♪♪What Am I Living For?♪♪

Good morning.                                      

If you have read a few of these blog articles you would have come to the conclusion that the Lord wants us to be fruitful and live for heaven and not for this short time on earth. The reason why most Christians tend to live for this life is because we can see what we have here. We can see we are building a career, a home, wealth and so on. With regards to ministry churches often aim at numbers or activities rather than the depth of individuals’ relationships with Christ, for that is what can be seen. We tend to focus on what we can see.

However, the Lord is very clear in the Bible that we should not be focused on this life, but on eternal life.

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven,” (Matthew 5:11-12).

“Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven,” (Matthew 6:1).

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal,” (Matthew 6:19-20).

Above are only a few indications that heaven is what we live for. Since man is naturally results orientated we tend not to live for heaven, because we cannot see what we work for. This is where faith comes in. “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see,” (Hebrews 11:1). We tend to see faith as believing for this life. When we want God to do something, such as healing and provision, we act in faith as the substance to support our expectation or hope. We haven’t seen it yet, but faith is to us the evidence that we will get it. But what if we don’t get it? Has the Lord not answered our prayer? If we are faithful day in and day out and seem not to get what we expect to get or see, will we give up?

There is the story of this man, Victor, who faithfully handed out gospel tracts, but saw no results. After some time he gave up and actually became an alcoholic tramp. One day, as he sat on the bench in the park, a man called Simon approached him and told him his testimony. Simon used to be a drunk and one day somebody slipped a tract into his coat pocket whilst he slept on a park bench. This led him to Jesus and he became a pastor. Simon then took out that very tract he had received and gave it to Victor, for he felt it might change Victor’s life too. When Victor turned the tract around, he recognised his own address and telephone number on the back. He was the man who led Simon to the Lord.

The Lord is at work. We should not look for results, but just continue to believe. Faith should not be the power to get us what we want, but should be the motivation to continue to work for what the Lord wants. We plan and do in order to show others what we have accomplished, but it leads to empty results. The Lord is not so much interested numbers or results as in our faith in what He is doing.

Hebrews 11 continues by telling of all the great faith ventures of those who expected the Messiah and then ends with these words in verses 39-40: “These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.” This would be in heaven.

I will just persevere, Lord, trusting you for results I may never see on earth. It is about your plan, and in heaven we will see.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

A Very Special Person

Good morning.                                      

Over the last ten messages we have discussed why David was so special to the Lord, a man after His own heart. We can also be like that. We should be able to say ‘I am...your name...a man/woman after God’s own heart. All we need to do is to put the Lord first in our lives, like David did. David had no desire to impress people. He had the chance to impress his men when Saul relieved himself in the cave, and he had the chance to create an impression of kingly stature when the ark came home, but he chose to impress the Lord instead. In his writings he could have sounded impressive and sang the praises of his human accomplishments, but in everything the Lord got glorified and he declared his humble dependence on Him.

When I read the wonderful Psalm 139 that David wrote, http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20139&version=NIV1984, I remember a story.

An old, dusty violin once came up for auction. The auctioneer held it up, asking for a starting bid. The bids started at ten pounds and slowly rose in reluctant bidding. After a while an old man from the audience walked to the front and took the violin from the auctioneer. He lovingly wiped off the dust, tuned it and started to play. The most magical sounds whiffed from the violin into the air, soothing the ears of the listeners with its beauty. When the last sounds faded amongst the adoration, a long silence followed.

Slowly the auctioneer found his voice again... ‘Who would give me ten thousand pounds?’ What made the difference to the value of this old, dusty violin? It was the touch of the master’s hand.

David’s brothers had the choice to be touched by the Master’s hand, but they chose to focus on themselves. King Saul had the choice to be touched by the Master’s hand, but he chose to follow his own mind. Through the generations there had been people who chose for the Master to make them special, and there had been people who chose to follow their own ambitions and the advice and influence of other people. We also have a choice to be touched by other forces such as the power of Mammon, pride, pleasure and so on.

"Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. Do everything without complaining or arguing,” (Philippians 2:12-14).

