Thirty-One Days in 1 Samuel

By Allen J. Huth, President

The Ezra Project

Table of Contents

1 Samuel 1 – God Answers Hannah ................................................................................................ 1

1 Samuel 2 – Pastor’s Kids (PK) ....................................................................................................... 3

1 Samuel 3 – Hearing the Voice of God .......................................................................................... 5

1 Samuel 4 – The Ark is Captured! .................................................................................................. 7

1 Samuel 5 – The Negative Presence of God .................................................................................. 9

1 Samuel 6 – Chance or Sovereignty?........................................................................................... 11

1 Samuel 7 – Return to the Lord ................................................................................................... 13

1 Samuel 8 – We Want a King! ..................................................................................................... 15

1 Samuel 9 – Behind the Scenes ................................................................................................... 17

1 Samuel 10 – Another Normal Day ............................................................................................. 19

1 Samuel 11 – Rushed in the Spirit .............................................................................................. 21

1 Samuel 12 – Have I Wronged You? ........................................................................................... 23

1 Samuel 13 – You Have Acted Foolishly ..................................................................................... 25

1 Samuel 14 – Jonathan, Son of Saul ............................................................................................ 27

1 Samuel 15 – God Regrets........................................................................................................... 28

1 Samuel 16 – A Harmful Spirit from the Lord? ............................................................................ 30

1 Samuel 17 – David and Goliath .................................................................................................. 32

1 Samuel 18 – The Lord was with David ....................................................................................... 34

1 Samuel 19 – Spiritual Yo-Yo ....................................................................................................... 36

1 Samuel 20 – Friendship............................................................................................................. 38

1 Samuel 21 – White Lies.............................................................................................................. 40

1 Samuel 22 – Looking Over Your Shoulder ................................................................................. 42

1 Samuel 23 – Specific Prayer, Specific Answers .......................................................................... 44

1 Samuel 24 – David Spares Saul’s Life ......................................................................................... 46

1 Samuel 25 – Abigail................................................................................................................... 47

1 Samuel 26 – David Spares Saul Again ........................................................................................ 49

1 Samuel 27 – Escape ................................................................................................................... 51

1 Samuel 28 – Saul Calls Up the Dead .......................................................................................... 53

1 Samuel 29 – David gets Himself in a Mess ................................................................................. 55

1 Samuel 30 – From Bad to Worse ............................................................................................... 57

1 Samuel 31 – Saul and His Sons Die in Battle .............................................................................. 59

Copyrights

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations taken from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB), Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Foreword Day By Day Through The Bible is a daily devotion for serious Bible readers. It is a stimulating journey through all sixty-six books of the Bible, day by day. Comments on Bible passages, life applications, and prayers are based on the audio daily devotion, ADDBIBLE®, a free app that can be heard every day on your smartphone or tablet. The Scripture verses in the daily readings are drawn from the English Standard Version (ESV) unless otherwise noted. ADDBIBLE® was recorded using written records from thirty-five years of my personal Bible reading journals. I started reading the Bible at fifteen years old and started journaling my quiet times in 1983. I have been blessed “exceedingly abundantly” (Ephesians 3:20) by what God has revealed to me in His Word. To journal your journey through the Bible, order an Ezra Project journal at ezra.project.net. I count it an awesome privilege to share insights from personal journals, personal stories of how God’s Word has specifically impacted my life, and short prayers, all in 10-15 minutes per day. This daily devotion is one of a series of daily devotions on all sixty-six books of the Bible. Access them all by joining Club 365 or download them individually at ezraproject.net. May God richly bless you as you enjoy a portion of God’s Word each and every day. Abiding in the Word, Allen J. Huth President The Ezra Project ezraproject.net

1 SAMUEL 1 God Answers Hannah

Today, we begin 1 Samuel. When one of my sons decided to read the Bible as a teenager; he asked me where to start. I suggested this book, 1 Samuel; maybe a strange place to start Bible reading, but it is action-packed. There are stories of winners and losers. There are battles. It contains the story of David and Goliath. I thought it would be a great place for a teenager to start Bible reading. 1 Samuel is the story of Israel’s transition from a theocracy, a kingdom ruled by God, to a monarchy, a kingdom ruled by kings. It is the end of the era of the judges and the beginning of the era of Israel ruled like other nations, by kings. It is thirty-one chapters, probably written by Samuel, but quite probably not entirely. The book was written about 1000 B.C. I read 1 Samuel over fifteen times over the years. I selected three of my personal Bible reading journals to help us through 1 Samuel. One is 1983, the first Bible reading journal I ever recorded. The next one is in 2002. When I was selecting which journals to use, I did not realize this was the year, while reading 1 Samuel, my Mom was in the hospital and ended up dying. I wept as I was thinking about using this journal, but I am going to go through this with you because life and Bible reading go together. It may be risky, but let’s see how the Lord works with us as we walk that portion of my life together in 1 Samuel. The third journal is 2007. 1 Samuel is one of my favorite books in the Bible, so let’s get started. Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 1. COMMENTS Let’s start 1 Samuel with the first Bible reading journal I ever wrote, from 1983. I was only twenty-eight years old. You will see by the journal entries I share regarding 1 Samuel, journaling was pretty raw, pretty new. For example, when I first read 1 Samuel 1, all I wrote was, “Hannah, blessed of God, has Samuel.” Pretty insightful, right? Over the years, I got a lot better at Bible journaling. By the way, why do I journal? I journal because I want to write down what I am hearing from the Word of God in my daily time with Him. I believe if you journal, it will change the way you read the Bible. I strongly encourage you to consider reading or listening to your Bible and journaling what the Lord says to you. I have done so for over thirty-five years and those are the things I share in these devotions. In 2007, at fifty-two years old, my journaling was way different, as you will see. When I read 1 Samuel 1 I wrote, “Life and the Bible are about people: Elkanah, Hannah, Eli, Hophni, Phinehas, Samuel, and God. They are all introduced here in chapter 1. They will all have their own stories like me and those around me. We each have a story with or without God, for or against Him. Hannah makes a vow to God. God tests her and she gives back to God the greatest desire of her heart, a child. Do we receive the greatest desires of our heart from God then offer them back to Him?” What is your greatest desire? Have you asked for it from the Lord? If you got it, would you give it back to Him as a gift? That is worth pondering today.

