I continued my reading this week in 1 Samuel at chapter 17, and something caught my attention as I was reading. Goliath, the Philistine giant, comes out and shouts defiance before the armies of Israel. The part that caught my attention is found in 1 Samuel 17:11 and 16. It says, "On hearing the Philistine's words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified...For forty days the Philistine came forward every morning and evening and took his stand." And the Israelites, for forty days, did nothing but shrink back in fear! It wasn't till David showed up that anything was done about this Philistine who was insulting the armies of the living God.
These two short verses reminded me of how easily the giants in our life can cripple us. The moment that they appear too big for us to handle, the moment we believe that they are insurmountable, that is the moment that they defeat us and render us ineffective within the kingdom of God. We must adopt the attitude of David. We must believe that anything that stands in the way of us accomplishing the will of God is simply an insult to his power and his kingdom mission and vision. We mustn't allow such things to go unchallenged or unchecked.
We must remember Scriptures like Matthew 19:25-26, John 14:12-14, Romans 8:37-39, 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, and 1 John 4:4, just to name a few. Paul says in Ephesians 1 that God's incomparably great power is available for those who believe. What do we learn from David? One thing we ought to learn is that we should never underestimate the power of God within the believer when we need him most!
May you realize the power of God that lies within you! As a popular Christian author has simply said, "Face your giants!"
Blessings...
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Heart Gazing
"This ole boy...he ain't what he used to be!" Ha! That little catch phrase has monopolized my mind and my heart on more than one occasion lately. Just this last month, I turned another year older. As with any birthday, it made me think of the days gone by...when I was young, when I had not a care in the world; and, of course, when I was in shape. Without going into detail, let us just say that this ole boy ain't what he used to be.
Unfortunately we live in a time where everyone, most of the time, is judged by their outer appearance. In our world, we are only as good as we look. Our looks make us popular...our looks make us likable...our looks make us marketable. Things haven't changed all that much.
In 1 Samuel 16, Samuel has gone to meet Jesse and his sons so that he can anoint the one who is going to replace Saul as king over Israel. Jesse parades his sons in front of Samuel one by one. Samuel, like many in our world today, falls prey to judging these young men based on their appearance. As soon as he laid his eyes on Eliab, he just knew (based on what he "saw") that this young man had to be the Lord's anointed. The Lord's response to Samuel should strike a chord deep within each and every one of us...
"Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7)
Be honest with yourself for just a moment! Have you ever been guilty of judging someone by their appearance? I think we all have. All of us, at some point or another, have decided that someone was not worth our time, our money, and/or our energy, because they simply did not look like they could be trusted. To all of us the Lord would say, "Be careful! Do not look at the outward appearance, look into the heart." We should all challenge ourselves to give people a fighting chance. Before we too quickly dismiss them, we should get to know them...we should get to know their heart. The thing that scares me...I wonder how many truly great people I have missed out on knowing because I judged them too quickly!
Lord, forgive me for judging others. Give me the eyes to see people as you see them. Give me the patience to let them in, and the strength to invest in them.
Unfortunately we live in a time where everyone, most of the time, is judged by their outer appearance. In our world, we are only as good as we look. Our looks make us popular...our looks make us likable...our looks make us marketable. Things haven't changed all that much.
In 1 Samuel 16, Samuel has gone to meet Jesse and his sons so that he can anoint the one who is going to replace Saul as king over Israel. Jesse parades his sons in front of Samuel one by one. Samuel, like many in our world today, falls prey to judging these young men based on their appearance. As soon as he laid his eyes on Eliab, he just knew (based on what he "saw") that this young man had to be the Lord's anointed. The Lord's response to Samuel should strike a chord deep within each and every one of us...
"Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:7)
Be honest with yourself for just a moment! Have you ever been guilty of judging someone by their appearance? I think we all have. All of us, at some point or another, have decided that someone was not worth our time, our money, and/or our energy, because they simply did not look like they could be trusted. To all of us the Lord would say, "Be careful! Do not look at the outward appearance, look into the heart." We should all challenge ourselves to give people a fighting chance. Before we too quickly dismiss them, we should get to know them...we should get to know their heart. The thing that scares me...I wonder how many truly great people I have missed out on knowing because I judged them too quickly!
Lord, forgive me for judging others. Give me the eyes to see people as you see them. Give me the patience to let them in, and the strength to invest in them.