The Lord wants all of us to be men and women after His own heart and He is ready to make us like that. David spent years of worship with the Lord and did not keep himself busy with all kinds of idle, self-indulgent activities. It was through spending time with the Lord that he became the man the Lord wanted him to be, and through which he received the wonderful prophecies that were turned into songs, which were proclaimed by God’s people through singing.

Can we pray with David: “How precious are your thoughts concerning me, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you,” (Psalm 139:17-18) and: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting,” (verses 23-24)?

The Holy Spirit is a gentleman and will not force himself onto us. But if we make ourselves available to Him to form us into His desire for our lives, we will see wonderful things happening. People differ; some wants to see God doing great and powerful acts in a big way, whilst others want to see the Lord changing people continuously in their daily walk. The Lord will make us special within our gifting as recorded in Romans 12:6-8.

Lord, I would like to be me after your own heart.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Ten) – Amazing Grace

Good morning.                                      

In the last couple of messages we have discussed David’s sin with Bathsheba as recorded in 1 Samuel 12:1-24 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Samuel%2012:1-24&version=NIV1984.

The Lord told David through Nathan that, because David caused His enemies to blaspheme against Him by committing this sin, the boy born from that act would have to die. This was probably because he would have been a reminder that God had been ridiculed by the sin of David, the man after His own heart. The boy would also have reminded David of that night, which his sinful nature would have remembered as pleasure, but which actually should have been forgotten as sin.

What memorabilia do we keep of our sinful pleasures? Maybe we have been involved in ungodly relationships and still have little things to remind us of that person, or still have pictures of sinful deeds, or we still have goods we have stolen. These are actually reminders that could make us stumble again and, just like we should do with idols, we should get rid of it.

The Lord seemed to have been incredibly hurt and disappointed with the sin of this special servant of His and, even though David had repented, he had to bear the consequences of his sin. There is no record whether the Lord actually did with David’s wives as Nathan had said in 1 Samuel 12:10-12: “Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own. This is what the Lord says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you. Before your very eyes I will take your wives and give them to one who is close to you, and he will lie with your wives in broad daylight. You did it in secret, but I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel,’” but in the rest of the book of second Samuel was recorded that his son Amnon raped his daughter Tamar and many other calamities that came over David’s house.

Usually before we are about to sin the Holy Spirit warns us of the consequences. We do not always hear the warning though, but as a rule we would remember the warning once we have committed the sin. Some sins, such as sex outside of marriage have natural consequences – babies – or maybe damage to our bodies, such as in the case of violence or substance abuse. Other sins leave us with criminal records. We need to remember, though that in spite of the consequences, if we confess our sins, we are completely forgiven. Even though David bore the consequences of his sin, the Lord loved and cared for him personally as if he never had sinned, for he had been forgiven.

This is overwhelmingly evident in 2 Samuel 12:24-25: “Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and he went to her and lay with her. She gave birth to a son, and they named him Solomon. The Lord loved him; and because the Lord loved him, he sent word through Nathan the prophet to name him Jedidiah [which means ‘loved by the Lord’]”.

Incredible the forgiveness of the Lord... Solomon, or Jedidiah as the Lord preferred to call him, became one of the greatest kings who ever lived and the Messiah, Jesus Christ, was born from his lineage. Solomon was born from a relationship that originated from adultery and Jesus came from his lineage. How can we dare to try and put the Lord in a box? We dare to play God and judge servants of the Lord who stumbled and fell in sin and cut them off from the call of the Lord on their lives, whilst we all sin – only in other ways. I’m referring to men and women of God who were caught in obvious sin and removed from their ministry in spite of them repenting, whilst many others (including those who cut them off) continue in less obvious sins such as pride and greed. If we repent we are forgiven – full stop. Who are we to hinder God’s work and tell Him what to do, or His servants for that matter?

Lord, please forgive my sins and use me to make a difference.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Nine) – The Result

Good morning.                                      

In our previous message we have discussed David being blinded for what he had done and not really aware that the Lord actually knew what he was doing. For some reason he tried to hide it from people, but when the Lord sent Nathan to him David realised what he had done. You may read it in 1 Samuel 12:1-24 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Samuel%2012:1-24&version=NIV1984.

