Category: Seasons of Life

Re: Verse reading–Genesis 37:2-14, 18-28, Genesis 39:1-12 (day one)
“We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal.” (Declaration of Independence)  I don’t want to be politically incorrect but Thomas Jefferson was wrong.  We are NOT equal in gifts and opportunities.  In worth and dignity, yes, but not in privilege and calling.   The Scriptures declare a different “self-evident” truth–that God is sovereign and rules over people who have vastly different assignments.  Some have much, others less.  Some are destined for leadership (cf Joseph’s dream) and others for lives more hidden.  Some will have their Father’s favor.  Others will experience their brother’s hatred. (Some will know both).  From a Christian perspective, it is a waste of breath to protest, “Life is not fair”.  We agree.  This week as we study the life of Joseph we will mark his progress toward a different discovery.  Life is not fair, but God is good!  At the point of His grace we ARE all equal.

Re: Verse reading–Judges 16:4-30 (day seven)
“The Lords of the Philistines came to her and said, ‘Coax him, and find out what makes his strength so great.’ ” (v 5)  I do not blame the Philistines for wanting to know.  I’m not surprised they were clueless about spiritual power.  I do blame Samson for not remembering.  In Philippians 4:13, Paul says that he can do all things “through HIM who gives me STRENGTH”.  The word used is a form of our word dynamite.  And how do ordinary people find great power for living?  Moses knew.  “If YOUR PRESENCE does not go with us, do not send us up from here.  How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless YOU GO WITH US? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”  (Exodus 33:15-16)  Question–what makes his (our) strength so great?  Answer–The presence of God in our lives!

Re: Verse reading–Judges 16 (day six)
“So those he (Samson) killed at his death were more than he killed during his life.” (v 30)  Think about it.  It is possible that the last chapter of life can be the greatest chapter of all.  Even for those who have drifted away from God, wasting years in foolish friendship with the world.  It is possible to return to God and to great spiritual usefulness.  Think Samson.  Publically shamed and physically maimed, it would have been easy for him to collapse into depression and defeat.  He didn’t.  Somehow in the darkness, he “saw” that God’s calling and gifts are irrevocable (Romans 11:29).  So, he believed/hoped/prayed that God would forgive and restore him to useful service.  May the Lord give us equal insight.  Prodigal is not the most important word.  Son is.  None of us have gone so far that the Lord will not hear our prayer of repentance.  It is still possible to end well.

Re: Verse reading–Judges 16:4-30 (day four)
From his birth, Samson had been different.  He was set aside as a Nazarite for the work of the Lord.  A razor had never touched his head and his physical strength was unequaled.  God, in His sovereignty, had plans for Samson.  Unfortunately, Samson did not consecrate his life to God.  He accepted the gift of physical strength, but his spiritual strength was lacking.  Even before Samson had his eyes gouged out in V. 21, he was blinded.  Blinded by his own selfish pride.  He had been used of God to judge Judah for 20 years, but Samson had moved so far from God that when God departed from him (V. 20), he didn’t even know it.  But God honors faith!  Samson responds to his defeat by the Philistines by asking God for one last burst of strength.  His response of faith qualified him for the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11.  God wants His people to depend wholly upon Him in faith!

Re: Verse reading–Judges 16:4-30 (day three)
“She prodded him day after day until he was sick to death of it.”  At some point, Samson began to cherish his own desire above all else.  He knew what was right.  He understood the parameters of human interaction.  He comprehended that God had called him to champion Israel.  But none of that shaped his character.  Something else received his allegiance: desire.  Samson’s life gives us a picture of a life shaped by desire: He wanted food, and he flouted ritual dietary law to obtain it; he wanted sex, and no parental authority or moral code stood in his way; he was “sick to death” of conflict, and no trust proved too sacred to violate.  Woody Allen once observed: “The heart wants what it wants.”  When that becomes the extent of the heart’s moral reasoning, it never, ever, ever finds what it wants.

