1 Samuel 24 -knut

¹² May the LORD judge between you and me. And may the LORD avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you. 


So David had his chance to take out his anger and frustration on Saul for pursuing him and trying to kill him.  But he refrains from retaliation, a bit of turn the other cheek type of behavior.


I don't often have the feeling of being wronged by people.  But if/when I do in the future this is a reminder for me that it is not up to me to pass my own judgement by using my words or actions to get back at them.  Letting God handle these situation is an opportunity to practice and demonstrate my faith in Him.

1 Samuel 23

CK-  thanks for hauling the mail last week.  I fell a little behind.

I continue to be fascinated with Saul and his actions.....and how I act the same way.  He is so blinded by the fear that David is going to overthrow him, that he pursues David at a price of the rest of Israel's land.  He leaves himself WIDE open to attack by his enemies, while he goes after something that really isn't a threat at all.
David continues to pray for guidance from God.
Saul continues to not.  In fact, he is now blessing people who commit to helping him find David and kill him.  This is another example of the ripple effect that our sin can have on the people around us.  Saul is dragging people down with him, and they probably feel they are doing the right thing.  David is also dragging people with him....but they are on point, and on a mission led by God.
1.  Talk to God about everything, and seek his guidance.
2.  Don't get too caught up in our position in this world.  The more prominent we are, the more dangerous it is for our hearts.
3.  Be careful who you throw you lot in with.  They can guide you closer to God, or farther away.

1 Samuel 22

 ² All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their commander. About four hundred men were with him.


As you often point out Todd, God often selects the meager to do great things.  Here we see a great leader and man of faith accepting people who are struggling with no questions willing and maybe even honored to lead them.  Looks like another characteristic to model in my own life if I want to be more God like.

1 Samuel 21

I don't have any specific take away from this chapter, I did a little research and it pointed out  that even a man of great faith and courage like David can have bad moments.  Rather than relying on his faith to keep him safe he chooses to create a story to hide his true circumstances fearing for his life if those he is interacting with learn he is on the run from Saul.  So just a little reminder to have faith in all circumstances as God is always with you.

1 Samuel 20

⁴² Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, for we have sworn friendship with each other in the name of the LORD, saying, ‘The LORD is witness between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants forever.’”


Jonathan sees his father's true colors in this chapter.  He is clearly willing to give up his own rights to the thrown to protect that of his friend David.  He is living the commandment to love thy neighbor, knowing what he is potentially giving up for himself.


The last verse is comforting to know that no matter the circumstances we can have sworn friendships that last a lifetime through our Faith in God.  I think our 35+ year friendship is an illustration of that.

1 Samuel 19 - t

God seems to be sabotaging the relationship between David and Saul.  I understand that Saul isn't acting according to God's wishes, but I find it striking that it says, "But an evil spirit from the Lord came upon Saul as he was sitting in his house with a spear in his hand."  Are we to take this literally?......or are we to assume that the emotion of "jealousy" is an evil spirit?
I don't know the answer to that one...........but, David's star continues to rise, and inversely Saul's continues to fall.  Saul can definitely feel it too.

not much today.........

1 Samuel 18 - t

This is one of my favorite segments of the bible.  There's so much in here to pull from.....

there are many times in our reading so far, where the spirit of the Lord comes upon someone, and they accomplish great feats.  We saw this with Samson, and we see this with David again.  Its almost as if God likes them and wants them to do well.  I think the key to this is an obedient heart, and a willingness to sacrifice their own desires for the sake of God's will.  Every time Saul put something in surmountable in front of David (because of his own selfish fears), David succeeds (because of the power of God).......hhhhmmmmmm......I'm sensing a theme here.

I'm striving to keep God's interest at the forefront of my day!  How can I have a bad day if I have God's interest at heart?

Here's the line that makes me grimace.
²⁷ David took his men with him and went out and killed two hundred Philistines and brought back their foreskins.
"foreskins?........really......foreskins?

1 Samuel 17 -knut

^{David Says--47} All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.


This probably isn't a normal response to reading the David and Goliath chapter but here it goes:


Though I'm not preparing for a battle in the sense of a physical fight today this hit me that I need to be careful not to put my sense of safety and trust in the battle tools of today's world--money and possessions.  God has blessed our family with much and I never want to forget that it is through Him we have been bless and saved not through anything we can do or acquire on our own to save or protect ourselves.




side note I was confused that Saul who met David in Ch 16 appeared not to know him in Ch 17, there is much written on this so I will have to investigate more but there are many theories on why this apparent discrepancy exists. 

1 Samuel 16 -knut

 ⁷ But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”


So there is nothing wrong with looking good, and in fact the scripture later says David is glowing and handsome, but this statement is a reminder that God can see right past our outward appearance and shows we may put on to impress others right to the core of our heart.  


So it is best to make sure we are focused on making our heart glow for Him with healthy and honest love for Him.


I also found it interesting two references of David and tending sheep, perhaps some bible foreshadowing of who this man was and would become?


later

1 Samuel 15 - t

"To obey is better than sacrifice, 
   and to heed is better than the fat of rams."