Even while Nathan told the story of the rich man who stole the poor man’s lamb, David did not realise the story was about him. He even declared judgement on himself. How often does the Holy Spirit try and convict us that we are doing wrong and we simply don’t get it until He finally turns up the heat of our circumstances to get our attention. We have mentioned in our last message the breaking of the greatest commandment by living for your own comfort. Have you ever thought why we sometimes get trouble? What are the chances that the Holy Spirit uses that to try and get our attention in order to prompt us to love the Lord rather than ourselves?

The Lord would have loved to have a ‘Nathan’ to send to those He loves so much, but it seems in these modern days that not many of us are available to the Lord so He could use us to warn our brothers and sisters. “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over,” (Matthew 18:15-17). We seem scared to offend and of the ridicule we could get from the person we approach. The receiver of such a warning often seems not to have the right attitude to receive the warning with teachability and grace.

“Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says:” and then Nathan spelled out in no uncertain terms what the Lord was about to do to David because of that deed http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Samuel%2012:7-12&version=NIV1984.

The David, the man after God’s own heart, sprang to life again. His eyes opened and he saw what he had done. In his position many of us might have looked for an excuse, a weakness we could fall back on – digging in the back of our minds for a way out of the situation. But...

“Then David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’

Nathan replied, ‘The Lord has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. But because by doing this you have made the enemies of the Lord show utter contempt, the son born to you will die,’” (verses 13-14).

Forgiveness was immediate, but because David’s behaviour caused people and evil spirits, who opposed God, to laugh at Him, the child had to die. Do our lifestyle and actions give those people, who oppose God, occasion to ridicule and laugh at Him? Does what we do in secret cause the evil spirits to ridicule God?

In verses fifteen to eighteen David made an effort to humble himself before the Lord in the hope that He may still show him grace and let the child live. David always had a humble attitude and was always ready to seek favour with the Lord through pleasing Him. When the child died he made peace with the fact that God has dealt with the situation according to His wisdom and love and he went on with his life (verses 20-23).

Real peace is to be in the Lord’s will. The only way we can be there is to find out what He wants from us and get to do it. “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus,” (Philippians 4:6-7). Being out of God’s will brings anxiety, for we are likely to do wrong things, but by seeking His will for our lives by prayer, petition and thanksgiving we receive peace.

In our next message we have something very special.

Lord, I want to act according to your will.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Eight) - Blinded

Good morning.

If you put yourself in David’s position whilst reading this, it will have great value to you.

In our previous message we discussed the passage in 2 Samuel 11 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Samuel%2011&version=NIV1984.

David had seen this woman, Bathsheba, and immediately desired her. He allowed temptation to turn into sin very quickly and when he had realised what he had done, the first thing he seemed to be concerned about is what the people would say, or maybe he was concerned for her when her husband would return and find out what she had done. Whatever the reason for his behaviour, he did act as many of us do – he tried to cover up. His behaviour was definitely not godly, but motivated by his sinful nature and suggestions from evil sources. He had not realised what he actually did until Nathan came to him as recorded in chapter 12 (see next message).

The same happened with, for example Judas, who betrayed Jesus. It was only after he had done the deed that he realised what he had done. Up to then he was blinded.

David committed adultery with Bathsheba and in trying to cover it up arranged for Uriah, her husband, to be killed so David could take her for himself – one crime to cover another. Nobody knew about it but him, Bathsheba and the Lord. David previously had had a victorious life because he acknowledged the Lord in everything he did. He never made a move without enquiring from the Lord and in everything he desired for the Lord to be glorified, but during this temptation he forgot to seek the Lord’s face. He probably was at a stage in his life where contentment with earthly comforts overruled his need for the Lord.

What sins stand between us and a victorious, full life in Christ? For some men it may be adultery in the heart via the door of the eye - lust. For some women it may be vanity and idle social relationships. For most Christians it could be a lifestyle of comfort and entertainment. Sports, money, success, earthly ambition and the like are all considered temptations that could result in us not having the relationship with the Lord as we should have.

