I Samuel 12-When a nation rejects God as king.

Read I Samuel 12

12 Now Samuel said to all Israel: “Indeed I have heeded your voice in all that you said to me, and have made a king over you. ² And now here is the king, walking before you; and I am old and grayheaded, and look, my sons are with you. I have walked before you from my childhood to this day. ³ Here I am. Witness against me before the Lord and before His anointed: Whose ox have I taken, or whose donkey have I taken, or whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed, or from whose hand have I received any bribe with which to blind my eyes? I will restore it to you.”

⁴ And they said, “You have not cheated us or oppressed us, nor have you taken anything from any man’s hand.”
⁵ Then he said to them, “The Lord is witness against you, and His anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand.”
And they answered, “He is witness.”

Here Samuel is establishing his record, saying basically, in all these years, have I ever been dishonest with you? Taken from you? Oppressed you? Of course the answer is no.
 Samuel spends the next several verses reminding them of the Lord's faithfulness in taking care of them, for correcting them and rescuing them, through Moses and Aaron and other prophets, yet now, they seek a king. 
 
¹³ “Now therefore, here is the king whom you have chosen and whom you have desired. And take note, the Lord has set a king over you. ¹⁴ If you fear the Lord and serve Him and obey His voice, and do not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then both you and the king who reigns over you will continue following the Lord your God. ¹⁵ However, if you do not obey the voice of the Lord, but rebel against the commandment of the Lord, then the hand of the Lord will be against you, as it was against your fathers.

This is Saul's coronation, but it is not a celebratory scene like we would picture from our own presidential inaugurations. This choice these people have made is a source of deep grief for Samuel.  It is a mistake of cataclysmic proportions.  And Samuel is not going out quietly. When you read his words, remember he is yelling these words to a massive crowd of people. There were no microphones.  I am trying to imagine Saul's face during this whole event. hash tag : awkward!

¹⁶ “Now therefore, stand and see this great thing which the Lord will do before your eyes: ¹⁷ Is today not the wheat harvest? I will call to the Lord, and He will send thunder and rain, that you may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which you have done in the sight of the Lord, in asking a king for yourselves.”


Samuel then takes them to task for their wicked request for an earthly king and reminds them of the power of the God that they no longer want as their king. He calls down a storm so great that the people call out to him to pray to God so that they will not die. He does, but not without this final charge:

²⁴ Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. ²⁵ But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king.”

 It never ceases to amaze me how the Lord in His omniscience ties everything together with what we study in His living Word. Just today, in the car, I heard Janet Parshall talking with Alex MacFarland about "10 Issues that Divide Christians." And one was "American Exceptionalism."  Now listen closely, he is not saying that God loves America most! He is saying that America is exceptional because of how and why our country was founded. Despite the push to hide and distort history, with more than half of the signers of the Declaration of Independence holding seminary or Bible school degrees,  this issue is really not up for debate. But it is one that needs further study, especially if you went to, or have children in public school.  Wall Builders is an excellent source to do that! You see, our country was founded on the principles of the Bible, and that is the only way our system of government could work this long. You can't have a successful democratic republic, with so much power in the hands of man, when man is corrupt and without the true moral compass of the Bible.  Reading verse 24 again: 

²⁴ Only fear the Lord, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider what great things He has done for you. ²⁵ But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king.”

Some Christians claim that it is not our place to be involved in such things, government and the like.....which they say quite freely in their Christian magazine, or  Christian talk radio show because of the Christians that are involved in such things, fighting for their rights to keep their religious freedoms. Oh irony. How I love you.  I think Ravi said it best when asked for whom to vote. He explained that as it is our commission to go and make disciples, we must vote for whoever would give us the best climate in which to fulfill that command. Sadly that did not happen as law suits are piling up against Christians for simply living out their faith.