I also mentioned when I flipped through the journals to pick which ones to use for 1 Samuel, I came across my journal in 2002, a very trying time for me, personally. I am going to share some of these entries so you can see Bible reading and life flow together. Out of my journal that year I wrote, “Mom has heart valve replacement surgery today at 72. We also had Shannon’s farewell family dinner last night (my daughter). She is scheduled to leave for North Carolina next Thursday. I don’t want her to go. Especially that far. She’s my little girl, though she’s 21.” That was my life circumstance surrounding the time I was reading 1 Samuel in 2002. I will move up a few more days in my journal where I wrote, “Mom had emergency surgery yesterday. The heart surgery caused a blood clot in her intestines. She had small and large intestine portions, fifteen inches, removed. It could have killed her. She’s in high-risk critical condition. Very sad to see her like this.” The next day my journal entry was, “Almost lost Mom yesterday. She had a rough morning but stabilized later in the day. The whole family is here.” The next day, I started reading 1 Samuel and wrote, “Still in Colorado Springs (where my mom lived), at Penrose (the hospital she was in). Stayed all night in her room and in the waiting area with other members of my family. Uneventful evening. Now we try to get through another day.” As I read 1 Samuel 1 that day, I wrote, “God is sovereign. People pray and He chooses to answer as He wants. Hannah prays, probably over and over, and this time God answers with Samuel.” In my journal that day, I just wrote, “Prayer. Mom.” DIGGING DEEPER In this first chapter, “. . . Hannah answered, ‘. . . I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord’” (v. 15). Do you need to pour out your soul before the Lord over something in your life? If so, think about it right now as I pray. PRAYER Father, we thank you for 1 Samuel. We thank You for the introduction of these folks we are going to be reading about. And we pray Lord, as Hannah prayed, earnestly for the things on our hearts. By Your grace, You decided to answer Hannah. Might You answer our prayers as well. Thank You, Jesus, for listening to our prayers. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 2 Pastor’s Kids (PK)

In 1 Samuel 1, Hannah, who had been barren, poured her heart out to the Lord, He granted her petition, and she gave birth to Samuel. As she promised, she lent him to the Lord. In other words, she left her baby boy with Eli, the priest, to serve the Lord. We pick up the story in 1 Samuel 2. Are you more like Hannah, Samuel, or the sons of Eli, the priest? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 2. COMMENTS In 1983, I wrote, “The Lord makes poor and rich. He brings low. He also exalts. Samuel grows in the Lord and in His service. Eli’s unfaithful sons to be punished by God.” In 2007, I wrote, “A sad chapter. Hannah praises God for Samuel, but Eli’s sons ‘. . . were worthless men. They did not know the Lord’ (v. 12, NASB). Yet, they were priests under their father. They made a mockery of sacrifices to God and took meat for personal pleasure. Eli wouldn’t discipline his own kids, so God intervenes. Hannah, who gave up Samuel to serve God, is abundantly blessed with three sons and two daughters. And Samuel grows before the Lord. Hannah is blessed by honoring and obeying God. Eli’s sons are cursed for dishonoring and disobeying God.” We each have those choices. We can be a Hannah, or we can be one of Eli’s sons. We can choose to honor God, obey God, and receive His blessings. Or we can choose to be obstinate, disobey God, make a mockery of Him, and suffer because of it. And then there is Samuel, “Now the boy Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and also with man” (v. 26). DIGGING DEEPER So, how ya doing? Are you a Samuel? Are you continuing “. . . to grow both in stature and favor with the Lord, and also with man” (v. 26)? I hope reading or listening to the Bible helps you come closer to the Lord, to grow in Him, with Him, and with your fellow man. We are also going to pick up the story of Mom. As I read 1 Samuel 2, I wrote in my journal, “I went home to sleep, to be with Terry and Shannon. Mom is the same. I will go back to Colorado Springs this afternoon.” I continued, “Hannah prayed earnestly for a child, God answers, and she dedicates the child to full-time service for the Lord. She gave back the very gift she prayed for. Samuel stayed in the temple. Hannah may have seen him once a year when she and her husband came to the temple for that yearly sacrifice.” Then I wrote, “Mom. ‘The Lord kills and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and brings up’ (v. 6, NKJV). In Hannah’s prayer, she prayed, ‘There is none holy like the Lord: for there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God’ (v. 2). ‘The Lord makes poor and makes rich. He brings low and He exalts’” (v. 7).

PRAYER Father, we honor You today as our rock. And we thank You that You do make poor and You make rich, You bring low, and You exalt. Our prayer is You would exalt us, You would raise us up like Hannah and like Samuel to serve You. We pray we would not be like the sons of Eli, worthless men that did not know the Lord, but we will be like Samuel, continuing to grow in You and also in the eyes of men. In Your name, we pray. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 3 Hearing the Voice of God

In 1 Samuel 3, Samuel hears the voice of God, but he does not recognize it. Would you recognize the voice of God if He spoke to you? Have you ever heard the voice of God? Can you describe it? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 3. COMMENTS In the first journal in 1983, I made a very simple statement, “Samuel has a vision from God about Eli. God held Eli accountable for the disobedience of his sons.” In 2007, I had a different take on this passage (NASB), “Wow. God summons a boy, not the priest. ‘. . . And the word from the Lord was rare in those days . . .’ (v. 1) and God breaks the silence, not to Eli the priest, but to Samuel, a youth. Samuel was sleeping in the temple of the Lord near the Ark of the Covenant and the Lord called Samuel. Sometimes it’s hard to discern the voice of God. Samuel thought it was Eli. We may confuse the voice of God for the voice of men. Verse 10 says, ‘. . . “Speak, for your servant is listening.”’ Speak again, in our day, Lord.” That was my journal entry in 2007. DIGGING DEEPER Have you ever heard from the Lord? Verse 7 says, “Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.” He was hearing the voice of God but he did not know. He thought it was Eli. How about you? Have you ever heard the voice of God? Did you recognize it? I can tell you, in my own personal experience, I have heard the voice of God. I cannot tell you what it sounds like, I cannot tell you it was an auditory voice, but there is a sense in your spirit when you hear the voice of God. I asked many friends, “Have you ever heard from God?” They say, “Yes.” I ask them to explain it and they have just as much difficulty trying to explain it as I do, but they know they heard from the Lord. Samuel was no different, but he certainly heard from the Lord. I hope our response will be like Samuel’s, “Speak, for your servant is listening” (v. 10, NASB). And, whatever He tells us, we hope we have a response similar to Eli the priest when he said, “. . . ‘It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him’” (v 18). Samuel’s first message from the Lord was pretty tough. And he had to share it with Eli, a pretty tough task for a young boy. I hope we would have the same kind of courage, to hear from the Lord, then allow Him to do whatever He wants through us because it is from the Lord. Let’s pick up the story about Mom. I wrote in my journal back in 2002, “Did the night shift at the hospital (in Colorado Springs) last night again. It will probably be the last. Doctor reports were about the same again today, ‘She’s holding her own.’ Not much progress, not much regress. So my brother and his wife booked their flight home to Texas. I told Terry and Shannon to go on to North Carolina where Shannon was going to go relocate.