This was David’s greatest sin. It was not so much the deed as it was the fact that he had not been sufficiently in touch with the Lord to heed to His warnings. If he had been in constant worship as he had been before, he would probably not even have heard the invitation to go walk on the roof of the palace. He would most likely have been with his men at the war front.

Jesus’ dream for us is to follow Him with all we have – to live for heaven. “‘The most important one [command],’ answered Jesus, ‘is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength,’” (Mark 12:29-30). Many of us think that we do not sin. We do not mess with other women or men; we do not steal or are dishonest and so on. But sin is to disobey God’s commands and the greatest is quoted above. When we are so self-absorbed, so busy with pleasing ourselves and our carnal desires, so involved with building for ourselves comfort and reputation, status and honour that we do not really consider the Lord’s concerns and needs, do we then love the Lord?

This command states that our entire heart, soul, mind and strength should be involved with doing love things that please the Lord. In other words my spirit (heart) should be constantly aware of the Lord, my will and emotions (soul) should be focused of Him, my mind should be occupied with Him and my energy and strength should be put to work for His purposes.

David broke Moses’ commands against adultery and murder. If we live for our own comfort we break the greatest command, and we don’t even try to cover these sins.

Lord, I want to love you as I should.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Seven) – Power of Temptation

Good morning.

If you put yourself in David’s position whilst reading this, it will have great value to you.

David was a man after God’s own heart because to him the Lord was first and foremost. In the past few messages we have learnt that he didn’t make a move without enquiring from the Lord and that the Lord’s honour was high priority to him. However, he was only human and also vulnerable to be blinded by Satan’s deceptive power. On the cross Jesus prayed for those who crucified Him “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing,” (Luke 23:34), and the following was an occasion where David also didn’t realise what he was doing. We also end up in such situations, but being blinded does not make it right. The Lord will make us aware of our error as He did with David and then it is up to us whether we would be quick to follow David’s example of repentance.

The passage in 2 Samuel 11 is too long to quote here, so you may read it here http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Samuel%2011&version=NIV1984.

“In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army,” (2 Samuel 11:1). Instead of being at war as he should have been, David stayed in Jerusalem. One night he lay on his bed being bored. The devil finds work for idle hands and so David got tempted to get up and walk on the roof of the palace. The scene had been set for a woman to bath in full view of the palace roof and immediately desire got hold of David.

At that very moment he had a choice to resist the temptation and turn around, going back to bed. “Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death,” (James 1:14-15). David, however, was blinded by desire for this stunning woman and, since he had nothing to do, he completed this process of conceiving and giving birth to sin and death in next to no time. He slept with Bathsheba and she conceived a child. Once he had pleased Satan and committed the sin he was tempted with, Satan left him, laughing up his sleeve and David realised what he had done. Instead of turning to the Lord, repenting of what he had done, David then tried to hide his sin. It is obvious that his relationship with the Lord was not as sharp as it used to be, for he did not realise that the Lord sees everything and was following his every move.

We should not give Satan too much credit, but it is a fact that he urges us on to sin by setting temptations on our way and blinding us to what we are doing. Therefore we have to stay in contact with the Holy Spirit so we could heed His warnings.

David first tried to get Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, to sleep with his wife so he could get the blame for the child and when Uriah was too honourable to do that, David arranged for him to be killed so he could take Bathsheba and the resulting child for himself.

This is what happens when we are blinded by temptation. We sin, try to cover up that sin with another and before we see, we live in sin. Had David turned away the first moment he had seen Bathsheba, none of this would have happened. Previously David’s relationship with the Lord was of such a nature that he knew exactly what the Lord expected of him, but it is clear that he missed the boat on this occasion.

Can you identify with David in this? Have you been tempted before and were blinded to the extent that you were not able to stop yourself before it was too late and the end thereof was regret - you have conceived sin?

In our next message we will look at this.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

Fruit From David

Good morning.

Today I needed some rest and thus slept later, so I give you some of the fruit of David’s relationship with the Lord.

