1 Kings 12-14, Wiser Counselors

 “Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?” And they said to him, “If you will be a servant to this people today and serve them, and speak good words to them when you answer them, then they will be your servants forever.” But he abandoned the counsel that the old men gave him and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him and stood before him.”

‭‭1 Kings‬ ‭12‬:‭6‬-‭8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

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Seeking wisdom from the wise rather than your friends is always the right move.  Your friends will lead you astray and right into the claws of destruction.

2 Chronicles 1, Psalm 72- Defending the Weak

 “May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the children of the needy, and crush the oppressor! For he delivers the needy when he calls, the poor and him who has no helper. He has pity on the weak and the needy, and saves the lives of the needy. From oppression and violence he redeems their life, and precious is their blood in his sight.”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭72‬:‭4‬, ‭12‬-‭14‬ ‭ESV‬‬

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I love how as a new king granted with wisdom and knowledge he is focused on the poor and needy.  He is instantly carrying out his calling to care for all of his people, not just the rich and powerful.

1 Chronicles 7-10, Legacy Destruction

 “Saul died for his unfaithfulness to the Lord because he did not keep the Lord’s word.  He even consulted a medium for guidance,  but he did not inquire of the Lord. So the Lord put him to death and turned the kingdom over to David son of Jesse. ”

‭‭1 Chronicles‬ ‭10‬:‭13‬-‭14‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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What a tragic end to a legacy…dying because of your unfaithfulness and taking your entire family with you.  It is so critical that I trust in God rather than my own strength or strategies.  Lord, help me to see it clearly when I am doing anything of my own rather than from You!

I Samuel 1-3, Cleaning House

 “The boy Samuel served the Lord in Eli’s presence.  In those days the word of the Lord was rare and prophetic visions were not widespread. ”

‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Samuel is Gods chosen one in the midst of unholy servants.  Hophne and Phineas were evil men representing God and through many circumstances He orchestrated a plan to bring righteousness back to the temple.  Samuel was set apart from conception and ready for service to God and His people.  Lord, help my thoughts, motives, words and actions bring You glory!

Judges 10-12, Godless Reputation

 “Ibzan, who was from Bethlehem,  judged Israel after Jephthah and had thirty sons. He gave his thirty daughters in marriage to men outside the tribe and brought back thirty wives for his sons from outside the tribe. Ibzan judged Israel seven years, and when he died, he was buried in Bethlehem.”

‭‭Judges‬ ‭12‬:‭8‬-‭10‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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What a horrible time to live as an Israelite.  Leaders come and go with nothing good to say about any of them, constant fighting and God is no where to be seen.  Lord, allow my life to be shaped by You so that if anyone remembers me, You are a prominent part of my story!

Deuteronomy 8-10, Humility & Wisdom

 “You may say to yourself, ‘My power and my own ability have gained this wealth for me,’ but remember that the Lord your God gives you the power to gain wealth, in order to confirm his covenant he swore to your ancestors,  as it is today.”

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭8‬:‭17‬-‭18‬ ‭CSB‬‬

“You are not going to take possession of their land because of your righteousness or your integrity. Instead, the Lord your God will drive out these nations before you because of their wickedness, in order to fulfill the promise he swore to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Understand that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land  to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stiff-necked people. ”

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭9‬:‭5‬-‭6‬ ‭CSB‬‬

““And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you except to fear  the Lord your God by walking in all his ways, to love him, and to worship the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul?  Keep the Lord’s commands and statutes I am giving you today, for your own good. ”

‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭10‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Humility and wisdom.  Trust in God rather than your own ability because He is the one who enables our work and prepares our path.

Numbers 33-34, Distraction Destruction

 “But if you don’t drive out the inhabitants of the land before you, those you allow to remain will become barbs for your eyes and thorns for your sides; they will harass you in the land where you will live.”