Samuel spent much of this chapter reminding the people of how the Lord took care of them, because they keep forgetting. As do we. And we can sometimes look for earthly answers to a spiritual problem. I pray that we would seek first that things of God, and His righteousness. I pray that we would not forsake gathering together, humbling ourselves and praying for God to heal our land. And that we would act, and speak, when and how He calls us to, through the power of the Holy Spirit. As I read blogs, and comments my heart gets heavy. And then I sat down to study this chapter, and my heart was restored, because His Word is life. Life. From Genesis to Revelation.  He is the beginning and the end. Amen.

I Samuel 11- Short red line

Read I Samuel 11-

And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his anger was kindled greatly. (1 Samuel 11:6 KJV)

Saul heard news that part of the people he was now responsible for, were being threatened in a horrific and unthinkable way! So they had reached out to Saul for help. And just so we know that his anger was righteous and justified, the Bible tells us, "the spirit of God came upon him."

Now Saul had to send a message and rally the troops. We might find his method a bit strange, but they didn't have texting, or twitter, or face book. And even if he did, would it have mattered? We have all those things, yet it is really difficult to rally modern day Christians into action. We are disturbed by our brothers and sisters being attacked, even killed as unborn babies, or Christians fighting for their lives in Muslim countries, but actually "do" something? All of us? In one accord? That doesn't seem to be happening. So Saul sends a message, saying join us or this will happen to your oxen. And isn't that still the message today? Janet Parshall, Jay Seculo, they aren't sending out sliced up tenderloin, but that same warning is sent over the airwaves, join us, or you will be next. Churches, craft store owners, photographers, cake makers, all being forced to go against their religious beliefs, or go out of business.  Here is an excerpt of a sermon from a pastor, Martin Niemoller, in Nazi Germany who initially agreed with Hitler, in hopes of getting rid of the communists, but then he ended up in concentration camps himself for fighting against what became the holocaust.

"First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the Communists and I did not speak out because I was not a Communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak out for me."


 ⁸ Saul counted them at Bezek. There were 300,000^[c] Israelites and 30,000^[d] men from Judah.
 ¹¹ The next day Saul organized the troops into three divisions. During the morning watch, they invaded the Ammonite camp and slaughtered them until the heat of the day. There were survivors, but they were so scattered that no two of them were left together.




In these last days, God is calling us to do hard things. He has always called his people to do hard, and often scary things, sometimes in small ways, and sometimes big. And it is the little steps of obedience that give us strength and increase our faith for the big. And sometimes we just take a huge leap. Believe it or not, this blog was a very scary thing for me. I just imagine someone reading every line, googling it, and then coming back with some dissertation dissecting and mocking everything I say. Or yelling at me in all caps for something I say. I don't like confrontation!  But I did it. And I knew I had to. Not because somehow my words were needed in the big wide world, but because I needed what God was going to do in me through my scared obedience. In seven days, 300,000 Israelites  plus stood united in obedience. I pray that we would all seek the Lord and be ready and willing to stand together. This life is but a vapor. And if we really believe in an eternal eternity, do our actions reflect that? If you have never seen this demonstration by Francis Chan, and even if you have, it is so powerful, and important to keep on our minds. I pray that just like in the days of Saul, the Spirit of God would come upon His people and that our righteous anger would be fuel for action.

I Samuel 10- Finding God's Will

 

Read Samuel 10

10 Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head, and kissed him and said: “Is it not because the Lord has anointed you commander over His inheritance? ² When you have departed from me today, you will find two men by Rachel’s tomb in the territory of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to you, ‘The donkeys which you went to look for have been found. And now your father has ceased caring about the donkeys and is worrying about you, saying, “What shall I do about my son?”’ ³ Then you shall go on forward from there and come to the terebinth tree of Tabor. There three men going up to God at Bethel will meet you, one carrying three young goats, another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a skin of wine. ⁴ And they will greet you and give you two loaves of bread, which you shall receive from their hands.

