Tag Archives: obedience

Nov14

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on November 14, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

1 Samuel 29. “So David said to Achish, ‘But what have I done? And to this day what have you found in your servant as long as I have been with you, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?’ Then Achish answered and said to David, ‘I know that you are as good in my sight as an angel of God; nevertheless the princes of the Philistines have said, He shall not go up with us to the battle. Now therefore, rise early in the morning with your master’s servants who have come with you. And as soon as you are up early in the morning and have light, depart'” (Verses 8-10). I almost feel bad for the Lord of the Philistines, he is being lied to. He believes in David, believes he is being genuine and honest. However, David is playing him. David, is misrepresenting God. He is using the Philistine, who does not know God. Who will never fully know God, because God’s representative is living a lie. We (Christians) are God’s representative, we sometimes are the only picture of Christ that another will see. Don’t misrepresent. Live for Christ, be a right representative, let people see Christ in you.

Nov13

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on November 13, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

1 Samuel 28. “Now Samuel said to Saul, ‘Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?’ And Saul answered, ‘I am deeply distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God has departed from me and does not answer me anymore, neither by prophets nor by dreams. Therefore I have called you, that you may reveal to me what I should do.’ Then Samuel said: ‘So why do you ask me, seeing the Lord has departed from you and has become your enemy? And the Lord has done for Himself as He spoke by me. For the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, David.Because you did not obey the voice of the Lord nor execute His fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore the Lord has done this thing to you this day. Moreover the Lord will also deliver Israel with you into the hand of the Philistines. And tomorrow you and your sons will be with me. The Lord will also deliver the army of Israel into the hand of the Philistines'” (Verses 15-19). Sometimes it is just best not to know. I am sure this is what Saul was feeling after he heard the words of Samuel. It is amazing to me that Saul knew his sin, knew he was in the wrong, but still persisted on believing that if he could just get rid of David, everything would go back to normal. His way of thinking is so illogical and so backwards, but it reminds me of humanity, we do this all the time, choose the way that “seems right to a man” the way that in the end “leads to destruction”. All Saul had to do was repent, and accept the consequences for his actions. He would have lost hos kingdom, but he would have saved his life, his soul, and his sons. But his need to to win didn’t just cost him, but it cost everyone around him. Here is a truth, sin is destructive. It doesn’t stop at destroying the sinner, no it’s aim to to annihilate everything. Beware of your heart, repent, and accept God’s punishment. Don’t let your sin destroy everything.

Nov8

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on November 8, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

1 Samuel 23. “When David knew that Saul plotted evil against him, he said to Abiathar the priest, ‘Bring the ephod here.’ Then David said, ‘O Lord God of Israel, Your servant has certainly heard that Saul seeks to come to Keilah to destroy the city for my sake. Will the men of Keilah deliver me into his hand? Will Saul come down, as Your servant has heard? O Lord God of Israel, I pray, tell Your servant.”And the Lord said, ‘He will come down.’ Then David said, ‘Will the men of Keilah deliver me and my men into the hand of Saul?’ And the Lord said, ‘They will deliver you'” (Verses 9-12). Wow, talk about biting the hand that feeds you, David had just saved the people of Keilah from certain death, and how would they have repaid his kindness? By handing him over to Saul who wanted to kill him. After reading this chapter I got that little check in my heart, that feeling you get when kindness is not reciprocated. It’s that feeling of disappointment mixed with betrayal that we sometimes feel when we go out of our way for others, who are willing to have us go out of our way for them, but are never willing to do the same for us. I wonder if David had known what would happen after the fact, would he have still been willing to go up and save them? My answer… YES. David didn’t go because the people needed help (read the chapter), he went because God said, “save them”. Even as his men reminded him that these people were not their friends, David still went, because it was God’s will. Hard to swallow isn’t it? Doing what God says even when it goes against every fiber of human logic. Here’s a truth David became king, and not just any king, but the king that would spawn the KING of Kings. Because he was faithful, his heritage will go on forever… literally. Go. Do. Even when it makes no sense to us, trust that God has a purpose.

Nov4

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on November 4, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

1 Samuel 20. “As soon as the lad had gone, David arose from a place toward the south, fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down three times. And they kissed one another; and they wept together, but David more so. Then Jonathan said to David, ‘Go in peace, since we have both sworn in the name of the Lord, saying, May the Lord be between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants, forever.’ So he arose and departed, and Jonathan went into the city” (Verses 40-42). I feel for David here, the bible said he wept more. His heart hurt more. Why? He was being betrayed by someone he loved and for no reason other than jealousy. The ironic thing is that Saul hated David, because he thrived, but David thrived only because he wanted to be pleasing to Saul. So Saul hated David’s sincerity toward him (that is the very definition of irony). Life can be like that. You do your best to be pleasing and people can and will dislike you for it. Why? The world has been jaded and sincerity is not something people understand anymore, so when presented with it many times they will act adversely. Here’s the kicker: Be sincere anyway. Despite the amount of times David had a javelin thrown at him, despite his many near misses with death at the hands of Saul. David was always sincere, always respectful, always treated Saul as king. Our reaction should NEVER be dependent on the action of another, none of that, “I did it because he/she did that”. If you know what is right, DO IT. It doesn’t matter what the other person did. He who knows what is good and doesn’t do it, to him it is sin (James 4:17). Always choose to do what is right.

