Mom and I at home, together with a helper. I became very close to my Mom during this time. I'd go with her all the time or we would just hang out a lot.

Then came March 1984 for my High School graduation. I remember that day, I wore my white dress, walked down the isle of the Catholic Church towards the altar where the Bishop was sitting down, knelt down in front of him, bowed our heads and kissed his hand (bless), then he will give us our so called diploma, then walk back down to my assigned seat. Each graduating student were to do the same.

Summer of 1984 (April-May), my Mom brought me to the big City (Manila) to join with my older brother and older sister in College. At this time my older brother was taking Criminology and my older sister was taking College of Dentistry. My oldest brother graduated College already and was in Commercial Ship working abroad, just like my Dad. I had in mind of taking Nursing or be like my Mom, a teacher. When my Dad saw my High School report card that my higher grades were Math, he encouraged me to take some kind of Engineering. I was accepted at National University taking up Industrial Engineering and later on I shifted to Civil Engineering. I was so busy with my school that I did not realize that I had set aside the two most important questions I had in High School. Until I was 18 years old, for the first time, my parents bought us a black and white television. In one of the TV shows, I saw a man being interviewed how he was "saved and born again." This was the very first time I heard these words. The man was saying that he was so bad in sin that he was put in jail and while he was there, someone cared enough for him and showed him from the Bible how he can be "saved and born again." Since then, the Lord had completely change his life and he was now going to a Bible School to become a preacher. After listening to that testimony, I told myself, "I am a good person, I attend Mass, I go to Confession, I have my devotion to Mary and St. Jude, I study hard, I obey my parents, so, I don't need to change to be saved and born again, that man on TV, he really needs to do that, because he was really a bad man, full of sins." I was a very self righteous, religious person at that time.

But the two questions (What will happen to me when I die? And , when will I ever experience a lasting happiness in my life?) kept ringing in my heart and mind. So, to ease my misery I looked for some kind of a Chapel at the Campus and I found one. So, every morning before I started my first class for that day, I made sure I stop by at the School Chapel to say my morning prayers for that day and I'd feel better.

I remember one afternoon, I was by the window in the third floor of our school building and when I looked down, I saw from the next block building, a group of young people were clapping their hands, singing songs, waving their hands up in the air and all the words I could hear from their singing were "Halleluiah, Praise the Lord." Then I thought to myself, maybe they have what I have been looking and longing for, because they seem very happy.

I was in third year college, studying very hard to please my parents for their sacrifices in sending me to school. One morning, an older student, Kuya Dodong, approached me and my friend Erlynda. I recognized him, because he was one of the assistants of our professor in one of our major subjects, Strength of Materials. I was told that if you don't pass this subject, you might as well change your College degree, because most likely you cannot finish Civil Engineering. So when Kuya Dodong approached us, I had the intention to befriend him, so maybe he could help me with my score test in Strength of Materials :) But his purpose in approaching us was totally different. He wanted to invite us to a Bible Study that afternoon at 2:30 held at the old Elementary school building. I found out later on that the school administration were all Catholics and would not allow any Bible study inside the Campus or else you would be expelled. So the Bible study was held in kind of a secret place. Erlynda and I attended the Bible study that afternoon with me having this attitude, ok, what can you teach me? Because I was a very good and religious person. The preacher, Kuya Bernard, started preaching the Bible, when all of a sudden all I can remember thinking, "God is Holy, God is perfect, God is pure, Heaven is Holy, Heaven is perfect, Heaven is pure!!! And here I am sitting in this chair, just the very opposite, I am not holy, I am full of sin, so imperfect, so unpure, that there is no way I can enter that Holy place, whenever I die, therefore because of all my sins the only place I'll go after I die was Hell." I remember Kuya Bernard explaining Hell, how hot it is over there and in my heart (I was in tears during this time) I told the Lord, "Lord, I don't want to go to hell, but I know I am going there, because my sins won't let me enter Heaven, because Heaven will become unholy and unpure, please, Lord do something with my life, I don't know what to do!!!" I didn't know then that it was the Holy Ghost convicting me of all my sins. All I can remember after that was, I went home and told my older sister, "Ate, I attended a Bible study this afternoon and I don't know what happened, but I feel so very happy, I feel like a big load got off my back, I don't feel the emptiness anymore, you have got to come with me and attend this Bible study!!!" At this time I didn't know that my sins were washed away, I was saved and born again, by the precious Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ!!! Praise the Lord!!! — with Bob Criss.

Amen!

Another one snatched from the claws of Satan!

