But David found strength in the Lord his God. (1 Samuel 30:6b) There are many places where people go to find strength. Some find it in wealth, some find it in position, and others find it in their physical bodies. Those are just a few examples, but you get the idea. The fascinating characteristic about King David that made him categorically different than every other ... [Continue Reading]
On Receiving Advice (1 Samuel 24-26)
The men said, “This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. (1 Samuel 24:4) Not all advice is good advice. In fact, we've all had times when we've received bad advice and suffered as a result of it. So how do you know ... [Continue Reading]
Leadership Privileges (Deuteronomy 17:14-20; 18, 29-30)
When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees and not consider himself better than his fellow ... [Continue Reading]
Guardrails (Genesis 38-40)
And though [Potiphar's wife] spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. (Genesis 39:10) Have you ever been driving on a road and seen a guardrail? You can look at it in two ways: it's a restriction or it's a life-saving device. The purpose of the guardrail is to protect cars from driving off the road and into sudden danger - in ... [Continue Reading]
Accidental Excellence
When I was a child, my parents signed me up for piano lessons. I had various opportunities to play in front of other people, but I was always stressed out by the idea that I might make a mistake or play the wrong note. When I did hit the wrong keys, my hands would start shaking and then I would make even more mistakes. The result was that I never wanted to play in front ... [Continue Reading]
For Such a Time (Esther 1-5)
Does anything happen by accident? Does God put circumstances in our lives for no purpose? Or perhaps we are where we are for such a time as this. Mordecai's challenge to Esther when she was faced with a tough decision was simple: maybe God has you in the place you're in for a reason. Esther was perfectly placed to rescue God's ... [Continue Reading]
Humility Isn’t Enough (2 Chronicles 32-33)
Throughout the Old Testament the lives of many kings are recounted for us, and the level of their humility does play a role in how well each king is remembered. However, it was not just humility that made a king great - it was humility before the Lord. There's a difference between simply not thinking too highly of yourself and humbling yourself before the ... [Continue Reading]
A Leader’s Role (1 Kings 12-14)
Both Rehoboam and Jeroboam learned the hard way that a leader's role isn't to maintain power. Leadership is given by the Lord - He's the One who appoints leaders, and He's the One who removes them from power. In the cases of both of these men, they lost their leadership roles because of their efforts to keep them. Isn't it funny how ... [Continue Reading]
A Listening Ear (2 Samuel 16-18)
When David was confronted by the curses of Shimei he had a couple of choices. One option was to have his mighty warriors wipe Shimei from the face of the earth. Another option was to listen to Shimei's words and to take heed. Certainly, the people on David's side were hoping that he would give them permission to destroy the little pipsqueak who was making derogatory ... [Continue Reading]
The Danger of Assumptions (2 Samuel 10; 1 Chronicles 19)
When I was in middle school I learned a cute little phrase to remember how to spell the word assume... unfortunately this blog probably isn't an appropriate place to repeat it. However, there is a lot of truth behind the idea that assumptions are often wrong, and this is underscored by the grave mistake of Hanun, King of the Ammonites. He listened to some ... [Continue Reading]
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