PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN ( Judges 21:6, 15 ): In these two verses, the word “compassion” is mentioned. I must confess that I have not been as compassionate of a man in my life as You want me to be, Father. These men held compassion over the tribe which they had just defeated in battle, yet I cannot even hold consistent compassion to my family, friends, congregation, etc. Please forgive me for my lack of compassion, Father. Forgive me for not always pursuing the new identity You have blessed me with in Christ. Help me to become a more compassionate man so that I can properly align my identity with what You expect of me, Father.
PROMISE ( Judges 21:13 ): In this verse I see not only a message from Your people, but also a promise from You. Your people sent a message of peace to the Benjaminites. At the same time, I see this message of peace being delivered from You as well. It may not be everlasting peace as this is highly unlikely due to our sinful ways, but You do promise us that we will experience times of peace in our lives as well as times of trials and tribulations. Thank You so much for the times of peace You have blessed me with in my life, Father. Help me to praise You more in those moments and cherish those moments more so that it makes the times of trials and tribulations in my life far easier to handle.
ATTITUDE ( Judges 21:25 ): I find this last verse rather disturbing. Because there was no king in Israel, the people of Israel did whatever they wanted to do. I have been guilty of this throughout my life as well, to include even recently. The problem here is that they say there is “no king in Israel” which to me is them also saying that they are not recognizing You as their King, so they simply do whatever it is that they want. I have often been guilty of this in my life; both not putting You at the forefront, but also the “doing whatever I want” in my life without any acknowledgment to what You want me to do. Help me with this attitude adjustment, Father, so that I keep You at the forefront of who I am and who I want to be, Father. Help me to be reminded that You are always my King no matter what is going on around me, so that I follow Your commands for my life.
COMMAND ( Judges 21:17 ): Although this verse isn’t directly from You, I do see it as a command from You when I think back on Genesis how we are to be fruitful and multiply. The Israelites recognize that a tribe of Israel is potentially being threatened with being wiped out of existence. They do not wish for this to happen to ensure that the Israelites continue to thrive and survive for many generations. As a result, they leaned back on Your command to be fruitful and multiply by ensuring the Benjaminites had enough women available to their survivors to do so. They did this without breaking their vow to You to avoid the curse on their future generations. I believe I have followed through with this command as I have five children and am trying my best to raise them according to Your will, Father. I am not perfect in my teachings to them, but I am trying which I feel is all You ask of me.
EXAMPLE ( Judges 21:6, 13, 15 ): In these three verses, the Israelites serve as a great example. Although they had just defeated the tribe of Benjamin, they also showed compassion towards them. They showed them that they could now live in peace regardless of their past relations. Compassion and peace are two things that I should be bringing into my life far more often than I have. Please continue to teach me the ways I can improve, Father, so that compassion and peace come to the forefront of my attitude, my words, and my behaviors.
*DAILY NOTE: I guess today’s lesson is on compassion and peace as they both seemed to be a pretty resounding topic of discussion in the scripture; or at least hit my heart the hardest when reading this. Thank You for such an amazing quiet time, Father. My prayer today is that I embrace the words compassion and peace into my heart so that I can truly exemplify these characteristics of You to my family, my friends, my congregation, and the world. Help me to be a better man for Your kingdom, Father, not for myself.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
Commenti