 Often we wonder and ask the question "How do we know God's will for our lives?" And we wish that He would be this clear. We would love for a man of God, that is known for prophesying with 100% accuaracy, to come over to us, anoint us with oil, tell us God's plan, some exact steps, and then give like 3-4 prophecies to watch for just to confirm it, and have them all fulfilled in a matter of hours to days! Can you imagine? But here is the thing. Remember we read a couple chapters ago, that this was a time when the word of God was "rare."  Priests were thee only ones that had communication with God. But today it is different. The veil was torn, and we have access to the throne of grace. And just like Saul was given steps to confirm God's will, we are given steps too. But we don't always follow them. When I give my kids a job to do, more often than I would like, they get distracted, and then come and actually ask me for something! Hey mom, can we go swimming? Hey mom, can I have a cookie? Hey mom, can you make me a snack? And it goes on and on. But my response is always the same. "Did you do what I asked? No? Then don't ask me for anything until you do.." Quite often it is the same with God. He has given us something to do. Sometimes it is the regular tasks of reading His Word, spending time in prayer, and fellowship with other believers, serving together in a church home. Other times it is the out of the ordinary, those specific, "I am pretty sure He wants me to do this one hard thing, but I just can't" and we get stuck. And other times we are in between tasks 1 and 2 and just waiting to hear the next word. Waiting. Obedience and trust in the waiting. So we go back to the regular tasks with greater intensity for strength while we wait, trusting that even if we make a "wrong" decision, a man plans his way, but the Lord directs his path. (Prov. 16:9)

⁵ After that you shall come to the hill of God where the Philistine garrison is. And it will happen, when you have come there to the city, that you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with a stringed instrument, a tambourine, a flute, and a harp before them; and they will be prophesying. ⁶ Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned into another man. ⁷ And let it be, when these signs come to you, that you do as the occasion demands; for God is with you. ⁸ You shall go down before me to Gilgal; and surely I will come down to you to offer burnt offerings and make sacrifices of peace offerings. Seven days you shall wait, till I come to you and show you what you should do.”

About to embark on this unbelievable new journey to become the first earthly king of Israel, God made sure to surround Saul with those that could sing and encourage and prophesy right into his life. And he became a new man! And we can choose to do the same. Surround yourself with people that are seeking God and praising His name, and this will equip you for those days, and for the wait.

When Saul got back.....

¹⁵ And Saul’s uncle said, “Tell me, please, what Samuel said to you.”
¹⁶ So Saul said to his uncle, “He told us plainly that the donkeys had been found.” But about the matter of the kingdom, he did not tell him what Samuel had said.

For some reason we do not know, Saul held back some of the story. And there is wisdom in that. Matthew 7:6 says not to throw your pearls before swine. Maybe Saul knew that there was no way that his uncle was going to understand or fully grasp all that had just transpired. So better that he find out the truth when there is no denying it. Sometimes we can share too quickly some great thing we believe God is going to do in our lives, and often it is met with a most discouraging response from those that are just not able to see.

 ²⁶ And Saul also went home to Gibeah; and valiant men went with him, whose hearts God had touched. ²⁷ But some rebels said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him, and brought him no presents. But he held his peace.

Modern day version: Haters gonna hate. When you have done A,B and C and have confirmations D,E, and F, there will still be people that will despise you. Just hold your peace. God is faithful to direct and equip. We must be faithful to obey.

I Samuel 9- Dumb Ol' Donkey

 

Read I Samuel 9

In the last chapter Israel asked for a king. And now it was time to chose the king.

9 There was an influential man of Benjamin named Kish son of Abiel, son of Zeror, son of Becorath, son of Aphiah, son of a Benjaminite. ² He had a son named Saul, an impressive young man. There was no one more impressive among the Israelites than he. He stood a head taller than anyone else.^[a]

³ One day the donkeys of Saul’s father Kish wandered off. Kish said to his son Saul, “Take one of the attendants with you and go look for the donkeys.” ⁴ Saul and his attendant went through the hill country of Ephraim and then through the region of Shalishah, but they didn’t find them. They went through the region of Shaalim—nothing. Then they went through the Benjaminite region but still didn’t find them.
⁵ When they came to the land of Zuph, Saul said to the attendant who was with him, “Come on, let’s go back, or my father will stop worrying about the donkeys and start worrying about us.”
⁶ “Look,” the attendant said, “there’s a man of God (Samuel) in this city who is highly respected; everything he says is sure to come true. Let’s go there now. Maybe he’ll tell us which way we should go.”

