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Devotional
Weekly Bible Devotion By Books
Feb. 27- March 4 2023
Enter the presence of the Lord
(All) Praise the Lord, you his servants;
praise the name of the Lord.
(M)The Lord is exalted over all the nations,
his glory above the heavens.
(W) He sits enthroned on high,
He stoops down to look
on the heavens and the earth
(All) Let the name of the Lord be praised,
both now and forevermore.
(Psalm 113: 1,4-6, 2)
Confession
The Lord of our godliness, the hope of eternal life, we confess that we live in a confusing world. Oftentimes our eyes and minds are deceived by the strong winds of the world and then we become corrupted. Turn us around to find wisdom and rest in you. We have so many life tasks to do to make us grow into the maturity leading to peace and life. Help us to walk in your way in the world. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray.
Scripture Reading 1 Samuel 12: 12b -14, 24a;
The Lord your God was your king. 13 Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the Lord has set a king over you. 14 If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God—good! But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you.
Thoughts to share: Pictures of Leaders
When we read through the book of 1 Samuel, we cannot pass by three great persons- Samuel, Saul, and David. We saw their rises and falls as the top leaders in a critical period of Israelites’ history.
The problems that new Israel people in the Promised Land had were two folded. Internally, they struggled with their basic identity- who they were in God. So, they forgot the purpose of their residence there and how the purpose would be carried out. Externally, some strong powers pushed into them. Those powers included the local peoples and international neighboring nations. So, where would the future of the Israelites be? Was God still working among them? Was God still seeing them? How would their rather independent, scattered, loosely connected tribes survive in the complicated world? What would be their next step? Would they need a more structured and organized kingdom likes those foreign countries and a king as central leader for all tribes? How would the King in Heaven relate to the king on this earth?
In the book of 1 Samuel, we see God worked in two frontlines. One is that yes, the Israelites will have a kingdom. They will have a king. Samuel was selected to lead the transition task. He had been mentored by Eli since his childhood but eventually parted with Eli by the order of God. Then he obeyed the voice of the people with the guidance of God to ordinate the charismatic Saul. Saul had the strengths that the Israelites desired during that time. God empowered him with necessary leadership. His rising as the first king of the Israelites was smooth and dramatic. In Saul’s installation ceremony, Samuel gave a speech about what was in God’s mind. He pointed out a basic line for their future:”be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart.” People were happy. Saul felt great. A kingdom was born. A king was found. Samuel left unresolved ambiguity to God himself. God involved to supervise the establishment of the Israel kingdom.
Then Saul drifted away from God’s way. God directed Samuel to find David and anoint him. However, Saul would not give up for the power and position. Now, a newly called and anointed king David began a road of struggle and battle with Saul. The humble David was surely troubled for many, many years. However, in the process, he demonstrated how to suck with injustice and insult, how to deal with hatred, resentment, his own anger and the impulses of getting even. He demonstrated the wisdom of using power. He returned the evil with kindness and longsuffering. He carefully walked in the way of God even in the most difficult moments. Furthermore, he saw God’s authority on the top of an angry Saul. He was willing to respect Saul, to subject himself to God’s authority in his relations with Saul, and to wait upon for God’s timing. In contrast to David, Saul thirsted for power and favor. He was extremely jealous of David. He was disobedient God’s instructions.
Leaders are much needed in a critical and transition period. In the book of 1 Sameul, we see that God used many ways to raise leaders in his communities: mentoring, charismatic, long waiting and suffering. God listened to the needs of his communities. And God supervised all leaders. He continued to bring out his plans and his will patiently in an elusively complicated world scene. He continued to demand the basic identity and purpose of His people in the world. He continued to look into the characters of the chosen and ordained leaders. We can be enlightened that God still works to involve all business concerning the leaders among his people today.
Prayer suggestions
Are we puzzling at the leaders we encounter in our everyday life? What kind of the leaders are we? What guides our using the power in various positions and roles? What is the basic identity and purpose of us as his people? What counts the greatness of a leader? To whom are we serving ultimately?
Lord of our leaders, thank you for the good news. You are in our transitions. You are the greatest leader. You supervise our leaders. You use all types of personality as leaders. You use many ways to raise leaders. Give us the wisdom of using position and power in wherever we are placed. Help us have the focused vision on the character, identity, purpose of our roles in the world. Help us be mindful how we conduct ourselves in daily ordinary life contexts. Help us remember what counts greatness in your eyes. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
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