Monday, December 3, 2012
Obedience is Best
Today I began reading in 1 Samuel 15. Why there you might ask? Well, I have bee thinking an awful lot about King David; you know, how he is labeled as "a man after God's own heart." I wanted to spend some time studying his story - looking into the struggles that he faced, the mistakes that he made, the kingdom that he led. Despite all the pressure that David was under as a king, he still managed to glorify the Lord and inspire a nation. I just thought it would be interested reading...and who knows, I might even learn something along the way!
Although David is not mentioned until 1 Samuel 16, his story actually begins in chapter 15. King Saul is given specific instruction by Samuel, a prophet of the Lord. The Amalekites attacked and "waylaid" the Israelites as they came up from Egypt. God intended to use King Saul and his armies to punish the Amalekites for their brutality. To make a long story short, King Saul took matters into his own hands and simply refused to obey the Lord's instructions. He chose to carry out what parts he wanted, and chose to rationalize his decision for ignoring the other parts he didn't want to carry out. On the one hand, his rationalizations seem attractive simply because he sold them as sacrifice and worship to the Lord. On the other hand, it was disobedience to the Lord's instruction - plain and simple. The Lord's heart was broken and he was grieved that he had ever made Saul king.
Why did the Lord suffer from a broken heart? The Lord God is trying to save humanity. He has people like Saul in place to protect and carry out the mission. As king, Saul has influence and is an example to a nation of people. His decision to ignore the Lord's instructions revealed his weakness as a leader. His heart was not complete surrendered to the Lord and his purpose. That alone was enough for the Lord to remove him as king...removing his influence over a nation of people. Some might say that was harsh...others might say that was necessary. Like Saul's heart, people will be divided.
Either way, this got me to thinking - to doing some self reflection. I am a leader, a pastor, and a teacher; not to mention a husband and a father. God has called me to this place because he believes I have influence. With this influence, he will instruct me and use me to inspire others to protect and carry out his mission - redemption of humanity. It is stories like this that become a sobering reminder of the importance of this mission. All of which caused me to ask a few questions of myself today. I thought I would share and challenge you to wrestle with these questions yourself. The truth is...we are all leaders; whether it is as pastors, parents, employers, friends, etc. We are all leading someone!
First, where has God called me to lead others in his kingdom mission and vision?
Second, (and very important) am I even truly listening for God's instruction in this important position in which he has placed me?
Third, if and when I hear him, am I listening to his instruction, and can he rely on me to carry it out?
Some important questions for all of us to consider...in my honest opinion.
Although David is not mentioned until 1 Samuel 16, his story actually begins in chapter 15. King Saul is given specific instruction by Samuel, a prophet of the Lord. The Amalekites attacked and "waylaid" the Israelites as they came up from Egypt. God intended to use King Saul and his armies to punish the Amalekites for their brutality. To make a long story short, King Saul took matters into his own hands and simply refused to obey the Lord's instructions. He chose to carry out what parts he wanted, and chose to rationalize his decision for ignoring the other parts he didn't want to carry out. On the one hand, his rationalizations seem attractive simply because he sold them as sacrifice and worship to the Lord. On the other hand, it was disobedience to the Lord's instruction - plain and simple. The Lord's heart was broken and he was grieved that he had ever made Saul king.
Why did the Lord suffer from a broken heart? The Lord God is trying to save humanity. He has people like Saul in place to protect and carry out the mission. As king, Saul has influence and is an example to a nation of people. His decision to ignore the Lord's instructions revealed his weakness as a leader. His heart was not complete surrendered to the Lord and his purpose. That alone was enough for the Lord to remove him as king...removing his influence over a nation of people. Some might say that was harsh...others might say that was necessary. Like Saul's heart, people will be divided.
Either way, this got me to thinking - to doing some self reflection. I am a leader, a pastor, and a teacher; not to mention a husband and a father. God has called me to this place because he believes I have influence. With this influence, he will instruct me and use me to inspire others to protect and carry out his mission - redemption of humanity. It is stories like this that become a sobering reminder of the importance of this mission. All of which caused me to ask a few questions of myself today. I thought I would share and challenge you to wrestle with these questions yourself. The truth is...we are all leaders; whether it is as pastors, parents, employers, friends, etc. We are all leading someone!
First, where has God called me to lead others in his kingdom mission and vision?
Second, (and very important) am I even truly listening for God's instruction in this important position in which he has placed me?
Third, if and when I hear him, am I listening to his instruction, and can he rely on me to carry it out?
Some important questions for all of us to consider...in my honest opinion.
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