Saul thought he was going on a donkey hunting mission. Nothing special. Probably not the first time he had done this, but it would be the last.  They were going to ask Samuel where their donkeys were, or so they thought. But what was really happening? 


¹⁵ Now the day before Saul’s arrival, the Lord had informed Samuel,^{[c] 16} “At this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over My people Israel. He will save them from the hand of the Philistines because I have seen the affliction of My people, for their cry has come to Me.” ¹⁷ When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, “Here is the man I told you about; he will rule over My people.”

There are so many times I can think back to in my own life where I thought I was walking through the mundane, about to do something ordinary, following a path to a known ending, and then bam, God showed up with the the real reason behind my task, with an ending I couldn't have imagined in my own small mind! And how often did I complain along the way? Can you imagine if Saul was feeling frustrated "Stupid donkeys, escaping again. Like I have nothing better to do. Thirty year old man, chasing donkeys. Doesn't my father have servants for this?" Look, I am not saying that he did feel that way, but I have felt that way, only to see at the end that it was God the whole time, using ordinary circumstances to bring about an extraordinary outcome. 

A great verse to meditate on is the reminder in I Thessalonians chapter 5

¹⁸ In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Because you never know when chasing some donkey is going to lead to your life's destiny! (somebody needs to embroider that on a pillow!)

Aunt Cherie's Famous Gingerbread Cookies

I was scouring my facebook page for a good picture of the fun that ensues when we make these fabulous, life altering gingerbread cookies. And this is what I found. My first thought was, "There has to be some way to crop out the back round." I mean, isn't your kitchen supposed to be spotless when you post pictures of food? With all your ingredients lined up on your granite counter of your updated kitched with trendy back-splash? Certainly, this, with cluttered counters, and lingering laundry baskets, this would not work. And then I remembered my friend Courtney asking the Facebook world if mommies that do all these pinterest projects and Christmas craftings still had time for laundry. And this picture was the answer. No. I am certainly not a pinterest mom. I love moms that are, but for me, it's blood pressure raising. But, to add specialized fun to an already overfull day, requires some sacrifices. And laundry is normally the first to go! And that is ok! You can't do it all. Nobody does. Shouldn't we all know this by now? Make your cookies, and let the children dig in a basket of clean laundry when they need some pajamas. It's ok.  And if you wait for your counters to be clutter free, you may never get the cookies made. So shove it all to the side, and get going!
There are memories to be made!

 And if eggplant parm makes me thing about Paul's Great Aunt Rainy, and  my Great Aunt Adele, then for us, there is no separating the making of these cookies (and the eating) from sweet memories of our trips to NC and our stays with Paul's amazing Aunt Cherie and Uncle Rick and family! And although we are separated by too many states in my opinion, pulling out the gingerbread cookie recipe, and savoring these sweet treats, brings all the memories of our wonderful family visits, to life, and it is very sweet indeed!

 (The three Beautiful sisters, my mother in law Renee, Aunt Cherie, and Aunt Linda)

Warning: I am not responsible for that pounds you gain eating these. I have never been a gingerbread cookie fan, until these.
Click here for the printable version (seriously, so tech savvy!)
 
GINGERBREAD BOYS (from the 1977 Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook)

1/3 cup shortening

1 cup brown sugar (packed)

1 1/2 cups dark molasses

2/3 cup cold water

7 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. allspice

1 tsp. ginger

1 tsp. cloves

1 tsp. cinnamon

-Mix shortening, sugar, and molasses thoroughly.  Stir in water.  Measure flour by dipping method or by sifting.  Blend all dry ingredients, stir in.  Chill

         Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Roll dough 1/4" thick on lightly floured board. ( I make mine thicker - try and see which you like - I take them out soft too)  Cut with gingerboy shaped cutter or other favorite cutter. Place far apart on lightly greased baking sheet.  Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until no imprint remains when touched lightly. Ice cooled cookies.  I make frosting paint from confectioners sugar and milk, a drop of vanilla.  I make it so that I can paint it on and then let it dry.  You might have a better frosting.  I like it thin.  Its just a personal preference.

I Samuel 8- Don't follow your heart.

 

  First read I Samuel 8 Here.

When Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons as judges over Israel. ² His firstborn son’s name was Joel and his second was Abijah. They were judges in Beer-sheba. ³ However, his sons did not walk in his ways—they turned toward dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice.

Ugh. That's all I can say. More sons that did not follow their father in serving God. So sad. I know there are things that parents can do or not do to encourage their children to know God for who He is. I know that there is nothing that brings more joy to a parent then watching their children follow God. But sadly, this scene from thousands of years ago, was not a rare occurrence, and still plays out today. So this is especially sobering. This is a reminder to me today, that more than school, activities, and relationships, our number one focus as parents has to be to instill this knowledge of God and model this relationship with God, worshiping side by side with them, in our home, and at our church, especially while they are still young. There is nothing more pressing or important on my daily to do list. Nothing.

⁴ So all the elders of Israel gathered together and went to Samuel at Ramah. ⁵ They said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not follow your example. Therefore, appoint a king to judge us the same as all the other nations have.”

Yeah, so the elders see this as their opportunity to get the king they have been wanting for a while. "We want to be just like the other countries....wah!" Oh wow. Does that sound familiar? Is anyone else regularly blown away about how studying Samuel is like reading the newspaper? Same problems. Different day. Wow. Seriously, "we want to be like all the other countries," I am pretty sure I have heard that recently. Well, Europe does this. Holland does this. Sweden does this. Why aren't we doing that? I have also heard this same reasoning from my children, although very rarely, because they just know that doesn't fly. They know that we raise our family by God's rules, and by mommy and daddy's rules, and it doesn't matter what so and so does! Which brings up the importance, the necessity of of having the definitive moral guidelines we find in the Bible. We live in a time where moral relativism is celebrated. "Follow your heart!" people say. "Just love!" But when a man's heart tells him to cheat on his wife, what then? When a woman's heart tells her she is tired of being a mom, what then? When a child's heart tells him to smack his brother and grab his toy, what then? No, it doesn't work. "As long as you are not hurting someone" they might say, well, come on. Really? When I married Paul I am pretty sure thousands of girls were hurting all over south Florida (winky face, smile) Does that mean I shouldn't have married him? God gave us a commandments. No ambiguity there. So many of the pain and horror all of the globe would be eliminated, if people just followed the top ten. TEN!! No coveting, no stealing, no adultery, loving God with all your heart? Yes. There is no greater compass than the one we find in the Bible. 

⁶ When they said, “Give us a king to judge us,” Samuel considered their demand sinful, so he prayed to the Lord. ⁷ But the Lord told him, “Listen to the people and everything they say to you. They have not rejected you; they have rejected Me as their king. ⁸ They are doing the same thing to you that they have done to Me,^[a] since the day I brought them out of Egypt until this day, abandoning Me and worshiping other gods. ⁹ Listen to them, but you must solemnly warn them and tell them about the rights of the king who will rule over them.”

I love how Samuel brings his concerns to the Lord, and how our Lord takes the burden from him. "They have rejected me, not you." This reminder is all throughout the Bible, because the Lord knows our hearts. We take things personally. All.the.time. Especially in this day and age. So Christian, let me remind you. The world, that is angry, and bitter and rude, and mocks your Bible, and your Savior? They are not rejecting you. Take it to the Lord and let Him carry it. His shoulders are so strong. And let this give us confidence, to keep standing and proclaiming.