And everybody abandoned the hospital this day, except me.” I’m writing this in Mom’s Intensive Care room at about 10:30 in the morning. “I, too, will be headed for Denver, but it’s very strange that our vigil has been 24/7 and if I leave, no one is here.” I read 1 Samuel 3 that morning from a Gideon Bible (NASB) in Mom’s room. I wrote, “‘And the word of the Lord was rare in those days’ (v. 1). There was no widespread revelation.” Then, “‘It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him’ (v. 18). So be it with Mom.” PRAYER Lord, I pray today we perk up our ears, we listen for Your voice. It may be a small still voice, and we pray we would discern that it is Your voice. And we pray we would have ears to hear like Samuel when the voice of the Lord said to him, “. . . ‘Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle’” (v. 11). Make our ears tingle with Your voice today. In the name of the Lord, we pray. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 4 The Ark is Captured!

In 1 Samuel 4, the Ark of the Covenant, representing the presence of God Himself, is captured by the Philistines. Have you ever lost the presence of God in your life? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 4. COMMENTS In 1983, I wrote a simple statement once again, “Eli’s sons killed by Philistines, the Ark of the Covenant is taken from them by Philistines, Eli falls over dead after news.” My journal entries as a twenty-eight year-old were pretty straightforward and simple, weren’t they? In 2007, after reading 1 Samuel 4, I wrote, “Crying out to God in crisis. We stray from God, then when a crisis comes, we want His help! He doesn’t show up and things get worse, so now we blame Him. God does not play on our terms. He plays on His. We need to get on His page and stay there, not live the way we want, and then in crisis expect Him to bail us out.” In 2002, I wrote, “God is right all the time. Eli’s sons defaced God, His temple, and His laws. They would be punished, as well as their father, who permitted these things. Samuel’s prophecy comes true, as Hophni and Phinehas died in battle, and Eli, hearing the news, falls over dead as well. God does not need to tolerate sinful behavior.” Is that part of the personality of God you know? Most of us are New Testament Christians. We love the love of God, the forgiveness of God, the mercy of God. But my Bible says God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. This is part of His personality as well. DIGGING DEEPER Let’s go back to chapter 3, when the Lord wakes Samuel up and speaks to him, “And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them” (v. 13). As we spend time in the Scriptures, we see God is not a God of surprises. He tells us what He is going to do and He does it. He is a God who keeps His prophecies and His promises. To get a better sense of the Ark of the Covenant, let’s look at a footnote in my English Standard Version Study Bible, “The ark of the covenant had been “in the temple of the Lord” in Shiloh. . . Moses was commanded by the Lord to put the tablets of the covenant. . . into the ark. The ark was the visible sign of the holy presence of the Lord. But it was more than just a sign, for the ark was also the focal point of God’s actual presence among his people” (p.498). We can see why in the losing battle they wanted to have the presence of the Lord with them, and when they brought the ark into the camp they shouted and got all excited because the presence of the Lord was now with them. Yet the Philistines captured the Ark of the Covenant. In verse 18 we are reminded, “As soon as he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell over backward . . .”. And the daughter-in-law screamed, “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured . . .” (v. 22).

We are going to pick up the story of the Ark of the Covenant in the hands of the Philistines in the next couple chapters. But let’s get back to the story of Mom. On the day I read chapter 4, I wrote in my journal, “Shannon and Terry left a few minutes ago for North Carolina. I am broken-hearted. I cried over Shannon, my little girl, leaving, moving away. I don’t want her to go. I gave her a blessing. She can leave me, but she cannot leave Your presence. Even against her will, she will serve You, oh God.” And then, my wife, “Terry’s now gone,” because she was going with Shannon. “My wife, my support, my comfort, my love at such a time with my mom teetering between life and death and my daughter moving away, my wife is also gone. I only have three women in my life and I have great pain over all of them right now.” In my journal, I also write my prayers, and I wrote that day, “Help my Mom. I don’t know whether she should live or die, but You do. Just, please, don’t leave her lying in that bed in-between. And bless Shannon. Keep her in the palm of Your mighty hand all the days of her life. Bless Terry as she helps Shannon’s transition.” Sometimes life deals us a painful hand. This chapter is pretty painful. So were the circumstances of my life when I read it years ago. If you are in pain over some circumstance in your life right now, may I lift you up in prayer? PRAYER Father we pray, we pray for the painful circumstances that come in our lives and we ask You to get us out of it. Help us, Lord. Israel is losing on the battlefield. Eli and his sons are now dead. My mom was teetering between life and death. My daughter and my wife were on the road to North Carolina. Life is painful, but You are a God of promises. So keep Your promise to us, keep us in the palm of Your hand. Comfort us in our pain. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 5 The Negative Presence of God

