Category Archives: 1 Samuel

What to do in a crisis.

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crisis aheadEverything that can go wrong will go wrong – and at the worst possible time.

We call that Murphy’s Law and all of us have experienced it. In fact, I’ll bet there have been times things were so rotten that you thought Murphy was an optimist.

So what do you do at times like that? In 1 Samuel 4:3 the army of Israel got their tail kicked in battle. “When the soldiers returned to camp, the elders of Israel asked, “Why did the Lord bring defeat on us today before the Philistines?”

When things fell apart for them, they blamed God for their problem – “the Lord brought the defeat”.

But instead of asking God what was wrong they devised their own plan.

“Let us bring the ark of the Lord ’s covenant from Shiloh, so that he may go with us and save us from the hand of our enemies.” (1 Samuel 4:3)

Instead of going to God with the problem they discuss it among themselves, they plan, they scheme, they come up with a great idea. Send the ark of the covenant into battle ahead of the troops. Surely God won’t let us be defeated if we have the ark with us. He wouldn’t let the enemy steal His box. This plan can’t fail. Continue reading →

We want to be like other nations.

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herdGod wanted His people to be exceptional, different from all other nations on earth. They were to be “a shining light on a hill”, a people through which He could demonstrate His goodness, kindness and power to the nations. These people would be so blessed by the Lord that all nations would want to serve the same God they served.

But Israel turned from the Lord and began to exclude God from their daily lives. They occupied themselves with other “gods” which brought the judgment of the Lord – God’s attempt to let them suffer the consequences of their foolishness in hopes they would return to Him. Rather than repent and return to their original calling as a unique people pointing the nations to God, they chose to slither downward and mimic the other nations.

“We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles. (1 Samuel 8:19, 20)

We are tired of God being our king. We want a man we can look to – an impressive leader who will take care of us and make our lives easy.

They could see the failure of the “gods” and the methods of the other nations. They knew Jehovah routinely defeated the “gods” of the other nations when Israel was faithful. Yet, they wanted to exalt and follow a man instead of leading the nations. Continue reading →

Kill the Giant Killer!

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hopeAnd David was greatly distressed; because the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.
1 Samuel 30:6
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David had been through some rough times but this was the lowest point of his life. He had led his men off to a battle that they had no business being involved in. Then, they return home to discover an enemy has raided their home town stealing everything, taking their wives and children and burning all their homes to the ground.

David was discouraged. He had lost everything. His men were grieving. They had lost everything and everyone knew it was David’s fault. The men became so angry that these loyal friends of his considered killing him.

I’m not sure what I would have done in this situation but we know what David did. Times like these separate the victors from the victims. He could have rolled over and quit. He could have “cursed God and died”. But “David encouraged himself in The Lord his God”! Continue reading →

Think Small

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Matthew 26:51
With that, one of Jesus’ companions reached for his sword, drew it out and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear.
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John tells us that the “companion” who drew his sword was Peter. He was out numbered and “out gunned” but Peter meant what he had said just a short while ago (verse 35). He really was willing to die for Jesus.

But God’s plan was for Peter to live for Jesus and that proved too hard. He fell asleep when asked to simply “watch and pray”. He fled when his gallant attack with the sword was thwarted by the One he was trying to rescue. He remained at a distance and then denied even knowing the Lord to the point of cursing when a Middle School-aged girl confronted him.

Sadly, I can relate to Peter. Why does it seem easier to do the big things than the little daily obediences? As one who has lived overseas doing missions work, I find it was easier to go across the globe than to go across the street and share with my neighbor. “If I had a million dollars I’d give half to missions” yet the same person doesn’t tithe on what they do have. Would you really give 50% of a million if you won’t give 10% of $500?

As a parent it is nice when your children make some big “sacrifice” to show their love for you but what you really want to see is just the daily obedience in little things. That is what brings joy to your heart and peace to the relationship.

Lord, forgive my desire to do great things for you while ignoring the little things you ask of me – be kind, humble yourself, think of others above yourself, show patience, forgive when attacked.
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1 Samuel 15:22
“Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams.