Awakening to God’s Blessings

Posted on 2013/12/31 by Shawn Thomas

II Samuel 5:12 says: “And David realized that the Lord had established him as king over Israel, and that He had exalted his kingdom for the sake of His people Israel.” This verse comes in the context of David having come to be king over all Israel, and experiencing God’s blessings in battle (he had captured “the city of David” from the Jebusites, :6-9) and in gifts from Hiram, King of Tyre (:11). He had been experiencing the blessing of God on his life and kingdom, but :12 indicates that in a sense, one day David “woke up” to what was happening: God had indeed established and blessed him.

Perhaps some of us need to have that same kind of “awakening.”

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God Will Fulfill Your Purpose

Posted on 2013/12/30 by Shawn Thomas

In Psalm 138:8 David declares confidently that God’s purposes for him will come to pass: “The LORD will fulfill His purpose for me; Your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of Your hands.” (ESV) Each of us can have this same confidence, based on the truths of this verse: Continue reading →

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The Fear of Man Exemplified

Posted on 2013/12/27 by Shawn Thomas

I Samuel 3 relates how King Ish-bosheth rebuked his general, Abner, for immorality. Abner responded with indignation and anger and promised to deliver the rest of the kingdom of Israel to David. Ish-bosheth was mortified. Verse 11 says: “And he could no longer answer Abner a word, because he was afraid of him.”

Ish-bosheth had a fundamental problem. A leader cannot have subordinates or “staff” that he is afraid of! Of course, the problem here began with how Ish-bosheth was made king. Chapter 2:8 says that when David became king of Judah, Abner had taken Ish-bosheth and made him king over the other tribes. So Ish-bosheth was a puppet. Given his position by a man, he knew he could have it taken away by the same man. Continue reading →

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An Oft-Unwanted Token of God’s Love

Posted on 2013/12/26 by Shawn Thomas

The many of us who sometimes question God’s love during times of difficulty or trial would do well to remember Hebrews 12:6, “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by Him. For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, and He scourges every son whom He receives.”
This verse tells us: Continue reading →

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A Post From Christmas Past

Posted on 2013/12/24 by Shawn Thomas

Since we are involved with family worship and other activities today — as I hope you are — I thought I would share some highlights from LAST year’s Christmas which I never published:

At one point during the week, the kids decided to take a break from their Christmas Playstation marathon and go for a walk. But after storms and wind all day, the cold front had finally come through. After ceremoniously waving and bidding me a grandiose “goodbye” just a few moments previously, they all scurried right back into the house 20 seconds later, whining and screaming, “It’s too COOOLLLDD!!!” I had to laugh at the quick turnabout!

Overhead during the Christmas holiday: Continue reading →

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God With Us

Posted on 2013/12/24 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 132:13-14 says: “For the LORD has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation. This is My resting place forever; Here I will dwell, for I have desired it.” We find in these verses several expressions of how God will be among His people: “Habitation … resting place … dwell …” It is God WITH His people, among them. This is the whole thing; THIS is what it is all about; this is what we were made for: that God would be among us.

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Putting Hardship In Perspective

Posted on 2013/12/23 by Shawn Thomas

If you ever think about how hard things are for you as you live and serve in the Christian life, Hebrews 12 may have some good words for you: get a little perspective by pondering the hardships that Jesus endured for you. Continue reading →

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Inquiring of the Lord

Posted on 2013/12/20 by Shawn Thomas

In II Samuel 2:1 we find David in a familiar situation. After Saul’s death, he did not just “assume” that he should go back up to Israel, but instead it says he “inquired of the Lord.” The Bible tells us repeatedly that he did this (3 times in I Samuel 23:2, 4, 9-12). These Scriptures indicate that he was just in the HABIT of “inquiring of the Lord” before he did anything.

WE should be in that habit too — at every step, all through the day!

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Getting Real With God: Four Important Admissions

Posted on 2013/12/19 by Shawn Thomas

The writer of Psalm 130 is very transparent in his prayer to the Lord. We find here that he makes 4 very important admissions which each of us would do well to imitate:

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A Lesson in Civility and Grace

Posted on 2013/12/18 by Shawn Thomas

Following the death of Saul & Jonathan on Mt. Gilboa at the hands of the Philistines, David composes a lament in their honor. The song he wrote in II Samuel 1:17-27 is instructive to us in several ways:

— First, it is of interest that the familiar phrase “how have the mighty fallen” originates here. (In fact, it is used three times in this song (:19, :25, :27). If David’s song were given a title, surely it would have been, “How Have The Mighty Fallen.”)

— But beyond that, notice the grace and civility that David demonstrated to Saul, one who had unjustly oppressed him. Continue reading →

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