In 1 Samuel 5, the Ark of the Covenant was moved to various cities of the Philistines. The presence of God was not a positive experience for any of them. Do you have a healthy fear of God? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 5. COMMENTS In that first journal in 1983, I had a one-liner for this chapter, “Philistines plagued by having ark.” No kidding! Let’s look back at this chapter to see what really happened. The Philistines captured the ark from the Israelites and set it up in the house of their god Dagon. We can see Dagon is no match for the God of Israel. Looking at some of these verses, Dagon had fallen face downward. So they took Dagon and put him back up on his place. It is humorous to think this is their god and they have to restore him to his “throne.” They put him back in his place. What happened the next day? Dagon had fallen face downward again and this time the head of Dagon and both his hands were lying cut off. Not only is Dagon having a little trouble with the presence of the Ark of the Covenant, but the people are terrified, afflicted with tumors. So they gathered the smart people together and they say, “Get this thing out of here!” Where should they send it? They decide to send it to another Philistine city. How thoughtful. How nice of them to send their problem to someone else. The people of the Philistine city of Gath get the Ark of the Covenant and, “. . . the hand of the Lord was against the city, causing a very great panic, and… tumors broke out . . .” there too (v. 9). The people of Gath had enough so they sent it to Ekron, another Philistine city. By then, the message was getting around about the Ark of the Covenant. When those people heard it was coming their way, they said, “. . . ‘They have brought around to us the ark of the God of Israel to kill us and our people’” (v. 10). The men there that did not die were also struck with tumors, so they cried out to heaven, too. After three Philistine cities experienced the presence of God through the Ark of the Covenant, they do not want anything to do with it; they want it sent back to where it came from. “Get it out of here! Get it back to Israel!” In my journal in 2007 I wrote, “The Philistines have the Ark of the Covenant. They think it’s like all their other gods, but it is different. In this chapter, God’s presence is not positive. Everywhere they move the ark, tumors broke out among the people. People died because of God’s presence. We forget this side of God, a God of judgment and punishment.” In 2002, I wrote, “The presence of God. The Ark of the Covenant with God’s people is a powerful, positive presence. With enemies of God, it is a scary, destructive presence. If we know God, His presence is desirable, peaceful. Those that do not know God, He is scary and often they fear Him.”

DIGGING DEEPER When you think about being in the presence of God, what do you think? Do you have a spirit of fear or do you have a spirit of peace and comfort? I have a reverential fear for God, He is not my buddy, He is God Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Author and the Finisher of my faith. I have a healthy respect for God. When you think about being in God’s presence, it is probably based on your relationship with Him, whether you fear it or you favor it. These Philistines had never experienced the God of Israel, the one true God. When they did, they did not want to have anything to do with Him because they did not know Him. How well do you know your God? Now for the update on Mom. On this day in 2002, I wrote, “Mom’s the same. Shannon and Terry are in St. Louis.” Remember, they are on their way to relocate Shannon in North Carolina. “I’m in Colorado Springs with Dad, my sister and some of her family, my brother and his wife. It’s a painful time with the three most important women in my life, Mom, wife, daughter.” As a recap, Mom is lying in a hospital bed in Colorado Springs. My twenty-one-year-old daughter was relocating to North Carolina, and my wife Terry was taking her there to help her in the transition. And, I come from a big family of seven kids, so some of us had left and some of us remained there in intensive care with Mom. PRAYER Father, we bow before You today. We think about our relationship with You. Do we fear You or do we favor You? Do we love You, or do we have a scary feeling about You? Improve my thoughts about You by improving my relationship with You. I pray these things, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 6 Chance or Sovereignty?

In 1 Samuel 6, the Philistines test God to see if He is orchestrating their circumstances. Do you wonder if things you experience are by chance, or by the sovereign will of God? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 6. COMMENTS In 1983, in the first journal I ever recorded, I was very brief, pretty sparse, on chapter 6, as in previous days. I had a one-liner again on this chapter, “Return to Israel. Cows pulling cart head straight for Israel, men of Israel look into ark and die.” I guess that is the Reader’s Digest version of that chapter, isn’t it? On to my journal in 2007, where I flushed out this chapter a little bit more. I wrote, “Chance or sovereignty? The Philistines took two cows who had just given birth and pointed them toward Israel. The cows’ natural instinct would be to go in the direction of their newborn calves. The Philistines wanted to know if God had caused them these plagues or was it just by chance. The cows, according to verse 12, took the straight way to Israel and did not turn aside to the right or the left.” I continued to write, “God used cows to reveal Himself to the Philistines, but it still wasn’t good enough for them to turn away from their false gods and worship Him.” Let’s look at what the Philistines are really doing here. They are testing to find out what has really happened. Has this happened from God or is it just by chance? Verses 8-9 say, “. . . send it off and let it go its way and watch. If it goes up on the way to its own land, to Beth-shemesh, then it is he who has done us this great harm, but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that struck us; it happened to us by coincidence.” Do you think things happen in your life by chance, or coincidence, or are they sovereign acts of God Almighty? I supposed most of us think a lot of things that happen in our lives just happen. They just happen by chance or they just happen by coincidence. Is that really what happened here with the Philistines? God knows what is in the hearts of the Philistines, so He is going to give them an illustration. It would be the natural instinct of cows who just had calves to turn to go back to where their calves are. That was the test the Philistines are doing here. What do the cows do? Verse 12 says, “And the cows went straight in the direction of Beth-shemesh along one highway, lowing as they went. They turned neither to the right nor to the left . . .”. The Philistines are watching this, and, yet, remember what I wrote in my journal, “God uses cows to reveal Himself to the Philistines, but it still wasn’t good enough for them to turn away from their false gods and worship Him.” We see this today. People test God. They want to see if something happening in their lives is really from the Lord. Often He shows us, yes it is, but it is still not enough to turn us back to Him. Look at your life. Are the things happening to you by chance, coincidence, or by the sovereign will of God? In 2002, I wrote in my journal after reading 1 Samuel 6, “Looking into God’s presence or obeying God’s Word. The Jews were excited about the Ark of the Lord. They probably had

never seen it. But they disobeyed God’s laws, and either seventy or fifty thousand–depending on which translation you are reading–are slain. The Philistines understood God’s presence and suffered for it. They got the Ark out of their possession. In doing so, God gave them testimony, as well. He is God. There is no other.” DIGGING DEEPER As we read or listen to God’s Word, I hope our tendency is to obey the things we see or hear. I am not living under the circumstances; I am living under the sovereignty of God. How about you? I have an interesting journal entry about Mom on this day. “Mom is improving ever so slightly, but she is still with us. Maybe God did give me that verse last Monday, 1 Samuel 20:2, ‘By no means! You shall not die! . . .’ (NKJV). I read that and I applied it to her, but I did not have the faith or boldness to share it. Later in the week, I shared it with one of my nephews and his wife and now it’s coming to pass. So Mom is improving ever so slightly, and Terry and Shannon, well, they’re in St. Louis today.” As you might remember, they are on their way to Charlotte, North Carolina, for Shannon’s relocation. In the direct circumstances I was in with Mom laying in intensive care, I was still reading my Bible each and every day, and I had read that verse about, “. . . You shall not die! . . .” (1 Samuel 20:2, NKJV). I did not know whether it applied to her or not. Was God speaking to me through his Word, or wasn’t He? I did not know, but as she began to improve, I started to think maybe that verse was a little bit of a prophecy about Mom. Well, we are going to see. As we close out 1 Samuel 6, let’s pray. PRAYER Lord, we take a moment to pause in our lives. Do we see our lives by chance or by circumstances or coincidences? Or do we see a sovereign God working in our lives? These Philistines tested You and You proved Yourself faithful. You gave a great testimony to them, that You were in control of the circumstances and You were the one directing the problems they were experiencing. You showed them, and yet they still did not believe You. Help us Lord, as we see You work in our lives, that we believe in the things we see and give the glory to You. In the name of the Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 7 Return to the Lord