Got The Runs

My friend's little girl was having tummy troubles. She went to the doctor and found out that she was severely constipated. They told her to put her on laxatives to help her move thing along.
The laxatives worked a little too well and she ended up with the runs.
She didn't understand what they were and this conversation ensued:
"When you go to the bathroom and you poop you need to tell me." her mom said.
"I didn't go poop. I only went pee." she replied.
"No, you did go poop. It's just liquidy and sounds like pee. It's called having diarrhea." her mom informed her.
Later, as she and her brother were playing she got up and ran as fast as she could to the bathroom. Barely making it onto the toilet in time she yelled to her mom, "Yep! It's bacteria again!"

Calvary Publishing

I would normally do a book review here, but I wanted to let everyone know about this publishing company- Calvary Publishing.
Calvary Publishing is a Baptist owned and run business that gets great old books that are no longer in print and re-publishes them. They have a wide range of topics and subject matters to chose from- biography, historical, fiction, and others. Their prices are very good.
They also will publish your books, tracts, prayer cards, postcards, banners, bulletins, bookmarks, and  more for close to cost.
Their sister companies also help those in the ministry:

• Bearing Precious Seed prints Bibles for Missionaries to give out for free. They print in  many different languages, and will even print a Bibles in a language of your choosing if you can get them an original in the language to copy.
• Local Church Bible Publishers will print good quality King James Bibles at cost for local churches who want to have Bibles on hand for their members and visitors.
• And lastly, LBS Pacers (Lansing Baptist School Pacers) is a school that you can send your children to, or use as an umbrella school if you're homeschooling. They'll keep your children's records and provide them with a diploma and transcripts upon graduation. They use the ACE program.

All of these ministries are run out of a local church in Lansing, Michigan called Parker Memorial Baptist Church.  They are an old-fashioned, KJV Bible believing, Baptist Church pastored by Dr. Don Green since 1955.

Tells Of Hell (video sermon)

Here is a message from Missionary to Indonesia, George Jaggy.

God promises at the end of the Bible, in the book of Revelation, that there will be a new heaven and a new earth. But, something happens before this where the Lord "cleans house".

Christ came to the earth about 2,000 years ago and he came to save sinners. He lived for sinners. He died to pay for their sins. And, He rose again. Anyone who goes to hell ends up there because they chose it.

If you could earn it why did He die? If there is no hell why send missionaries? If there is no hell why do we have preachers and evangelists? Hell is real. Salvation is real. And the choice is yours.

Gluten Free Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting recipe

I'm always looking for good gluten free recipes. This is the best cake recipe that I have found. If you want to make it a Yellow Cake, then I suggest buying white chocolate powder off of Amazon and substituting it for the  cocoa powder.

Cake:
2¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons Bob's Red Mill gluten free 1:1 baking flour* 
1½ cup cocoa powder, sifted 
¾ teaspoon salt 
2¼ teaspoon baking soda 
1½ teaspoon baking powder 
1½ cup unsalted butter, softened 
1¼ cup granulated sugar 
1 cup packed brown sugar 
2 large eggs 
3 teaspoons vanilla extract 
1½ cup almond milk or regular milk 
1½ cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a medium sized bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powered, salt, baking soda and baking powder. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. Add the eggs one at a time and then add the vanilla and mix again. Finally add the milk and mix one last time. The wet mixture might look a little strange at this point, but that is ok! 
2. Add the flour mixture and the Greek yogurt to the wet mixture, one half at a time alternating between the two, starting with the flour. Give the batter one last mix until everything is combined. 
3. Grease three 8 inch cake pans and equally distribute the batter into the pans. Bake cakes for about 30 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool inside the pan for ten minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack. 
4. Once the cakes are cooled, transfer to a plate or cake stand and stack the cakes on top of each other, frosting in between each one. Frost the top and sides of the cake, smoothing out with a knife if necessary.
 Notes *I have only made this recipe using Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free 1:1 Baking flour, I'm not sure if it would turn out the same using a different gluten free flour. 

Frosting:
1 cup butter, softened (room temp butter works best...its easiest to get fluffy)
1 cup peanut butter
1 TB vanilla extract
4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup whole milk

Instructions:

In your stand mixer with the paddle attachment, whip the butter and peanut butter until smooth.  Slowly add in the powdered sugar in 1/2 cup increments.    Add the milk and vanilla and whip until very smooth and spreadable.  Store in the fridge.  Can be made up to 3 days ahead of time.

*these recipes are a mixture of recipes from the She Likes Food website and the Instructables website.

Two Gates, Two Ways (poem)

Two gates, two ways, two paths for all,
And all therein must go;
Each soul on earth is making choice
Of life, or endless woe.

An open gate, a broadened way,
An easy, flowery path;
And souls unwary throng therein,
But oh! It ends in wrath.

