A Model Prayer

Readings for today: 1 Chronicles 15-17, Psalms 67

I love the heart of David. To be sure, the guy’s a mess. The successes of his life are massive but so are his failures. His devotion to the Lord is convicting, his unfaithfulness deeply troubling. Despite the problems he creates for himself through his penchant for violence and greed and selfishness and a lust for power, David does have his moments. Moments when his deep love for God shines through. Today’s prayer (1 Chronicles‬ ‭16‬:‭8‬-‭36‬ ‭CSB‬‬) is a great example. There is praise, thankfulness, gratitude, and joy. There is awe and reverence for who God is and revealed Himself to be as well as humility as David acknowledges his need for salvation. David’s prayer provides a model for the believer to help guide our own prayers as we seek to build a deeper, more intimate relationship with God.

“Give thanks to the Lord; call on his name; proclaim his deeds among the peoples. Sing to him; sing praise to him; tell about all his wondrous works! Boast in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.” David begins with an ascription of praise. He looks at the world around him and sees the handiwork of God. He looks back throughout history and sees the hand of God at work. He knows God is faithfully ordering things according to His sovereign will and purpose and he calls on God’s people to give Him praise. Take a moment and look at the world around you. No matter where you live, creation itself is singing the praises of God. The mountains. Oceans. Fields full of wheat and corn. Mighty rivers like the Nile. Lakes like Victoria in Uganda where I will be going tonight. The birds. The fish. The animals. All of it designed to bring us to our knees in awe and wonder.

“Remember the wondrous works he has done, his wonders, and the judgments he has pronounced, you offspring of Israel his servant, Jacob’s descendants — his chosen ones. He is the Lord our God; his judgments govern the whole earth. Remember his covenant forever — the promise he ordained for a thousand generations, the covenant he made with Abraham, swore to Isaac, and confirmed to Jacob as a decree, and to Israel as a permanent covenant: “I will give the land of Canaan to you as your inherited portion.” When they were few in number, very few indeed, and resident aliens in Canaan wandering from nation to nation and from one kingdom to another, he allowed no one to oppress them; he rebuked kings on their behalf: “Do not touch my anointed ones or harm my prophets.” David remembers not just the miraculous works of creation but the specific acts of God for His people. The faithfulness of God in choosing His people and setting them apart for His holy purpose. The eternal covenant He made to give them a land and an identity. The protection God provided as He guided them from Egypt to the Promised Land. This is where prayer becomes personal. We reflect not just on what God has done generally but what He has done for us personally and we give Him praise.

“Let the whole earth sing to the Lord. Proclaim his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his wondrous works among all peoples. For the Lord is great and highly praised; he is feared above all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy are in his place. Ascribe to the Lord, families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name; bring an offering and come before him. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; let the whole earth tremble before him.” David next turns to the character and nature of God. God is worthy of our worship simply because He is God. Nothing more. Nothing less. Nothing else. We don’t worship God for His blessings. We don’t worship God because of His benefits. We worship God for His greatness and holiness and glory and strength. Reflecting on the nature and character of God naturally brings us to our knees in humility. It serves as a good reminder to us of how fleeting and finite we are as human beings. Our lives come and go but God endures forever. And because God endures forever, we can trust Him.

“The world is firmly established; it cannot be shaken. Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns!” Let the sea and all that fills it resound; let the fields and everything in them exult. Then the trees of the forest will shout for joy before the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his faithful love endures forever. And say, “Save us, God of our salvation; gather us and rescue us from the nations so that we may give thanks to your holy name and rejoice in your praise. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting.” Then all the people said, “Amen” and “Praise the Lord.” Finally, David calls on the Lord, the judge and ruler of the earth, to save him and his people. He calls on God to deliver and rescue His people from the nations that seek to enslave, oppress, and terrorize. He calls on God to do what He’s always done which is protect and guide His people so they may be free to worship Him in spirit and in truth. God sets us free not just to do what we want. He sets us free so we might bring Him the worship He deserves. Take time today to thank God for His freedom and ask His Spirit to guide you in how you use that freedom to worship and serve the Lord.

Readings for tomorrow: 1 Chronicles 18-21, Psalms 68

God Looks on the Heart

Readings for today: 1 Samuel 15-17, Psalms 82

What does God see when He looks on your heart? Does He see a heart full of devotion or a heart that’s divided? Does He see a heart that is humble and willing and obedient or a heart that is prideful and resistant and oriented more around self? Does He see a heart full of love and grace or a heart full of anger and hate? Does He see a heart that is quick to forgive or quick to judge? How is your heart? Have you spent intentional time cultivating a heart after God or have you ignored or neglected your heart along the way?