In 1 Samuel 7, Samuel judges Israel. He pleads with them to come back to God. What do you need to set aside to come closer to God? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 7.

COMMENTS Again today we look at a short summary of my journal in 1983, the first journal I ever wrote, “Samuel assumes leadership as judge, intercedes with prayer for Israel, honors God by building altars.” There was some value in the brevity of a twenty-eight-year-old! In 2007, at fifty-two-years-old, I had a lot more to say, “Come back. Come back.” Next, I quoted verse 7:3 “. . . ‘If you return to the Lord with all your heart, remove the foreign gods . . . from among you and direct your hearts to the Lord and serve Him alone; and He will deliver you from the hand of the Philistines’” (NASB). So they did. Obedience, not the Ark of the Covenant, brought blessings back to Israel. Elimination of idolatry and reinstituting sacrifices to God brought God’s help back to Israel. One man made a difference, Samuel.” We had not heard anything from Samuel since chapter four. Twenty years have gone by between then and now. Samuel gives three commands to Israel in verses 3-4, “And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, ‘If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the Lord and serve him only . . .’”. The three commands from Samuel: return the Lord, put away idol worship, direct your heart to the Lord and serve Him only. For once, the Israelites listened to Samuel. They listened to the Lord. Samuel gathers them all up together and prays for them in verse 9, “. . . And Samuel cried out to the Lord for Israel, and the Lord answered him.” I do not know what is facing you today in your life, but maybe you need to hear those directives. One, turn away from idolatry, turn away from the things in your life keeping you from the Lord. Secondly, direct your heart to the Lord. And thirdly, serve Him and Him alone. Sometime today, go to prayer. Pray to the Lord about those things. As you cry out to the Lord, just like in this chapter, the Lord will hear you and answer you. My journal entry in 2002 goes along with this very thought. I wrote, “Return to the Lord with all your hearts. And we need to do this today. We have many distractions from God. But when we turn back to God, He defeats our enemies. He confuses the Philistines and overcomes them, restoring all the land back to Israel in Samuel’s day.” DIGGING DEEPER In our lives today, this is a plea, a plea to come back to the Lord. Set aside those distractions, those idols, that keep us away from God. When we do these things, God gets back in our lives. Look what happened in this chapter. As Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to attack Israel, but the Lord thundered with a mighty sound against the Philistines and threw them into confusion, and they were routed before Israel. The hand of the Lord was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. The cities the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel.

1 Samuel 7 is a plea to Israel and a plea to us, to set aside those idols keeping us from God. Turn your heart back to the Lord, and commit to serve Him and Him alone. Now for my personal update in the situation with Mom, I just had a one-line journal entry that year, “Shannon is in Charlotte, Mom is slightly better.” So my daughter and my wife arrived in Charlotte, North Carolina, to reposition Shannon into a new life there, and Mom still lies in intensive care in the hospital. As we turn to prayer, let’s think about the lessons in this chapter. PRAYER Father, help us set aside those things keeping us from You. Turn our hearts back to You completely as we commit to serve You, and You alone. We bathe these commitments in prayer, like Samuel did, and then watch You miraculously work as You did in this chapter, as you defeated the Philistines. Israel did not defeat the Philistines, You did. And You can help us in our own lives. Restore some of the things we may have lost because we have been away from You. Return us, oh Lord, to You. Bless us once again. In the name of the Lord, we pray. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 8 We Want a King!

In 1 Samuel 8, Israel asks for a king. Was it because of Samuel’s corrupt sons? As parents, did your kids turn out the way you thought? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 8.

COMMENTS In 1983, I wrote, “People ask Samuel for a king because Samuel’s sons were corrupt leaders. They wanted to be like other nations. They wanted more distance from God’s direct leadership. The whole concept of Israel asking for a king is a major transition in the nation of Israel.” It appears they want a king because of Samuel’s corrupt sons, but that is not really the case. The real reason is recorded in verses 7-9:

And the Lord said to Samuel, “Obey the voice of the people in all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them. According to all the deeds that they have done, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt even to this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are also doing to you. Now then, obey their voice; only you shall solemnly warn them and show them the ways of the king who shall reign over them.”

It is not really about Samuel’s sons. It is about a nation who over and over and over has rejected the Lord and finally now wants human leadership, not Godly leadership. In 2007, I wrote something different, “Samuel’s sons, Joel and Abijah, ‘. . . did not walk in his ways, but turned aside . . .’ like Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phinehas. This is the hard part of my life. I did all I could to raise my children to serve the Lord, the God of their father. Two of three, so far, have decided not to and it breaks my heart like it broke the heart of Eli and Samuel. My kids are not evil or corrupt, just spiritually misdirected. Lord, bring them back to the God of their father.” That is what I wrote, as I wrote a prayer in my journal, “Crying out for my kids. Bring them back. Honor the prayers of their parents. Please, oh God.” For many parents reading this devotion today you may be thinking, “Yes, that is what happened to me. I did all I could to raise my kids right in a Christian home, and it didn’t turn out for me well, either.” Part of these devotions are sharing the reality of life and that is what happened to us. We read the Bible to our kids every night. We took them to church. We thought we raised them as well as we could in the Lord. Yet, all of us make our own choices. I could relate to Eli and his sons and to Samuel and his sons, as they cried out for their kids. We parents cry out for our kids, don’t we? DIGGING DEEPER Let’s take a moment to contemplate this lesson today from 1 Samuel 8. For those of us who have children who are misdirected spiritually, we are going to pray. For those of us who have been blessed with our kids following the Lord, hopefully, you will take a moment to thank God for that wonderful opportunity you have seen in your lives.