Psalm 4 is a prayer David wrote down, but is a beautiful example of the interactive relationship he had with the Lord. If you read this psalm carefully you will see that parts of it are he speaking and part the Lord speaking, in other words David prophesying. The latter can be found in verse two and seems to be in verse four as well.

I love verse seven where he compared the results of a relationship with the Lord with the results of material success.

Read this thoughtfully and let it sink into the depths of your spirit.

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. A psalm of David.

¹ Answer me when I call to you,
O my righteous God.
Give me relief from my distress;
be merciful to me and hear my prayer.

² How long, O men, will you turn my glory into shame?
How long will you love delusions and seek false gods? Selah
³ Know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself;
the Lord will hear when I call to him.

⁴ In your anger do not sin;
when you are on your beds,
search your hearts and be silent. Selah
⁵ Offer right sacrifices
and trust in the Lord.

⁶ Many are asking, “Who can show us any good?”
Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord.
⁷ You have filled my heart with greater joy
than when their grain and new wine abound.
⁸ I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O Lord,
make me dwell in safety.

Are you one of the godly the Lord has set apart for himself?

Lord, I make this prayer my own. Please show me how to have an intimate relationship with you.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Six) – Declaring God’s Power

Good morning.

What is it that made David so special to the Lord? Can we have or do the same? We continue from where we have left off in our previous two messages. If you haven’t read it, please first read it.

What happened next in the story of David and Goliath has always amazed me. David, still a boy, approached this nine foot giant who was dressed in full armour and armed to the teeth, with nothing but his staff, his sling and five stones. He was ready for battle, though, and his first tactic was to declare the power he had.

“David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.  This day the Lord will hand you over to me, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands,” (Samuel 17:45-47).

What were David’s odds? The picture the spectators saw was this small boy facing this giant and making these statements. Some of them probably laughed and others, who realised what was coming, probably started to retreat. David had no evidence that what he said was going to happen – he declared it by faith, expecting God to honour His word. He didn’t go in his own power; in fact the whole scene depicted his vulnerability and the fact that in his own strength he stood no chance.

Have you declared the Lord’s victory in the midst of your challenges? I have, and believe me the circumstances submitted to the Lord’s power. We tend to plead and ask in prayer, often doubting whether the Lord is actually going to answer. But if we hear from the Lord what His solution is and declare the rhema word He gives us over our situation, we will see the difference. We need to declare what the Lord tells us through a revelation which He gives us from the Bible, and then act on it, for the battle is the Lord’s as David declared. For example I have a couple of passages the Lord gave me that promise me His protection, and whenever I am in danger I quote and declare it and every time I’m saved. The other day He revealed to me I must daily declare His favour over me and it makes a huge difference.

“Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he [David] slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground,” (V49). I had a sling as a boy and became rather competent with it. It was humanly impossible to drive a round stone accurately through a man’s skull with the force a sling can generate, and David knew it. It might have knocked Goliath unconscious, but not have entered his brain. This is where God came in. He aimed and accelerated the stone by His power and it turned into the first bullet. If this wasn’t the case, David would have gotten the glory for being a good shot, but God did the killing and He got the glory.

Expect the Lord to do something supernatural in your life in reaction to an act of faith. When something great has happened, look for the Lord’s role in it and give Him the glory. Listen to what He tells you to do and do it. It is then when you will see His miracles. When you read the Bible, expect Him to speak with you by lifting out rhema passages for you. Then memorise them so they can create faith in your heart and so you can declare them when necessary.

Lord, I want to hear from you and see you in action.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Five) – Being Unconventional

Good morning.

What is it that made David so special to the Lord? Can we have or do the same?

We continue from where we left off in our previous message. If you haven’t read it, please first read it.

We said David had a battle plan in the back of his mind, but he needed the Lord’s supernatural power to support it. What was his battle plan?

We note from the story in 1 Samuel 17 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20samuel%2017&version=NIV1984 that David first submitted to Saul’s plan, which was the traditional way Saul always had done it. When Saul offered his own armour to David, David did not refuse it since Saul was his king and he had to submit to authority (Verses 38-39). However, when David realised this plan was not going to work, we read: “‘I cannot go in these,’ he said to Saul, ‘because I am not used to them.’ So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine,” (verses 39-40).