‭‭Numbers‬ ‭33‬:‭55‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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The result of failure to follow Gods instructions were detrimental to Israel. Not obeying God will guarantee suffering and continual pain.  Gods people were called to destroy anything that could cause idolatry, pull their attention away from God or even make them stumble.  Total destruction, not hiding, minimizing or ignoring those things.  I believe this is a pattern that we should imitate as followers of Christ!

Lord, help me to correctly identify what things may cause me to stumble, distract me or draw me into sin.  Once identified, give me strength to surrender them to You, remove them from my life and follow You!  Give me joy in obeying Your direction and commands, so that peace pervades my whole life!!!

Numbers 31-32, Devine Protections

 “They waged war against Midian, as the Lord had commanded Moses, and killed every male…

The officers who were over the thousands of the army, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, approached Moses and told him, “Your servants have taken a census of the fighting men under our command, and not one of us is missing.”

‭‭Numbers‬ ‭31‬:‭7, 48‬-‭49‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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The Mideanites had previously let the Israelites into sin including idolatry and sexual sin, causing a plague that killed 24,000 Israelites.  This war was Devine justice and demonstrates the importance God places on holiness and His passion for protecting His people.

Incredibly, during this war, Israel suffers ZERO casualties while completely wiping out the other nation.  This is Devine power on display.  What a great God we serve!

Lord, help me to have my eyes opened when my actions are leading toward sin.  Give me the same passion for holiness and righteousness that You have so that everything I do and say points to You!

Leviticus 19-21, Foreigner Policy

 ““When an alien resides with you in your land, you must not oppress  him. You will regard the alien who resides with you as the native-born among you. You are to love him as yourself,  for you were aliens in the land of Egypt;  I am the Lord your God.”

‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭19‬:‭33‬-‭34‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Interesting how the Lord instructs his people how to deal with immigrants and people who are not originally born as Israelites.  If this was Gods intention thousands of years ago, why do we not all agree that we should still treat immigrants in the same way?

Lord, help my friendliness toward immigrants and foreigners be shaped by Your perspective, rather than that of my culture.  I pray that my heart and attitude would help others to think critically about what You would call them to do.

Leviticus 16-18, Critical Confession

 “Aaron will lay both his hands on the head of the live goat and confess  over it all the Israelites’ iniquities  and rebellious acts #— #all their sins.  He is to put them on the goat’s head and send it away into the wilderness  by the man appointed for the task. ”

‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭16‬:‭21‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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The value of confessing sin is undervalued in our culture.  But I believe there is a reason the priest has to confess all of Israel’s sin out loud before setting the scapegoat free.  The act of confession roots those sins in reality.  They are no longer nebulous ideas that we feel bad about, but they are real, disgusting acts, thoughts or words that hold weight…completely different that when it is an internal struggle.  Internally it is uncomfortable, and we feel some guilt, but only when it is spoken does it carry the full meaning and weight that it truly is.  Confession to a brother is critical to freedom from our sin.

James 5:17 says, “therefore confess your sin to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed.”

The Christian life is a team sport, and if we want to walk in victory, we will link arms with other men of God and confess our sin and regularly pray for each other!

Leviticus 14-15, Holiness Permeates

 “He must take two turtledoves or two young pigeons on the eighth day, come before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting, and give them to the priest. The priest is to sacrifice them, one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering.  In this way the priest will make atonement for him before the Lord because of his discharge.”

‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭15‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Gods concern about holiness goes beyond sin and covers even natural conditions of humanity…even things we have zero control over.  He is serious about how we approach each other, our belongings and His house of worship.

Lord, give me eyes to see where in my own life, Your demands for holiness still need to penetrate!

John 19:1-16, People Pleasing

“From that moment Pilate kept trying to release him. 

But the Jews shouted, “If you release this man, you are not Caesar’s friend. Anyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar!” When Pilate heard these words, he brought Jesus outside. He sat down on the judge’s seat in a place called the Stone Pavement. They shouted, “Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!” 

Pilate said to them, “Should I crucify your king?” 

“We have no king but Caesar!” the chief priests answered.

Then he handed him over to be crucified. Then they took Jesus away.”