Lord, we do lift up children of Christian parents today. It does not always turn out the way we think, the way we want, but it is not over. Our kids still can return to You just like we read about Israel yesterday in 1 Samuel 7. We lift up all the children of Christian parents who are not walking with the Lord or not walking in a way that seems like following in their “father’s footsteps.” We ask You, Lord, to intervene, to touch the hearts of our children and bring them back to You. Amen. As we think about our kids, I look back at my journal entry in 2002. When I read this passage I wrote, “We want to be like others. God wants us to be like Him. He calls us to be holy, a royal priesthood, separated from the world, sons of a king, servants of the Most High, a separated walk, give up self and follow Him. But we want to be like others. He wants us to be like Him.” I guess God had a little bit of trouble with His kids, too, the family of Israel. We want our kids to be like us, we want our kids to be like God. Father, hear our prayer. Help us as we pray and please bring our kids back to You. Back to the story about Mom for a minute. I have a surprising entry on this day in my journal in 2002, “Dad admitted to Emergency Room at Penrose yesterday. Both parents are in the hospital. Going down tonight.” So my Mom was in the hospital on one floor and my father was admitted on another floor. I will pick up the story in the next few days to find out what happened to Mom, and now Dad. PRAYER We already prayed for our kids today, so Father we just ask again, touch our children, draw them close to You. Draw them back into relationship with You, that You may receive the glory and the honor as You do. In Jesus’ name, we do pray, because we really want this in our heart of hearts. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 9 Behind the Scenes

In 1 Samuel 9, Saul is looking for donkeys and Samuel is looking for a King. Do these scenes have anything to do with each other? Is God working behind the scenes of your life? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 9.

COMMENTS In 1983, in that first journal, I wrote one of those great one-liners again on this chapter, “Saul appears to Samuel as prophesied by God to Samuel.” That was referring to verse 15-16, “Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed to Samuel: ‘Tomorrow about this time I will send to you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel.’” Awesome! Look how specific God speaks to Samuel. “Tomorrow . . .”, so He gives him the time, “. . . I will send you a man from . . .”, He gives him the tribe, “. . . the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him to be prince over my people Israel . . .”. Samuel knows exactly what is going to happen; but if there was any confusion, look at verse 17, “When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, ‘Here is the man of whom I spoke to you! . . .’” There is much clarity when we hear the voice of God. This is one of my favorite stories in Scripture. As I flip to my journal in 2007, I wrote it that way, “I love the stories in Scripture. Here Saul is innocently introduced. The son of Kish out looking for lost donkeys. God, once again, behind the scenes is orchestrating the events that lead Saul and Samuel to meet. Saul was looking for lost donkeys; Samuel is looking for a King of Israel. Thanks for being behind the scenes of my own life.” According to the Scriptures, Saul, the son of Kish, was “. . . a handsome young man. There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than he. From his shoulders upward he was taller than any of the people” (v. 2). Let’s look at the scene here. Here is a handsome, tall guy walking around looking for lost donkeys. He has no idea what is coming next in his life. He has no idea he is chosen by God as the first king of Israel. He is led directly by God right into the path of Samuel the Prophet. God already told Samuel He is going to reveal this king to him the next day. There is no question when he sees Saul, this tall, handsome guy is the guy he is looking for. Does God only orchestrate someone’s life like Saul? Or does He also work behind the scenes in your life? What is going on in your life right now? Are you wandering around like Saul looking for lost donkeys, maybe thinking your life does not really have a whole lot of purpose? Watch out, you never know what God has right around the corner. In 2002 I wrote, “He answers the cry of the people apparently against His own will. He did not want Israel to have a king, but they wanted one. So He answers their prayers and He anoints a king. I suppose it so in our lives. Sometimes God answers our prayers even when they are not in our best interest. We should be careful to seek His will, not ask Him to rubberstamp our own plans.”

This too, is such an important point of this story. Remember, God really did not want Israel to have a king. They wanted one so they could be like other people. He knew that was a rejection of Himself as their king, as their leader, but He grants the request anyway. I relate this passage directly to the elections in the United States. Most Christians think that every President, every leader, has been anointed by God. I agree no one can serve in a leadership position in a nation in the world without God’s approval. But just because you get elected does not mean you are God’s person for the job. Again, God did not want Israel to even have a king, but He gave in to their own desires. He gives them a king, and we will see in these next few chapters how that works out for the nation of Israel. Just because someone is President of our country does not mean that is what God wanted. Sometimes He just gives us what we want, just like in this chapter. Now we turn to my journal entry on this day concerning the things going on with my parents. In 2002, I wrote, “I was here last night,” which means I was in Colorado Springs. We live in the Denver area. I was in Colorado Springs on this day. “Here last night and this morning to see Mom and Dad in the hospital. And we are to attend a doctor briefing at 9 a.m. today on Mom.” So, once again, I am in the Intensive Care Unit reading the Bible placed by the Gideons in that hospital, for my quiet time. DIGGING DEEPER Let’s revisit a couple of takeaways from 1 Samuel 9. First, like in Saul’s life, God can be orchestrating the events of your own life this very moment. Look forward to what God might have next for you. Secondly, let’s be careful about what we think about leaders of our nations and whether they are of God or not of God. Sometimes God just gives us what we want, even if it is not what He wants. PRAYER Father, as we conclude our study in 1 Samuel 9, we thank You that You can be orchestrating the events in our lives behind the scenes. We may not even know what You are doing, but You are at work in our hearts and in our lives. Our prayer is like Samuel’s as he concludes this chapter when he said, “. . . that I may make known to you the word of God.” That is what we want in our lives, Lord. We want You to make known to us Your Word in our lives. Reveal Yourself to us. Reveal Your purpose for us. We ask it humbly, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 10 Another Normal Day