Because David walked with the Lord he had already heard from the Lord what he had to do.

The Lord has an individual strategy for all of our lives as Christians and each strategy is uniquely designed to fit our interests, gifts and talents. “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do,” (Ephesians 2:10). He put the church in place for support and oversight, but it is not meant to control us. “It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ,” (Ephesians 4:11-13). We need to take advice from church authority, but we should be more obedient to God than to men (Acts 5:29) and do what and how He guides us. Church authorities need to understand this principle.

Then David did what he was used to. He took his staff, which he had used many times before and selected stones from the stream, something he had done every time he had practiced throwing with his sling. This was familiar to him and he was skilled at it.

Are you familiar with the skills you are called to exercise? Are you familiar with the Lord who is going to work with you and do you know how to hear His voice so you could hear when He gives you instructions? Have you enquired from the Lord what it is He wants you to do? We are not called to serve the church, but the Lord. When I was called for this ministry a prophet told me that I would give teaching and that I need to study the Word to know it. I obeyed and now I’m useful. David did not necessarily know about Goliath when he practiced using the sling, but the Lord knew.

The Israelites had no idea how to deal with this situation that presented itself. Wars up to then had a battle plan where the two armies attacked one another, but this one to one thing was new to them. They had never done it before, which is why they were scared. The Lord, however, knew about it and He had a plan. He also had His vessel prepared. When David walked onto that battlefield completely unarmed and unprotected, the armies probably gasped. Was he insane!

We live in a world with new challenges every day. Satan is very active and so is the sinful nature of man. The traditional way of doing things within the church does not work anymore after a while and we need to look unto the Lord for new unconventional ways to win this world for Jesus. Can we dare to be radical to get effective results?

To be continued.

Lord, please show me my purpose?

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Four) – What We Depend On

Good morning.

What is it that made David so special to the Lord? Can we have or do the same?

The well-known story of David fighting Goliath had more to it than meets the eye. It can be read in 1 Samuel 17. When Goliath challenged people to fight him the prize was the factor. He named it: “If he is able to fight and kill me, we will become your subjects; but if I overcome him and kill him, you will become our subjects and serve us,” (1 Samuel 17:9). This fellow was nine feet tall so, considering the prize, it was a risk to take him on. No wonder that “on hearing the Philistine’s words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified,” (V11).

How did David respond though? He turned up at the challenge, bringing food to his brothers, and heard what Goliath said. He then asked the men standing near him: “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?”

Can you see what David’s first concern was? He was concerned about the honour of God. Where the men only thought about themselves and merely fought in the army as a duty, David saw the humiliation that the Lord would suffer if these enemies won like that.

How often are we in a position where the Lord’s glory is at stake and because we are concerned about persecution or our reputation or image we do not stand up for Him. We may be in a conversation where somebody blasphemes the Lord, but do nothing for we are scared to be the odd one out. Or we are involved with behaviour that causes God’s enemies, either human or evil spirits, to blaspheme him or when somebody is persecuted or ridiculed for their faith, and we are in a position to help, we do nothing.

The men of Israel looked at the Goliath’s size and compared their size with his and the result was fear. David compared Goliath’s size with God’s and the result was faith. The men of Israel were self-centred and fearful, whereas David were God-centred having faith.

“David said to Saul, ‘Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.’ Saul replied, ‘You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth,’” (V32-33).

When we read this we can easily think David was over confident, but he had a track record with the Lord. He gave his curriculum vitae to Saul, telling him how he dealt with the lions and bears that attacked his sheep ending with these words: “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine,” (V37).

What is written in our spiritual curriculum vitae? When the Lord needs us for some venture, do we have the necessary faith to fulfil it? Have we allowed the Lord to develop our faith through the tests He put us to, or have we avoided difficult situations by calling on Mammon to help us out? In other words have we consciously trusted the Lord in a specific situation, waiting for his response even though it was difficult for us, or did we arrange for some human help or financial provision as a cop-out?