‭‭John‬ ‭19‬:‭12‬-‭13‬, ‭15‬-‭16‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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It seems like everyone in the book of John except the religious leaders understands that Jesus is someone important, at least.  Most people suspect that He is the Messiah.  But the power hungry religious leaders are determined to get rid of Jesus.  Even Pilate wanted to let Jesus go…but he was swayed by the intensity of the culture and especially the priests.

Lord, help me to stand for what is true and not be directed by the impulse of the culture I am in.  Allow me to hold to my convictions if they were authored by You!  Help me to love you more than pleasing the people around me!!!

John 12:9-11, Conspiracy & Cover-up

“Then a large crowd of the Jews learned he was there. They came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, the one he had raised from the dead. But the chief priests had decided to kill Lazarus also, because he was the reason many of the Jews were deserting them and believing in Jesus.”

‭‭John‬ ‭12‬:‭9‬-‭11‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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When we don’t get our way, we can quickly move to desperate ideas.  That is how weak we can be…

Lord help me to trust you, even when everything seems like it is shifting out of my favor or when the evidence is not going my way.  Your ways are good and You can overcome even the most damning evidence…just like our salvation!  You made a way when it was beyond impossible for me to help myself!!!

John 10:31-39, Word & Deed

 “If I am not doing my Father’s works, don’t believe me. But if I am doing them and you don’t believe me, believe the works. This way you will know and understand that the Father is in me and I in the Father.””

‭‭John‬ ‭10‬:‭37‬-‭38‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Jesus is basically saying, “the proof is in the pudding”! Watch what I am doing, if you don’t trust what I am saying.

Lord, help my life to declare so clearly that I am Yours that people can listen to me or watch what I do and know that I follow You!

Proverbs 28- Painful Truth

“Better the poor person who lives with integrity than the rich one who distorts right and wrong. 

The one who lives with integrity will be helped, but one who distorts right and wrong will suddenly fall. 

One who rebukes a person will later find more favor than one who flatters with his tongue. 

The one who trusts in himself is a fool, but one who walks in wisdom will be safe.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭28‬:‭6‬, ‭18‬, ‭23‬, ‭26‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Integrity is such a valuable characteristic in humanity, and unfortunately it is rare!  Sometimes it is easier to tell a friend that what they are doing is no big deal, even though it is obviously sin.  It feels better in the moment to lie and have them like you…we often call that “being kind”…but God doesn’t distort the truth.  We all have to decide if we will trust God or trust ourselves.

Lord, help me to trust You alone, speak truth in a loving way and have compassion for those who  don’t walk in integrity.

Proverbs 16- Pride & Lies

“All a person’s ways seem right to him, but the Lord weighs motives. 

Commit your activities to the Lord, and your plans will be established. 

Everyone with a proud heart is detestable to the Lord; be assured, he will not go unpunished. 

Righteous lips are a king’s delight, and he loves one who speaks honestly.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭16‬:‭2‬-‭3‬, ‭5‬, ‭13‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Lord, purify my motives…allow my heart to recognize when pride is driving me or I am twisting truth to get my way.  Give me faith to trust that You are at work and will use every situation to purify me and glorify Jesus!

Psalm 101- Integrity

 “I will sing of faithful love and justice; I will sing praise to you, Lord. I will pay attention to the way of integrity. When will you come to me? I will live with a heart of integrity in my house. I will not let anything worthless guide me. I hate the practice of transgression; it will not cling to me. A devious heart will be far from me; I will not be involved with evil.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭101‬:‭1‬-‭4‬ ‭CSB‬‬

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Integrity is such a lost character quality.  It seems like today, everyone is much more concerned about the way other people feel than about what is true.  It seems easier to tell others a “white lie” than take responsibility for what actually happened.  It seems like this is so widespread that there is no problem with lying, if it make other (or myself) look/feel better.

Lord, help me to buck this trend and be a man of integrity at every turn.  Even when that makes me look foolish or dumb.  I need You and Your approval over anything else!