Key Verse: 1 Samuel 10:9
So it was, when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, that God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day.

Surprise! “Another heart.” It’s amazing what can happen when we’re looking for donkeys. We may discover that God is up to something in our lives other than donkeys. It’s great comfort to know that God is in charge. He knows the donkeys are fine. He wants to make us “Kings and Priests” (Revelation 1:6). Sometimes He may want us to be burden-bearing donkeys. We need “another heart.” We just don’t know when we may be at the start of a brand new adventure in God’s plan for us. Remember it was a donkey that carried Jesus into Jerusalem (John 12:14-15). If we are available to God, He’ll do the most useful and creative things in our lives. His ways are exciting and also very challenging.
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Lord God, how often I have been perplexed, frustrated in not finding what I think I’m looking for, when all along You had everything under Your guidance. I pray for a deeper understanding of Your overarching providence, and for a simpler faith in Your promise to “work all things after the counsel of Your will.” In Jesus’ Name, Amen!

I’ve just read all of Ephesians chapter one as my New Testament reading for today. What assurance! (click here).

100 PERSONAL WORDS:
Yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day, and I’ve been thinking back on a Crossroads/100 Huntley Street outreach to Ireland called, “To Ireland With Love.” Violence was raging between ungodly Protestant and equally ungodly Roman Catholic factions, so we determined to send a team of Christians, RC’s and Protestants, to work with local groups of Christians who were fasting and praying for God to intervene. Fr. Bob MacDougall, a Jesuit priest on our team, was our main preacher in Protestant churches. The churches were packed and hundreds came forward at his invitation to receive Jesus as Saviour and Lord. Not long after those days, the powers of hell were driven back and a time of tranquility and evangelism emerged.

I can’t remember why I was in Winnipeg back in 1976. I may have been “looking for donkeys,” but that was the occasion when I first met Bob MacDougall. He had let it be known amongst the charismatic prayer meetings that he was to perform an exorcism and he wanted a Pentecostal Pastor to accompany him. I ended up being that Pastor. Before agreeing to accompany him, he gave me his testimony of personal salvation and I gave him mine. The Lord found a couple of donkeys, Bob and me, and that day, God delivered an immigrant man from Brazil, who had become deeply involved in voodooism. The rest is history. Bob worked with me full-time for 15 years as an Evangelist. He’s in the immediate Presence of the Lord now, but I wanted you to hear him from the past on a video. Here’s a partial interview clip of him from 1980. I’m sorry it’s not longer, but it gives you a good sense of this Jesuit priest’s heart for Jesus…click here.

Yours for God’s intervention while looking for donkeys,

David