Oct29

DAY 301 (2014)

Posted on October 29, 2014 by lsgrlr

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Give God the 1%… Smashing only makes the problem worse.

I dislike when things don’t go my way. Actually that’s not completely true, I don’t, what I actually dislike is not being able to fix a problem. Remember my “functional savior” post? This is the biggest issue in my walk with God. That innate desire/need to fix whatever problem is at hand. The problem with this “gift” is that it tends lead me into making bad choices and wrong decisions. Right now I am in a position where I want to “fix” an issue that I am facing, but God is telling me to allow Him. But the feeling that I am experience is akin (I think) to a drug addict who needs a hit. I am sitting on my hands, but everything inside of me is screaming, “I NEED TO FIND A SOLUTION NOW!” Can anyone else relate or is it just me? God had already worked out 99% of the issue, but that one percent… that one percent is what is killing me. Crazy, right? (I never claimed to be sane)… I have been thinking about this particular habit of mine. Today especially because I really want to find a fix to what is going on. Then I remembered my functional savior post (stolen from @Lacrae), and I see clearly that I am searching for something to cling to instead of just waiting for God to do what He does best, which is be my REAL savior. What’s my point? Sometimes God leaves the 1% till the end, because He is waiting for us to let go of it.

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19).

Lesson: The verse says ALL needs. Give God the one percent. He’ll meet the need.

Oct17

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on October 17, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

1 Samuel 6. “‘Then take the ark of the Lord and set it on the cart; and put the articles of gold which you are returning to Him as a trespass offering in a chest by its side. Then send it away, and let it go. And watch: if it goes up the road to its own territory, to Beth Shemesh, then He has done us this great evil. But if not, then we shall know that it is not His hand that struck us—it happened to us by chance.’ Then the men did so; they took two milk cows and hitched them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home. And they set the ark of the Lord on the cart, and the chest with the gold rats and the images of their tumors. Then the cows headed straight for the road to Beth Shemesh, and went along the highway, lowing as they went, and did not turn aside to the right hand or the left. And the lords of the Philistines went after them to the border of Beth Shemesh” (verses 8-12). Just so there was no misunderstanding. Just so the Philistines would understand, there is only ONE TRUE GOD. The Philistines are at their wits end, people are being stricken with plagues, they are dying… but they still are unsure if it the God of Israel or just a fluke (seriously?!). So they devise a plan they set the Ark on a donkey and send it on its way. If it goes towards its home, they know it was God, but if it wanders in a different direction it wasn’t. Yup, you guessed it. the Ark goes in the direction of home. God leaves no misunderstanding. When He works, when He moves, even if we try to deny it we ALWAYS know it was/is Him. The Philistines knew, but they wanted to act as though they didn’t. Don’t be fooled, God is not mocked… a man will always reap what he sows. Disobedience leads to destruction… ALWAYS.

Oct16

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on October 16, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

1 Samuel 5. “Then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod.When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon and set it by Dagon. And when the people of Ashdod arose early in the morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the earth before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and set it in its place again. And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the Lord. The head of Dagon and both the palms of its hands were broken off on the threshold; only Dagon’s torso was left of it. Therefore neither the priests of Dagon nor any who come into Dagon’s house tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod to this day” (Verses 1-5). I know I shouldn’t laugh, but there is just a great satisfaction in watching God, be GOD (of all). The Philistines mistook the victory against Israel as something they had accomplished on their own. It never once dawned on them that God may have been teaching His people a lesson. Okay, fine they are human I can understand why they misunderstood. But why, why would you put the God you know to have parted the waters, the God you know to have destroyed nations, next to your god who had done none of that? They next morning their god is on the ground, prostrate before the God of all. They take their little idol up and once again place him above God, who just moments before he was prostrate before… Philistines are not very bright. are they? The next morning not only is their god once again prostrate before the Lord of ALL, but he is broken, arms, head severed from torso. Get the point Philistines, no god above the ONE true, GOD. Here’s the thing, everyday society places all forms of “gods” above the One True GOD. We look at the state of the world and shake our fists at Him asking why He allows this, never once stopping to consider that maybe He is teaching us a lesson, maybe this is the consequences of our disobedience. No “god” above the God of ALL. PERIOD.