Listen, and don't try to make own decisions about what God wants.  
Our pastor was talking a couple of weeks ago, about a conversation he had with one of his really close friends.....he was having a hard time, and explained it to his friend in great detail.  When he finished, he expected his friend to start talking....probably with some encouraging words.  But, he was silent, and had an unusual look on his face.  "what are you doing," he said......."I'm waiting to hear what God says".
Can you imagine is you practiced this in our lives?  Saul lost his way, just as I do.....frequently.  


STOP!, and LISTEN....if you ask, he will respond.  I really believe that.

1 Samuel 14 - t

Yeah, this one rambles a little bit.....from one thing to the next.

I completely agree with you that Jonathan seems to be completely in-tune with God, and is looking to do his will.

What keeps resonating with me on this one is that its really difficult to be in charge, and still maintain a healthy outlook toward our dependence on God......does that make sense.  Its a little like the "god-complex" that Doctors get sometimes.  When you have people relying on too much, and looking to for advice, its really easy to forget about God, and start relying on our own intuition.  That's what Saul seems to be doing here.  Why would he make the command that his army couldn't eat any food.........that doesn't make much sense to me.  There's no reference in the scripture to why Saul did it, and how it plays into the futherment of God's kingdom......

This is a great reminder to me in my everyday life.  I don't have thousands of people hanging on my every word...but, I do have 25 people that I'm setting "work" direction for.  And, I would be better served to think about God in my everyday decisions about designing wheels/light/mud-flaps, and less on my own brilliant ideas.  After all, I probably won't change the world with the next great running board.....but, I could change the world with someone noticing that how I treat them is different, and asking me why.

have a good one!

1 Samuel 14 -knut

This is a lengthy chapter, yet nothing in particular jumps out at me.  In general I get the sense that Saul is relying on himself not God to set a course of action, his son Jonathan seems to be trying to listen to God and follow him.  Jonathan seems to have some peace with himself, Saul seems to be somewhat uneasy.

I'm stretching here to find meaning for me as I read today, but maybe its just the inner peace that comes from trying to follow God's direction rather than carve out your own path.

What do you make of this one?

1 Samuel 13 -knut

Saul says...¹² I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the LORD’s favor.’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering.”


translation--whoops I meant to ask for your direction God, please bless me and my actions.


Often I do things or make decisions without consulting God.  Let this be a reminder to me not to act like Saul.

1 Sammy 12 - t

²¹ Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless.


I love this line.  That speaks volumes for us, in this day and age.  We need to continue to focus on God, and not on this world.  I need to be remember this and remind myself of it everyday.  Its so easy to lose focus.  I can insert money, job, status, friends all into this line........


that's it, straight and forward.

1 Samuel 11 - t

I like how the author narrates Sauls battle strategy.  I've heard it said that Joshua was the greatest military mind of the old testament...but, Saul seems to be doing quite well.
I find it interesting that the tribe of Judah is mentioned specifically in the number of men they delivered, while the other tribes are lumped together.  Perhaps some divine fore-shadowing.

We are working through a series at church that deals with conflict/anger.  We actually talked about this reference.  The Spirit of God came over Saul, and he BURNED with anger....I almost always associate anger with evil, but this clearly isn't the case here.

This was the perfect "set-up" for God to clearly anoint Saul as the Israelites king.  There's nothing like a great military victory to align the people.

I'm rambling
more later

1 Samuel 9-10 -knut

There is a lot of text in chapt 9-10, nothing in particular had struck me to comment on.  But these two verses show Gods power to change anyone's hearts, and how others will take note--

^{Chapt 10 
v9} As Saul turned to leave Samuel, God changed Saul’s heart...the Spirit of God came powerfully upon him... ¹¹ When all those who had formerly known him saw him prophesying with the prophets, they asked each other, “What is this that has happened to the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?”

1 Sammy 8 - t

So, once again, God chooses someone from the smallest tribe to be great.  I knew this idea was prevalent in the good book, but I can't believe how often we've come across it so far!  God chooses the least expected person to do great things for him.  I think that idea was probably even more radical back in those days, than it is now.  Hierarchy of society was a much bigger deal.  And even now, it shocks me.

A couple of chapters back, God uses cows to communicate with the Phillistines, and now he uses three lost donkeys to lead Saul to Samuel.......I'm sensing that God was in touch with his animals!

I tend to be thinking about Saul when I read this.......how he would be feeling, and the uncomfortable-ness he probably felt sitting at the head of table, and eating the choice meat.  But, for me the real story here is Samuel.  Imagine being him, and having God tell you this guy looking for his lost animals, is going to be the King to unite Israel.  I think if I was in that situation, I would have some serious questions.  But, Samuel seems to know that this is God's will, and follows.
That's a good challenge for me........Know its Gods will, and follow it.

1 Samuel 8 -knut

⁶ But when they said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD.


A bible study technique my pastor once taught me was to take note anytime you see the words but or then.  So this caught my eyes today.


When Samuel wasn't happy with how things were going the first thing he did was prayed to God to seek direction.  He didn't take his own desired action and pray to God it worked.  Good lesson pray first act second.

1 Samuel 7 - t

“If you are returning to the LORD with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the LORD and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”


the theme that I love about this chapter is that if you are ready to return to God......he will always be there with open arms to take us back.  I find that to be very comforting.  And when we come back to him he "THUNDERS" on our behalf.  
Pretty cool that God cares about us that much.