Yesterday we left Samuel and Saul ready to have a private conversation. In 1 Samuel 10 the amazing conversation takes place. It was just another day for Saul, until then. Are you having a normal day? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 10. COMMENTS This is it! The moment Israel has waited for. They are finally going to get a king. In 1983, I summarized this chapter very succinctly, “God chooses Saul via Samuel. Saul, the Spirit of the Lord shall come upon you and you will be ‘. . . changed into another man’” (v. 6, NASB). In 2007 (NASB), I wrote, “Saul is anointed King of Israel. Surely he is in shock like we would be if someone said we were going to be President of the United States. Samuel gives him specific signs to verify this anointing and they all come to pass. Samuel also said, ‘Then the Spirit of the Lord will come upon you mightily, and you shall prophesy with them and be changed into another man,’” (v. 6). Then I quote verse 9, “Then it happened when he turned his back to leave Samuel, God changed his heart . . .”. And on to verse 10, “. . . the Spirit of God came upon him mightily . . .”. When God calls us, He equips. I continued, “Saul’s scared to death! He knew Samuel came to anoint him king, but he is hiding himself in the baggage. Lord, help me not to hide from Your calling in my life. Thanks for equipping me to serve and changing me into another man.” The power lesson in this chapter is when God calls, He is going to equip you. The Spirit of the Lord rushes upon Saul. He is turned into another man. There is the great guarantee that God is with you. Wow, it cannot get any better than that. When he turns his back to leave Samuel, God gives him another heart. The very evidence of what happened comes to him as he goes to Gibeah. Verse 10 says, “. . . and the Spirit of God rushed upon him, and he prophesied among them.” Saul sees it, he feels what is happening to him. So does everyone else around him. They say, “. . . ‘What has come over the son of Kish? . . .’” (v. 11). Yet, when Saul meets up with his uncle and his uncle asks him about his discussion with Samuel, he gives him a half-truth. He does tell him that Samuel told him about the donkeys and they had been found, but he does not tell him the rest of the story. Maybe he is overwhelmed. Maybe he does not believe it. Maybe he does not understand it. Maybe he just cannot handle it. We can see his real response later on in this chapter when Samuel is trying to find him to anoint him king. Where is he? Hiding. He is hiding in the baggage. Maybe it would be the same for us if God called us to such an important task. Maybe we would feel the same way, inadequate, not sure. Maybe he felt like Moses. Remember when God called Moses to deliver Israel from Egypt? He said he could not do it, either. Maybe Saul felt the same way here. Yet, he is God’s chosen man. “. . . And all the people shouted, ‘Long live the king!’” (v. 24), as they see Saul become the first King of Israel. As I flip back to my journal in 2002, after reading 1 Samuel 10, I wrote, “Chosen. God again demonstrates sovereignty. He and He alone chooses, selects, men to do His

bidding. He had a plan for Saul. He had a plan for Samuel. And Israel. He turned Saul into another man after the Spirit of the Lord came upon him. God gave Saul another heart. Wow, Lord, make me another man. Give me another heart for you.” DIGGING DEEPER Has the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon you? Have you become another man or another woman? Has the Holy Spirit changed your heart? Does God Almighty have something exciting for you to do? Don’t hide in the baggage. Be confident God is in all of it. He has something for you to do and He will equip you to do it. My journal entry about Mom and the situation in Colorado Springs that day was, “A good meeting with doctors on Mom yesterday. She is stable now. Thank you, Jesus. Dad has significant heart problems, too. They cannot be alone anymore.” Then I wrote, “One of my brothers was thinking about moving back to Colorado Springs to care for them until they die.” PRAYER Lord, let us not forget the scene causing Saul to become king is the people’s rejection of You in their lives. Father, let it not be so in our lives that we would rather have someone else rule over us than You. You want to be our king. You want to be our leader. Father, help us submit to Your authority. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 11 Rushed in the Spirit

In 1 Samuel 11, King Saul fights his first battle. The Spirit of the Lord rushes upon him. Has the Spirit of God ever rushed upon you? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 11. COMMENTS In 1983, I had one of those great one-liners again, “Saul delivers Israel from Ammonites.” Remember I was twenty-eight-years-old back in 1983, so life was more simple to me at the time. I also wrote in my journal the amount of time my quiet time was and I am looking at some of the notes I wrote there. On the day I read 1 Samuel 11, it was five minutes, the next day was fifteen, the day before was ten, the next day was thirty, and the next day was twenty. I was actually writing the amount of time I was spending with the Lord in my journal. I did not do much better in 2002, even though I was a whopping forty-seven-years-old. I had another one-liner after reading this chapter, “Anger directed at sin or Satan is productive.” I was referring to verse 6, “And the Spirit of God rushed upon Saul when he heard these words, and his anger was greatly kindled.” When Saul heard the news, what happened? His anger was kindled and at the same time, the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him. So anger directed at sin or Satan can, in fact, be productive. Saul sends messengers throughout Israel to gather the troops to fight against the Ammonites. And they do. They strike down the Ammonites. After that demonstration of leadership by Saul, they all gather at his hometown of Gilgal and make him king. In 2007, I wrote, “‘Then the Spirit of God came upon Saul mightily . . .’ (v. 6, NASB). An interesting way to say it: mightily, came upon. The phrase is used also for Othniel in Judges 3:10, Gideon in Judges 6:34, Jephthah in Judges 11:29, Samson in Judges 13:25, and David in 1 Samuel 16:13.” Then I wrote, “I want the Spirit of God, too. I want it to come upon Allen mightily so I can accomplish great things for God like those listed above.” DIGGING DEEPER Has the Spirit of God come upon you mightily? Have you ever longed to do something good, or even great, for God? The fact of the matter is, none of these people the Spirit of God came upon mightily, sought it or expected it. None of them longed for it, yet God chooses to do His will through mere men. I realize I can do nothing apart from the Lord, and yet God has placed me in a position of leadership both in the Ezra Project and in The Gideons International. That is what I mean by longing to have the Spirit of God come upon me mightily, because I know I cannot do one thing without Him. I continued in my journal with the prayer I made after reading 1 Samuel 11, “Father, Son, Spirit of God, for the Spirit of God to come upon me mightily, what would I be like? What would be different? Maybe it already has. Maybe it comes and goes and comes back.” As we track Saul through 1 Samuel we are going to see the Spirit of the Lord comes, the Spirit of the Lord goes, and the Spirit of the Lord comes back. I am always thankful when

I sense the Spirit of the Lord upon me, and very humbled to think God uses me at all to further His kingdom. Saul, Othniel, Gideon, Jephthah, Samson, and David were all mere men just like you and me. God alone raises up men to do His bidding and comes upon them with great power from the Holy Spirit. Does He have something for you to do? Would the Spirit of God come rushing upon you so you can do something good for God today? Back to the story of Mom on this day. I did not have any entry in my journal in 2002 about her, only that Shannon got a job in Charlotte. She is happy and sad. I wrote, “So am I.” So my little girl went off on an adventure to start a new life in Charlotte, North Carolina, and got a job. Praise the Lord. PRAYER Lord, we read the term holy anger and there may be something to it. We pray our anger could always be in check, unless You stir that anger up to do something You want done. Anger against the enemy, or against Satan himself, can be something You want to use to further Your kingdom. Lord, help us to understand the feelings we have, and when we are angry to make sure it is directed not at people, but at the enemy, Satan himself. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 12 Have I Wronged You?