Oct15

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on October 15, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

1 Samuel 4. “So the Philistines fought, and Israel was defeated, and every man fled to his tent. There was a very great slaughter, and there fell of Israel thirty thousand foot soldiers. Also the ark of God was captured; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, died” (Verses 10-11). Here’s something to think about disobedience can make God look weak to others. Right about now you are thinking, “What did she just write?!” Let me explain, in the verse prior to this Israel goes against the Philistines and are badly defeated. So they get a “bright” idea, “Let bring the Ark of God…” Yeah, uhmmm, bad plan. Why? God had a specific place for the Ark to be. and very specific rules about how His dwelling place should be handled. Israel ignored ALL the rules. The Ark comes, Israel starts rejoicing (they assume victory, because God is in their midst). The Philistines hear the rejoicing, they have heard of God’s miracles, they know He is mighty. He has stopped waters, and brought plagues. They are afraid, but they go to battle against Israel anyway… and they WIN. Now, let’s take a step back and answer this very honest question, if you were a Philistine in that battle what would your view of Israel’s God be after such a victory? Israel did not seek God, they did what they wanted without ever asking God what they should do. They disobeyed His laws, and statutes and still expected victory. Their defeat sent one message to Israel, but it sent a very different message to the Philistines. Their disobedience made God look small in front of the enemy (no worries He fixes that in the next Chapter… read ahead). Our actions paint a picture of God to the world at large: It either shows them that He is GOD of all or it shows them He is god of none. What picture does your Christian life paint?

Oct10

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on October 10, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

1 Samuel 1. “Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bulls, one ephah of flour, and a skin of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh. And the child was young. Then they slaughtered a bull, and brought the child to Eli.And she said, ‘O my lord! As your soul lives, my lord, I am the woman who stood by you here, praying to the Lord. For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. Therefore I also have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the Lord.’ So they worshiped the Lord there” (Verses 24-28). I can’t even begin to imagine how hard it must have been for Hannah to give up the one thing she had always wanted, a child. She was married, loved, but her inability to give birth left her feeling incomplete. She prays and asks God to open her womb and He does, she makes a promise to give the child to God. Here’s the amazing part, she really does it. She keeps her promise. She gives her one and only son to the Lord. I have made promises to the Lord, way less traumatizing than this, and still have had trouble following through with what I promised. I have even been known to make compromises to the promise in order for the impact to be less stunning to me. Hannah, GAVE her child to God. She did not add an amendment to the promise, she didn’t say, “Okay Lord, lets wait till he is an adult.” She kept her promise and God blessed her. However the blessing did not just stop there it spread, to all of Israel and to us as well. How? Samuel appointed David to be king of Israel. David is the forefather of Jesus. Through whom our sins are forgiven. Obedience, the gift that keeps on giving. Strive to be a Hannah.

Oct8

Random (hopefully inspired) Thought

Posted on October 8, 2014 by lsgrlr

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

Ruth 3. “Then he said, ‘Blessed are you of the Lord, my daughter! For you have shown more kindness at the end than at the beginning, in that you did not go after young men, whether poor or rich. And now, my daughter, do not fear. I will do for you all that you request, for all the people of my town know that you are a virtuous woman. Now it is true that I am a close relative; however, there is a relative closer than I. Stay this night, and in the morning it shall be that if he will perform the duty of a close relative for you—good; let him do it. But if he does not want to perform the duty for you, then I will perform the duty for you, as the Lord lives! Lie down until morning'” (Verses 10-13). The difference between good and right. It is a fine line and often blurred by mankind. Society loves doing ‘good” things, we revelry in our “good” deeds. However, while we like doing good, we aren’t always so willing to do what is “right”. Yes, before you ask, there is a difference. “Good” and “right” don’t always equate to the same thing. Sometimes, the “right” decision can seem or feel “not good”. Ruth made a “right” choice she listened to Naomi. Boaz was NOT a young man, from the reading it would seem he was considerably older than Ruth. It would not have been wrong of her to look for someone in her own age group. It was have been “good” for her to find someone she could grow old with. But it would not have been the right choice for her, we know this because we have read the story. Boaz could have bypassed the closer relative and done the “good” thing of performing the duty of a close relative, but instead he did the “right” thing and gave the other relative the opportunity to be a blessing to Naomi and her family. Life, society, and the world around us, constantly put us in the position of making ‘good” decisions vs. “right” decisions. Remember my parallel from yesterday, Naomi (the Holy Spirit)? Ruth listened to the Spirit and did was right and in the end it worked out for her good, and not just hers, but ours… she is the lineage of Christ. Good choices don’t always end up “right”. But right choices ALWAYS end up working for the GOOD.