1 Samuel 16:7 is one of my favorite verses in all the Bible. “But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or his stature because I have rejected him. Humans do not see what the Lord sees, for humans see what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.” (1 Samuel‬ ‭16‬:‭7‬ ‭CSB‬‬)

What does it mean to love God with a “whole” heart? To be fully devoted to Him? To make Him our first love? Does it mean outward, physical perfection? King Saul literally stood head and shoulders above his countrymen. (1 Sam. 10:23) Eliab, David’s older brother, clearly was an impressive physical specimen. (1 Sam. 16:6) Does it mean achievement or success? I am sure God could easily have lined up a hundred other men who had accomplished a heck of a lot more than David. Is it based on wealth or privilege? Or perhaps great moral character? What kind of heart does God treasure in a man or woman? The key is found in 1 Sam. 15:22-23 CSB, ”Does the Lord take pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? Look: to obey is better than sacrifice, to pay attention is better than the fat of rams.” Humility. Submission. Obedience. These are the qualities on which God places supreme value. So are we willing to listen? Willing to follow? Willing to surrender our plans in favor of God’s plan for our lives? Are we willing to trust God even when our circumstances seem bleak? Are we willing to obey even when it’s hard? 

As we’ve read yesterday and today, King Saul was a half-hearted man. Though he was chosen by God and instructed by Samuel in the “rights and duties” of godly kingship, his heart was divided. At times, Saul was faithful and found great success. At other times, he was unfaithful and found only heartbreak. The unlawful sacrifice at Gilgal. A rash vow during the heat of battle. A refusal to devote the Amalekites to destruction. These events illustrate the half-hearted devotion Saul paid to God and it eventually cost him everything. The kingdom was literally ripped from his hands. The Spirit of the Lord departed from him. And he ended up tormented and paranoid. 

King David was a whole-hearted man. As we will see, David was a man after God’s own heart but this doesn’t make him perfect. His failures are massive and significant and costly. But through it all, the one thing David does is keep seeking after God. David keeps humbling himself before God. David keeps returning to God in repentance. And God loves David. Honors David. Promises to give the throne to his descendents for generations.  

So time to take stock. Time to step back and honestly examine your own heart. Are you half-hearted or whole-hearted in your devotion to Jesus? We’ve already seen that it doesn’t necessarily depend on our outward appearance or achievement or actions. We can’t count on the image we project to the world to save us. We have to be strong and courageous enough to take the inward journey into the heart. What do you find there? What will God see when He looks at you?

Readings for tomorrow: 1 Samuel 18-20, Psalms 83 (No devotionals on Sundays)

What Drives You?

Readings for today: 1 Samuel 13-14, Psalms 81

There is a lot being written today about what drives human beings to do the things they do. Ever since the Enlightenment, we’ve been living under the illusion that we are rational creatures. As Rene Descartes famously put it, “I think therefore I am.” But many are now questioning this fundamental assumption because of the overwhelming evidence that it’s simply not true. Human beings seem to be enslaved to their desires. Base emotions at the core of their being drive them to make all kinds of decisions, many of which are not rational or objective or based on facts. It’s why human progress is a myth. We’ve been chasing things like justice and righteousness and honesty and truth for thousands of years but seem no closer to realizing them in human society. Over and over again, we regress to power, corruption, greed, selfishness, etc. and our minds work overtime to “rationalize” our choices to make them seem more logical than they are.

In my personal and professional experience, I find many people are driven by fear. They experience trauma or pain or suffering at a young age and they make a determination deep down never to allow themselves to be put in that position ever again. I think of people I know who suffered from food insecurity as children who, even though they make plenty of money now, always feel the need to keep their refrigerators, freezers, and pantries overflowing. I think of people I know who’ve been abused who vow deep down never to make themselves vulnerable again and sabotage relationship after relationship. I think of people I know who experienced significant failure or saw someone they loved impacted by another person’s failure and spend their lives chasing success at every turn. I think of myself and what drives me. I have all kinds of motivations that were warped and twisted by my experience growing up in an alcoholic home. I have to check myself all the time so that I don’t relapse into unhealthy behaviors and bad decisions.

King Saul was a man driven by fear. He was afraid of losing his influence over the people of Israel so when they begin to desert him at Gilgal, he responds in fear and offers an unlawful sacrifice. Then he overcorrects and makes a rash vow that almost costs him the life of his son. As we continue his story in the days ahead, we will see Saul give into all kinds of envy and jealousy. His fragile ego and desire to protect himself at all costs will eventually cost him not only his kingdom but also his life. That’s what happens when we are driven by fear. The more we try to tighten our grip, the more what we hold most dear slips through our fingers.

God wants us to be driven by faith. God wants us to trust in Him alone. When Samuel confronts Saul, he talks to him about his heart. The issue has less to do with the sacrifice and more to do with Saul’s failure to love God. “Samuel said to Saul, “You have been foolish. You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. It was at this time that the Lord would have permanently established your reign over Israel, but now your reign will not endure. The Lord has found a man after his own heart, and the Lord has appointed him as ruler over his people, because you have not done what the Lord commanded.” (‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭13‬:‭13‬-‭14‬ ‭CSB‬‬) So again, let me press the question. What drives you? What motivates you to make the decisions you make? Take the actions you take? Make the plans you’ve made? Are they driven by faith or by something else?

Readings for tomorrow: 1 Samuel 15-17, Psalms 82