Goliath was big and armoured and used to fighting, since he had done it for a long time and had the experience to lean on. David was young and still developing with no war experience to speak of, but he had an intimate relationship with the Almighty God to lean on. He had a battle plan in the back of his mind, but knew that only with the Lord’s supernatural interference it would work out.

When you are up to a challenge, how long does it take you to realise you need the Lord’s help?

To be continued.

Lord, people usually make fun of having Jesus as a crutch to lean on, but I need you.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Three) – Despise the Lord?

Good morning.

What is it that made David so special to the Lord? Can we have or do the same?

As we read David’s history in the book of first Samuel we see that Saul increasingly hated David. In fact the Spirit of the Lord had left Saul and evil spirits took hold of him and used him to hunt David down (1 Samuel 16:14). I can imagine that Satan would have loved to get rid of David because of the key role he had to play in the Lord’s salvation plan. Saul first started to involve David in his life and house and even gave his daughters to David in marriage. But then his attitude changed and he actively pursued David to try and kill him, for David was more popular than Saul.

It all started when David defeated Goliath. “When the men were returning home after David had killed the Philistine, the women came out from all the towns of Israel to meet King Saul with singing and dancing, with joyful songs and with tambourines and lutes. As they danced, they sang:

‘Saul has slain his thousands,
and David his tens of thousands.’

Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him. ‘They have credited David with tens of thousands,’ he thought, ‘but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?’” (1 Samuel 18:6-8).

This hunt went on and David spent most of the time running from Saul, until one day... “He [Saul] came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave. The men said, ‘This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’’ Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. He said to his men, ‘The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.’ With these words David rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way,” (1 Samuel 24:3-7).

What would we have done in David’s position? Many times Saul nearly killed David. This was his perfect opportunity to get rid of this person who stood in the way of his dreams. He was already anointed king, had his own army and was popular with the people. All that was necessary was for him to get rid of Saul. That was how it worked those days in war, wasn’t it - you kill the king and take his land.

But David was in touch with the Lord. Never in his life had he ever done anything without enquiring from God. He was not going to take matters in his own hands. The Lord reigned and he was only the Lord’s chosen instrument to accomplish His purposes for such a time.

The Lord loved this attitude of his and called him a man after His own heart.

Are you waiting on the Lord? Do you honour the people the Lord put in your way to mature you for what He is about to do with your life, even if you don’t like them? When you feel the Lord is too slow for your liking, do you take matters in your own hands? Do you listen to people’s advice or do you enquire of the Lord?

Even though we do not always understand or approve of the way the Lord works, it is paramount that we trust Him that He knows what He is doing. We will be tested whether we are prepared to wait on the Lord and will be tempted (like David was) to take matters in our own hands – “they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint,” (Isaiah 40:31).

Lord, help me to honour your plans for my life.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (Two) – Acknowledge the Lord

Good morning.

What is it that made David so special to the Lord? Can we have or do the same? In the next few days we are going to highlight a few of these actions of his, but not in the chronological order of his life.

When you read the next few passages, take note of David’s response to each of the situations he encountered, of his personal circumstances and of the Lord’s response.

·         “When David was told, ‘Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are looting the threshing floors,’ he inquired of the Lord, saying, ‘Shall I go and attack these Philistines?’

The Lord answered him, ‘Go, attack the Philistines and save Keilah.’” (1 Samuel 23:1-4).

David realised the people of Keilah needed help. This was the ideal opportunity for him to impress his people and he could have decided to just do it of own accord, but he realised he needed the Lord in everything. When his men were scared he felt he just had to double check with the Lord (V4), for he would not have liked to have his men’s blood on his hands if he acted on his own.

·         On another occasion when David and his men got back to Ziklag they discovered it was destroyed and their families captured. “David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God... David inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?’

‘Pursue them,’ He answered. ‘You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue,’ (1 Samuel 30:5-8).

How would we have felt if we were in David’s position – anger and hatred because his wives were captured, fear because his men wanted to stone him or desperation? The men probably felt like that, but David had the Lord, who was his strength, to turn to. At this point he could have decided one of two things. He could have sulked, or he could have acted in revenge. But through his life he had learned it was worth relying on the Lord.