¹⁹ The people refused to listen to Samuel. “No!” they said. “We must have a king over us. ²⁰ Then we’ll be like all the other nations: our king will judge us, go out before us, and fight our battles.”

I really encourage you to read the whole chapter. It reads like a page out of the headlines. The people want to be just like the other countries. God warns them, through Samuel, but ends up giving them what they want. I pray for mercy for our country, that we would heed the words of the Bible that our country was founded on. That we would not continue to stray from the firm foundation that was laid. And I pray that our families would do the same. That we would hold tight to the living Word, and pass that on so intentionally to our children that we would avoid the pain and suffering brought on by our own disobedience to a just and loving God.

I Samuel 1-7: Week in Review

Ok, so it's more been more than a week.But naturally, as a teacher at heart, I need to step back and review!

I Samuel 1  
Hannah reminded me that God is trustworthy with my children's hearts. I am not omnipotent. He is. I am not omniscient. He is. Because of that I need to seek His face to keep them on the path He has laid out for them. (Proverbs 22:6)
And on that note, we all need to be careful not to presume that you know the path God has laid out for the children of another family. But that is another topic entirely! :)

I Samuel 2a and 2b
 In chapter 2, Hannah sings this incredible song after saying good bye to her little boy, her only child, leaving him to serve the Lord. This song, so relevant to today. She reminds us who is in charge, in a world that seems to be spinning out of control.  Her words brought me deep comfort.

  “ The Lord makes poor and makes rich; He brings low and lifts up. He raises the poor from the dust And lifts the beggar from the ash heap, To set them among princes And make them inherit the throne of glory.

 “For the pillars of the earth are the Lord ’s, And He has set the world upon them. He will guard the feet of His saints, But the wicked shall be silent in darkness.

 “For by strength no man shall prevail. The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken in pieces; From heaven He will thunder against them. The Lord will judge the ends of the earth. “He will give strength to His king, And exalt the horn of His anointed.”

The end of the chapter finishes with a pronouncement of judgement on Eli's sons for their desecration of all things holy. For the unrepentant man, God's patience does come to an end.  “For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions…God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.”  (Romans 1:26, Romans 1:28)  

I Samuel 3
Despite the Word of the Lord being rare in Samuel's day, he received a message directly from God. But it was not good news for his boss, his mentor, his father figure. And he was afraid to deliver the message. I can relate. These days people don't want to know what the Bible says unless it is happy and makes them feel good. But this chapter demonstrates the importance for truth to be spoken even if it is painful. Eli actually accepted the word. He knew. As Christians we are afraid to speak the truth for fear of rejection, or being attacked, but there are many that are just waiting to hear. Also, God's word is not rare anymore, in fact it is so available that we take it completely for granted.

I Samuel 4
Chapter 4 gets real. It is war, it is death, and it is a side of the Bible that some are afraid of. I am not. God is love. And He defines love. Period.  I don't pretend to understand everything about God and or the Bible. I also don't pretend to know everything about quantum physics. There are laws and corollaries in science that I know to be true whether I understand them or not. Just like there are truths about God I know to be true whether I understand them or not. God is good, and He is love.
 
I Samuel 5
In chapter 5 the presence of God destroys the god of the Phillistines. And the heathens take notice!
 I love this poignant reminder of the power of God's presence. Crank the praise music, call on the name of Jesus and watch those idols and strongholds crumble to the ground!

I Samuel 6
 ²⁰ And the men of Beth Shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before this holy Lord God? In Chapter 6, God's people get lesson in the fear of the Lord. And it causes them to wonder if there is anyone good enough to stand before God. And no one could, until the blood of Jesus.
Now we, who are clothed in the righteousness of Christ, who have called on his name, can and must go boldly before the throne of Grace, making our requests know to God, all the while respecting the presence of God in our lives.

I Samuel 7
Once again God forgives and receives His people. And that same forgiveness is extended to us. Even when we blow it as parents. 
³ Then Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you return to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtoreth from among you, and prepare your hearts for the Lord, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines.” ⁴ So the children of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only.