The Spoils of Past Victories

 Scripture:

“The priest replied, “The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you struck down in the valley of Elah, is wrapped in a garment behind the ephod. If you wish, take it for yourself. Other than that, there’s nothing here.” David said, “There’s nothing like it! Give it to me!”” ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭21‬:‭9‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

David was fleeing from Saul for his life. King Saul wanted David dead and David had no weapon available to him. He was running away from the king, who had many powerful soldiers after David. The only sword available to David as he was fleeing, happened to be the sword of Goliath, whom he had defeated and who made David popular in the first place. God used a past victory to provide for a present problem. 

Application:

Sometimes God will use the spoils of past victories in our present situations to remind us where we came from. God will use things won in past victories to help us remember how powerful He is and that He has everything under control. We must never forget past victories. We don’t dwell in the past, but among some spoils around isn’t a bad thing either. We should value things that God has done in our past to remind us when things are difficult that God will always come through for us. He is faithful! 

Prayer:

Father, help me to never forget the things you have done for me in the past. Help me to walk in faith at all times because I have seen You work in my past. You have done so much in my life through the years. Help me to never forget and to never be afraid of present situations because I see the spoils of past battles in my life. You are awesome!

Yours Forever,

Jeff

God’s Presence Changes Everything

 Scripture:

“Now David achieved success in all he did, for the Lord was with him. When Saul saw how very successful he was, he was afraid of him.” ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭18‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

The Lord was with David and made him successful in everything he did. This caused King Saul to be afraid of him. When God chooses to bless you and fight your battles, people get nervous. You can’t control someone who has the Lord with him or her. The presence of God in our lives makes us successful.

Application:

When we pray, we should seek to be one with God. His presence changes everything! His presence brings success. His presence brings victory. His presence defeats our enemies. Our secret is not in our power, but His. Our abilities are multiplied with Him presence. When we seek first the kingdom of God, He will add all these things into our lives. 

Prayer:

Father, I want Your presence above all else. I want Your presence to be evident in everything I do. I long to be one with You. I want to fulfill Your will, and not my own. I want to do what You are speaking and not lean on the arm and wisdom of my flesh. Help me to live a surrendered life to Your will. Let Your hand be upon my life for Your purposes.

Yours,

Jeff

Follow God, Not Others

 Scripture:

“We will be like all the other nations. Our king will judge us and lead us and fight our battles.”” ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭8‬:‭20‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

Israel had lived under judges, who God would send to rescue them in trouble, and to rule for a season. Then they would decide to do their own thing and everything would fall apart. They would then cry out to the Lord, and He would send them another judge. They wanted to be like all the other countries around them and have a king. They wanted a monarchy, but God wanted a theocracy. Even though God always rescued them and sent them a deliverer when things got bad, they wanted a permanent king to rule over them.

Application:

It is easy to fall into the category of those who want to live by their own thoughts and agendas rather than the way God wants us to. We always think we know what we need better than God. Rather than trust Him and follow Him according to His ways, we try to figure things out ourselves and operate from our own minds instead of being led by the Spirit. As for me, I don’t want a king or a self-made decision, I want God to lead my life and direct my steps. I want to fully follow Him and not just do what seems right in my own eyes. I don’t want to live like everyone around me. 

Prayer:

Lord, help me to keep my eyes on You. When things are not good, help me not to look to my own means, methods, and plans, but to put my eyes on You. You are my leader! You are guide! You are my GPS! You are my map! Help me to follow You instead of telling You what to do in my life.

I Am Yours,

Jeff

The Fear of the Lord

 Scripture:

“The residents of Beth Shemesh asked, “Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? To whom will the ark go up from here?”” ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭6‬:‭20‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

The ark of God had been captured by the Philistines. It was taken to several Philistine cities. In each place the people broke out with sores and mice invaded that land. They sent it back to the Israelites because they couldn’t handle being under the punishment of the Lord. It came back to Beth Shemesh where 50,000 were struck dead for looking into the ark. They asked the question, “who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? To whom will the ark go up from here?”

Application:

Beth Shemesh was judged by God for not honoring the Ark, which was the place of God’s presence in their day. They were afraid because of the presence of the Lord. They clearly understood that God expected holiness if they were going to house His presence. In our lives, we should honor the Lord. We are now the Temple of the Holy Spirit. We should live in the fear of the Lord at all times. He is with us and in us. Therefore, we should be careful about allowing sin into our lives. We should walk in obedience to the Lord at all times because He is all-powerful. 