·         After Saul’s death, “in the course of time, David inquired of the Lord. ‘Shall I go up to one of the towns of Judah?’ he asked.

The Lord said, ‘Go up.’

David asked, ‘Where shall I go?’

‘To Hebron,’ the Lord answered,” (2 Samuel 2:1).

Isn’t this the kind of decision one makes on your own? ‘What shall I do today? I think I shall do this and that.’ David was different. From a very young age he had found that the Lord had a plan with his life and he applied what his son Solomon actually wrote down many years later, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight,” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

·         “Once more the Philistines came up and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim; so David inquired of the Lord, and He answered, ‘Do not go straight up, but circle around behind them and attack them in front of the balsam trees. As soon as you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, move quickly, because that will mean the Lord has gone out in front of you to strike the Philistine army,’” (2 Samuel 5:22-24).

The Lord told David exactly how he should go about attacking the Philistines and what the Lord’s role would be in it and David followed his instructions to the letter.

How about what the Lord tells you regarding your life?

This is why the Lord called David a man after His own heart. Whenever he needed to make a decision he always first turned to the Lord. There were times he didn’t do it for he was blinded by Satan, such as with Bathsheba, but then he repented.

How often do we consciously turn to the Lord for guidance? Do we pray about everything we have to decide about, or does our prayer life consist of a couple of formal prayers said daily? When we do hear the Lord’s answer, do we obey?

Lord, I would love to learn to acknowledge you in all my ways.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.

About David (One) – Are we Embarrassed?

Good morning.

We are going to look at David’s life and see what we can learn from him. We are, however, not going to go through his life chronologically, but rather take random acts of his to learn from. The Lord called David a man after His own heart and the reason for this is that David was not concerned about his own image when the Lord needed to be exalted. He never defended himself when he was ridiculed, despised and mocked because of his faith. He actually suffered a lot for his faith and we will learn about it as we go along in this series.

As we study this we need to look at ourselves and make a decision whether we fit into the category of being men and women after God’s own heart and if not, what we can do to make sure we become like that.

In 2 Samuel 6 David arranged for the ark to be brought back. Uzzah tried to help by stabilising the ark when the oxen stumbled and because He touched the ark irreverently, the Lord struck him down. This caused David to really fear the Lord.

^“David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, “How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me?” He was not willing to take the ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David. Instead, he took it aside to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months, and the Lord blessed him and his entire household. Now King David was told, ‘The Lord has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God.’ So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing,” (verses 9-12).

To David the Lord was very real and he didn’t want to get on His wrong side. At first he was scared that the wrath of the Lord would come on the City of David because of what had happened to Uzzah, but when he saw that Obed-Edom was blessed because of the presence of the Lord, he wanted the presence of the Lord and the resulting blessing for the city. The reason why Uzzah died is because the ark was not transported according to the prescribed procedure. When David collected the ark to bring it to the city, he made sure it was done properly: “When those who were carrying the ark of the Lord had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf,” (verse 13).

“David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the Lord with all his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets. As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart,” (verses 14-16).

David was the king of Israel. People looked up to him and as a king he was supposed to maintain a certain status. According to our human perception there are certain things that kings and queens don’t do. They should always behave appropriately with the necessary majesty as to not be despised by the people. But David didn’t care what people thought, for he was doing it for the Lord. The only person that mattered at that moment was the Lord and what He thought of David’s heart. We read that at least one person despised David – Michal, Saul’s daughter, because people’s opinions were important to her.

Who would despise you when you go all out for the Lord? How would pleasing the Lord through your humility affect your friendships with people of stature? When you dance and praise the Lord in church, maybe kneeling down, who would look down on you? Why are we concerned about what people think and make excuses for our worship?

The Lord’s opinion is what counts and He can look after those who wonder about us. We just need to praise Him with all our heart.

Lord, I would like to die to my embarrassment and please you.

Thank you Lord that your Word went out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which you sent it.

Please pass this on if you think others may benefit by it.