Re: Verse reading–Judges 16:4-30 (day two)
None of us get into our deepest problems all at once. We take baby steps towards destruction and tell ourselves that it’s not that big of a deal. Samson was no excuse. His dad had told him to stay away from the idol-worshipping girls, but Samson chose his wants over wisdom (Judges 14:3). Just like Eve and all the rest of us who willingly replace the wisdom of our Father for the wishes of the moment, Samson walked one step at a time down a path of destruction. Will you live by His wisdom or your wants? It’s a choice we make over and over again every day. Listen for the Father’s voice saying, “My son, pay attention to my words; listen closely to my sayings. Don’t lose sight of them; keep them within your heart. For they are life to those who find them, and health to one’s body. Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life” (Proverbs 4:20-13).

Re: Verse reading–Judges 16:4-30 (day one)
“So the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes.”  (v 21)  “A man who hardens his neck after much reproof will suddenly be broken beyong remedy.”  (Proverbs 29:1)  It is easy to say.  “It will never happen to me.”  Easy to deceive ourselves into thinking that God’s mercy will cover continued sin without consequence.  The scripture denys this naive confidence.  Playing with fire and getting burned are synonymous.  Ask Sampson! How many of God’s commandments did he disregard?  Sexual sin.  Falling in love with a person who did not love God.  Missing the connection between purity and power.  It was a painful lesson.  One, sadly, that many of us are close to repeating.  Deep Mercy?  Yes.  Unbending justice? Yes.  Both are parts of the character of God.  The Ninevites repented and were saved. (Jonah 3:10) Sampson did not repent and lost his life and ministry.  How foolish to miss God’s mercy by saying, “It will never happen to me.”

Re: Verse reading–Daniel 1 (day seven)
“But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the royal rations of food and wine.”  (v 8)  In 1 Corinthians 9:27, the Apostle Paul speaks about being “disqualified”.  He doesn’t elaborate, but he does register the possibility that “after having preached to others” he, himself, might stumble into sin, becoming unusable in Kingdom service.  It is a serious consideration for every believer and probably what motivated Daniel’s decision to be clean.  What are actions and attitudes that grieve/quench the Holy Spirit in our lives?  Please read the following  words and ask for insight.  “In a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also vessels of wood and of earthenware, some to honor and some to dishonor.  Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.”  (2 Timothy 2:20-21)  We must serve God on His terms.  Holy lives.

Re: Verse reading–Daniel 1 (day six)
“But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the royal rations of food and wine.”  (v 8)  “I am afraid of the King. . . if he should see you in poor condition, it would endanger my head.”  (v 10)  Questions.  WHY did Daniel refuse the palace food?  Had he taken a Nazirite vow?  (see Number 6:2)  Was he concerned with Levitical food laws?  (Leviticus 11)  The Bible doesn’t say.  Was it the idolatry and indulgence associated with Babylonian diet that caused him to commit to a more simple, spiritual path?  And WHY was the palace official willing to risk his own safety to help?  What was it about Daniel’s life that others found inspiring?  (Romans 5:7?  “for a good man one might be willing to die.”)  And finally, WHY aren’t more of us aware of our choices in an unbelieving culture, how powerful they are, how beneficial to us and to those who are observing our lives.  Just asking.  Why?

Re: Verse reading–Daniel 1 (day four)
2 Chronicles 16:9 says, “For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He might strongly support those whose heart is completely His.” Certainly, the Lord saw Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.  Their hearts were intent on obedience to God…so much so, that they were willing to incur the wrath of the king in order to be found faithful before God.  How did God support them?  Verse 17 says, “God gave them knowledge and intelligence in every branch of literature and wisdom;” Verse 20 says, “As for every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king consulted them, he found them ten times better than all the others.” Have you ever asked God to make you ten times better at something?  It can’t be a selfish request…remember, you heart has to be completely God’s!  God is sovereign over all the earth…He will exalt His name.  Let’s seek to be the instrument used to bring glory to His name!