Prayer:

Father, let my life be lived in great fear and respect for You and Your presence. Teach me how to live with You as my Father, yet as the HOly One of Israel. Teach me the balance between crawling up into Your lap and walking fearfully before You. I want to serve You well and live in such a way that You can bless my life. Show me the balance.

Follow God Wholeheartedly

Scripture:

 “Then I will raise up for myself a faithful priest. He will do what is in my heart and soul. I will build for him a secure dynasty and he will serve my chosen one for all time.” ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭2‬:‭35‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

God was disgusted with Eli’s sons and determined that they both would die for their unholy lifestyles and for their terrible acts of rebellion while serving as priests of the Lord. Samuel is referred to here as the one that God would raise up as a faithful priest who would do what was in God’s heart and soul. God took Samuel, who was not of the priestly lineage, and used him to restore the prophetic and priestly ministry because he had a heart to do what the Lord wanted him to.

Application:

God always looks for a heart that will follow after His heart. He builds dynasties for people who represent Him well. He has always looked simply for the ones who follow His heart and soul. He uses, not the ones who most would choose, but those who know His heart and do His will. Our job is to follow the Lord wholeheartedly, then allow Him to bless our lives and our us in the places He wants us.

Prayer:

Father, You are incredible! Help me to serve You well throughout my life. Let my heart walk humbly before You all the days of my life. Direct my steps and guide my life. Let my ears be attuned to Your voice and not follow the voice of another. As You open doors for my life, help me to walk through them confidently and boldly, knowing that You are with me and that You go before me. I want to walk in step with You every day.

Yours,

Jeff

God’s Source of Blessing

 Scripture:

“He will encourage you and provide for you when you are old, for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, has given him birth. She is better to you than seven sons!”” ‭‭Ruth‬ ‭4‬:‭15‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

Naomi’s daughter-in-law, who was not an Israelite, ended up redeeming Naomi’s family, possessions, inheritance, etc. God used a Gentile to bless one of His families. The Bible even calls Ruth better than seven sons. Sons are a blessing to have, daughters were not so much in those days. This Gentile daughter in law was better than seven sons. 

Application:

God can use whoever He wants, whenever He wants to she care of his people. Naomi really had no hope. She returned home with nothing, no husband, no sons, and no money. God took care of her through her Gentile daughter in law. Ruth had told Naomi she wouldn’t leave her and that she would assimilate into Israel’s culture and people. God’s avenue of blessing may not look like what we think. We must never through out what God wants to use because it doesn’t fit our pattern of how God does things.

Prayer:

Father, let me not call unclean what You have called clean. Teach me to follow You well all the days of my life. Show me Your goodness. Thank You for taking care of me all these years. Your faithfulness is incredible. Help me to walk by faith and not by sight. Use whatever means You see fit to bring Your blessings into my life. 

Yours Forever,

Jeff

Make Peace and Build People

 Scripture:

“So then, let us pursue what makes for peace and for building up one another.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭14‬:‭19‬ ‭NET‬‬

Observation:

Paul had just written about eating, or not eating, drinking or not drinking, etc. because of your personal convictions. He said that we shouldn’t make another person stumble because of our choices and convictions. In this passage, he tells us rather, to purse peace and what builds each other up. 

Application:

We have a choice to make, do we promote peace by keeping our personal convictions to ourselves, or do we promote our feelings and interpretations of the Scriptures? We must be careful to ravine our lives and pursue what is going to make peace and build up others. We should not be doing things that cause our brothers and sisters to stumble. We should not Salome our freedoms to weaker Christians either. Our end goal should be to build others up in the most holy faith and to make sure they are strong. In other words, we live for others and not for ourselves.

Prayer:

Father, help me to walk in such a way as to build others up. Let my life be used to build You kingdom, not bring shame to it. Let me live in such a way that brings peace among Your people while hunting my personal convictions. Teach me to navigate being a pastor and leader. I want to set a good example and to demonstrate walking in the Spirit. Help me to live a life that makes for peace and builds people up.

Yours,

Jeff