A straightened gate, a narrow way,
A path the saints have trod;
A light to guide by night and day,
And oh! It leads to God.

-D. W. Whittle

All Along (song)

Making Friends And Influencing People

Everyone has times when they come up against an enemy. A person that just wants to make you miserable. It's not something that new. It's been happening since  Cain and Abel. 
The world wants you to think that it's cool to take these types of people out. To humiliate them. Or, to seek revenge on them. But, that's not how God tells us to deal with them.
There's a story in the Bible that tells us how to deal with these type of people.
II Kings 6:8-10- Then the king of Syria warred against Israel, and took counsel with his servants, saying, In such and such a place shall be my camp. And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Syrians are come down. And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of, and saved himself there, not once nor twice.
The Kings of Israel have a long list of enemies. Many times their tactics for dealing with these enemies was to go to war. This option leads to the loss of lives, destruction of families, and takes a toll on the people of the land on both sides of the battle.
The king of Syria wanted to defeat the king of Israel. He decided that he would try to send assassins to kill him. But, God didn't want the king of Israel to die yet. So, he told Elisha to warn the king about where the assassins were hiding in wait for him. He saved his life at least three times!
The king of Syria was aggravated that his assassins were found out. He thought that he might have a traitor in his midst.
II Kings 6:11-14- Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them, Will ye not shew me which of us is for the king of Israel? And one of his servants said, None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber. And he said, Go and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan. Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about. 
One of the king of Syria's men told him that it was the prophet Elisha who was the informant. He said that Elisha could hear the words that the king spoke in his bedroom! 
Is this true? Could Elisha hear what the king of Syria was saying behind closed doors? No! But, the Lord God Almighty could. It was the Lord, not Elisha, that was watching the king of Syria's moves.
You think the Lord isn't watching what's happening with you? That He doesn't see what your enemy is planning behind closed doors? He even knows how your enemy is going to react in any given situation!
But, the king of Syria blamed Elisha. He decided to send an army to circle the city that Elisha was staying in. They came with their chariots and horses during the night, and when everyone woke up in the morning the city was surrounded!
II Kings 6:15- And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do? 
Elisha's servant was scared! I bet the people of the city were pretty scared! But, Elisha wasn't afraid.
II Kings 6:16-17- And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. 
Elisha told the servant not to be afraid because their army was bigger! Perhaps the servant looked around and saw only frightened villagers.
Elisha could see something that no one else could see. Elisha could see how God was protecting them! And, he prayed that God would let his servant see, too!
God allowed this servant to see the Spiritual army that was protecting Elisha and the city. When the servant looked out at the mountains that surrounded the city he saw an army of fire filling them.
Some times we are scared when we don't have to be. If we could see what God sees, we would know that he has a Spiritual army all around us keeping us safe. No one can hurt us unless God says they can. 
When an enemy is out to get us we think we are all alone. We can't see God's hand of protection, and so we think we need to take matters into our own hands. But, God hasn't forsaken us just because we can't see His protection.
II Kings 6:18-19- And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. And Elisha said unto them, This is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. But he led them to Samaria. 
Elisha asked the Lord to blind the enemy army of Syria. Then he went out and told them that they were in the wrong place, and he led them to the capitol city of Israel.
II Kings 6:20-22- And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, LORD, open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And the LORD opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them, My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them? And he answered, Thou shalt not smite them: wouldest thou smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow? set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master. 
The king of Israel wanted to know if he should kill the Syrian army. That's always how it is, isn't it? God sends us the victory and we want to know if we should decimate the enemy. Those people out there in the world aren't our enemy- they're lost souls in need of salvation!
But, Elisha said that they were captives and not to kill them, but feed them and send them back to Syria.
Simple, huh? Feed the enemy the bread of life. Give him the water of life. The Lord will bless you for it.
Proverbs 25:21-22- If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink: For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the LORD shall reward thee.
I'm sure the Syrian army was quite alarmed to find themselves inside of Samaria with the Israelite army all around. But, they weren't attacked like they expected. Instead, they were treated kindly by the ones they were to battle. They were fed and then sent home unharmed.
II Kings 6:23- And he prepared great provision for them: and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. So the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel. 
What's the best way to end a war? You may think it's killing the enemy army. But, enemies can find armies anywhere. They can get them from other lands that they conquer, or pay for them from another powerful nation. No, killing isn't the best way.
The best way to end a war is to make your enemy your friend. Elisha ended this war by turning the enemy of Israel into a friend.
How should we deal with those who seem to be out to destroy us? 
Luke 6:28- Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you. 
Matthew 5:44- But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;
Christ tells us exactly what to do- pray for them; bless them; do good to them. Why? Because sometimes we don't need to destroy the enemy. We need to convert them!