PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN ( Conviction ): Today I feel convicted in my heart, Father. Not from this scripture, but from communication between myself and a guy I am mentoring. The conviction is for the anger I felt in my heart when he responded in anger back towards me for some advice I was giving him. I should not have felt anger towards him in my heart. I should not have felt like giving up on him in my heart. Please forgive me for this, Father. Help me to continue to soften my heart towards others, Father. Continue to teach me patience and humility with my spiritual brothers, so that I do not give up on them as You never gave up on me no matter how stubborn, angry, nor sinful I became.
PROMISE ( 2 Samuel 4:9-11 ): David made a promise to Saul many years, I believe, prior to this chapter. The promise was that David would not completely remove all of Saul’s bloodline from this earth when he becomes king of Israel. Saul did not die at David’s hand, but David did mourn his death. Saul’s sons so far did not die at David’s hand, but David mourned the deaths of those who have died. Another of Saul’s sons, Ish-bosheth, was murdered in his own bed by some men who thought they were doing David a service by killing Saul’s sons. David refuted their actions and delt with them accordingly. The promises we make to our brothers under You, Father, are promises that we must keep and rectify, when possible, to the best of our ability. Just as You are faithful to Your promises to us, we must be faithful to any promises we make to others under Your name.
ATTITUDE ( 2 Samuel 4:10 ): I really like David’s response here. The men who killed Ish-bosheth thought they were the “bearer of good news” to David, but David contested that. David did not want the sons of Saul to be killed by any hands so that his promise to Saul could continue to be fulfilled. Do I sometimes bring news to people thinking I’m the bearer of good news, not realizing that I’m not seeing the full picture or am viewing it from the wrong perspective? I’m sure I have plenty of times in my life, Father. Please help me to be better at truly understanding the news I am bringing to others, Father, so that I may have Your eyes on the topic and not my own. Help me to ensure I’m bringing news to others in a way that is respectful and honorable to those I am bringing it to.
COMMAND ( 2 Samuel 4:9-10 ): The command I see in these verses go along with the attitude adjustment I need to work on. Your command here is to ensure I see things from a kingdom perspective, not a fleshly or worldly perspective. If I am focused on You and Your perspective on things, then I will not attempt to be a bearer of good news when it really isn’t good news.
EXAMPLE ( 2 Samuel 4:8-11 ): These men thought they did a good thing by killing another son of Saul, but David kept his focus on You throughout. Even before David responded to their acts, his first words were focused on You—“As the Lord lives, the One who has redeemed my life from every distress.” He is truly living out, as of right now, a kingdom-focused mindset. He’s showing us an example of how even a flawed, sinful person of this world can remain kingdom-focused in their lives. Help me to follow David’s example in all that I am and do, Father, so that my mind, words, and actions are a reflection of You and not my old self.
*DAILY NOTE: Today’s scripture was such a powerful reminder on perspective. Even in only a couple of verses throughout this entire chapter, You spoke loudly to me (verses 8-11). That’s only a third of the verses in the total chapter, yet I felt Your presence speaking directly to me throughout all four of those verses, Father. Thank You for today’s quiet time and continuing me in the testimony and journey of David. I look forward to pressing in and continuing on the journey with You in my next quiet time, Father.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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