Good Morning Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
A wonderful example for us from the Old Testament is King David. What made David so special in the eyes of our Almighty Father? His heart. David made several serious mistakes in his lifetime. He was not perfect by any means. However, the one thing that set David apart from his predecessor, King Saul, was David took responsibility for his wrongs. He never blamed others or the situation for his sin. David personally took ownership of his sin and repented before God. This is why the Holy Spirit wrote this in the Scriptures:
I Samuel 12:14
But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the LORD hath sought Him a man after His own heart [David], and the LORD hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.
Samuel, God’s prophet, is speaking on behalf of God to King Saul in the above verse. Notice where God says, through Samuel, “sought Him a man after His own heart….” God told Saul because you have lied and your heart was not with Me, I have put you aside and am raising up another man whose heart seeks to be like My heart.
Our Father God is seeking this from us this day and every day. Yes, we are going to make mistakes, we are going to sin. But our sin doesn’t separate us from God because it is all forgiven, past, present, and future in Christ. It is not OUR works, but CHRIST’S works that makes us righteous, or in right standing, before our Father God.
Another great example is Abraham and Lot in Genesis 13. Abraham and Lot split apart in this chapter because both had been blessed greatly and their herds were so large there was not enough grass and water for both men’s livestock. Abraham gave Lot the choice of which land he would choose to live in and feed his herds. Lot chose that pleasing to the eye, well-watered, lush, very green, and fertile. Abraham took the desert. Now, in the eyes of the world, Abraham was a stupid, foolish, ignorant , and unlearned man because of this decision. Wall Street and all the vaunted analysts would not have approved of this and would have tried to tank or greatly downgrade Abraham’s stock. Why was Abraham willing to do this? Because he understood The Blessing of the Lord. He knew he was going to prosper no matter the conditions because God had promised this to him. Lot was a righteous man as we learn in Hebrews. However, Lot’s heart was not trusting in The Blessing of God, the Word of God. Instead, he chose to go with his natural eyes, his wisdom, his strength. He chose to live in and around sin to have the natural blessings of the land. We know the rest of the story. It didn’t end well for Lot and his generations. Abraham had a heart that was “fully persuaded” of God’s promises to him.
How about you? Are you “fully persuaded?” Do you “cast all your cares on God because He careth for you,” or do you rely on what you see, hear, touch, smell, and taste? In other words, your wisdom or the wisdom of the world? We should choose to be like Abraham and David. Did they sin, did they make mistakes? Sure, they did. But their hearts were always centered on the Father. Rather than blame others for their mistakes, they took the blame and repented for their sin. Rather than trust in their own wisdom and the wisdom of the world, they trusted in God’s Word and promises.
Which heart are you after?
May your family and you be blessed with the fatness of the earth, the dew of Heaven, and much oil, and corn, and wine.
Walk Mighty in His Promises.
Larry