I have hidden Thy word in my heart.
(Picture by Lisa R)

Judges 16. “Then she said to him, ‘How can you say, I love you, when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and have not told me where your great strength lies’. And it came to pass, when she pestered him daily with her words and pressed him, so that his soul was vexed to death, that he told her all his heart, and said to her, ‘No razor has ever come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaven, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.’ When Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, ‘Come up once more, for he has told me all his heart.’ So the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hand. Then she lulled him to sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him. And she said, ‘The Philistines are upon you, Samson!’ So he awoke from his sleep, and said, ‘I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free!’ But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him” (Verses 15-20). The saddest words in the entire Bible are found here, “And he did NOT know that the Lord had departed from him.” I have read the story of Samson many times and every time those words pierce my heart. Why? Because it is such a sad picture of Samson’s walk with God. It is also a sad picture of this world’s walk with God. God gave and gave to Samson, but all Samson did was take. He gave nothing back. No honor, no glory, no praise. God does the same with us, everyday He causes the sun to shine on the just and unjust. Everyday that we live and breath is a day that He has allowed. Every smile, every tear, every emotion we feel is a blessing from God. Yet we do not praise, honor, or glorify Him. What does God say: “Depart from me I NEVER knew you”. We are living the saddest words ever written… “And [they] did not know that the Lord had departed from [them]”.