In 1 Samuel 12 Samuel gives his farewell address. He asks, “Have I wronged you in anyway?” Have you wronged anyone on your journey through life? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 12. COMMENTS This chapter gives us some great lessons to live our lives by. As we look at Samuel, as he recounts his life before the people, he simply asks, “Did I do anything wrong? Did I defraud any of you? If I have, I will restore it.” And yet, no one, no one finds any fault in the way Samuel has lived his life. What a way to live life. Carrying on that theme, I wrote in my journal, in 2002, “‘Have I wronged you in any way? If so, let me make it right.’ That’s Samuel's plea, after a lifetime of service to the people of the Lord.” Then I wrote, “Lord, help me walk through this life in service to You and not cheat, oppress, or take undeservingly anything from someone else. Like Samuel, let me, help me, live from beginning to end clean before You and those You bring into my life.” Could it be that you and I could live such a life like Samuel? It would be great to never wrong anybody, to never defraud anybody, to never take advantage of someone. But most likely, we are all guilty. Isn’t it great God is a God of forgiveness? If we wronged people, God can forgive those behaviors in our past. Maybe by reading this chapter, it caused you think of sometime, or someone, or someplace, where you offended someone or took advantage of someone, and now you can ask the Lord to forgive you for that moment in your life. If it seems right, you can go back to that person and ask them for their forgiveness. In Samuel’s speech, he also reminds the people they asked for a king and maybe it was against God’s will. Let’s pick up the story:

And now behold the king whom you have chosen, for whom you have asked; behold, the Lord has set a king over you. If you will fear the Lord and serve him and obey his voice and not rebel against the commandment of the Lord, and if both you and the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God, it will be well. But if you will 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 and your king (vs. 13-15).

The conditions Samuel lays out are the same for us today. If we fear the Lord and follow His commandments, it will be well with us. But if we decide to rebel against the Lord and His commandments, the hand of the Lord will be against us. DIGGING DEEPER How is your life going? Have you decided to fear the Lord and obey His commandments? Or are you rebellious and disobedient toward God? Does it seem well with you? Or does it seem like the hand of the Lord might be against you? The people asked Samuel to pray

for them. We can ask the same; pray about your circumstances to your Lord and your God. I want to read that prayer in the last six verses of this chapter:

And all the people said to Samuel, “Pray for your servants to the Lord your God, that we may not die, for we have added to all our sins this evil, to ask for ourselves a king.” And Samuel said to the people, “Do not be afraid; you have done all this evil. Yet do not turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart. And do not turn aside after empty things that cannot profit or deliver, for they are empty. For the Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name’s sake, because it has pleased the Lord to make you a people for himself. Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you, and I will instruct you in the good and the right way. Only fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart. For consider what great things he has done for you. But if you still do wickedly, you shall be swept away, both you and your king” (vs. 19-25).

We have all done evil, but Samuel admonishes us not to “. . . turn aside from following the Lord, but serve the Lord with all your heart” (v. 20). Follow the Lord, not “. . . empty things . . . for they are empty” (v. 21). Again, fear the Lord, and serve Him faithfully with all your heart. I hope those words ring loud and clear in our ears today. Though we have done evil, if we serve the Lord with our heart, we can please Him once again. Just a quick update on Mom, back in 2002. We have been going through the process of her being in the hospital and also Dad being in the hospital. I wrote in my journal that day, “Been coming down” (that means from Denver to Colorado Springs) “once a week and once on the weekend to see my parents. Still, both are in the hospital.” Then I wrote in my prayer, “For Mom and Dad, healing or home going. A soft landing whenever it occurs.” PRAYER Father, You remind us that in our past we may have done evil. We would like to live more like Samuel and have no one ever have anything against us, but for some of us, that is just not the case. So we thank You so very much for Your forgiveness and for the admonition in this chapter to pray for others. As Samuel said, “. . . far be it from me that I should sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you . . .” (v. 23). Bring people to mind today we need to pray for or we might need to ask forgiveness from. And we would be faithful in our prayers for others. In the name of the Lord, we pray. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 13 You Have Acted Foolishly

In 1 Samuel 13, Saul runs out of patience and takes matters into his own hands. Have you ever done that? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 13. COMMENTS Today I will refer to all three journal entries from 1983, 2002, and 2007, concerning 1 Samuel 13. Beginning in 1983, I wrote, “Impatience for Samuel caused Saul to offer sacrifices to God without a priest.” Then I quoted verse 13 (NASB), “. . . ‘You have acted foolishly’”. In 2002, I wrote, “Patience when it appears God is late. Samuel was late so Saul conducted a burnt offering. What he did was godly, offer sacrifices before a battle, but he violated God’s law because only priests can offer sacrifices. We need to be patient and wait on God rather than taking matters into our own hands.” In 2007, I wrote, “Saul took matters into his own hands under pressure. Samuel doesn’t show up, the Philistines are stirring, his people are scared, so he offers the sacrifice to God, the duty reserved for a priest. Maybe well-intended, his actions are not Biblical.” And I quoted verse 13 (NASB), “‘. . . “You have acted foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God . . .”’. God removes the kingdom from Saul. Obedience may be hard, but disobedience has a higher price.” Have you ever done that? Have you run out of patience with God and taken matters into your own hands? If you have, how did it turn out for you? It did not turn out very well for Saul. Going back to the passage, “He waited seven days, the time appointed by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and the people were scattering from him. So Saul said, ‘Bring the burnt offering here to me, and the peace offerings.’ And he offered the burnt offering” (vs. 8-9). Down to verses 13-14, “And Samuel said to Saul, ‘You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the Lord your God, with which he commanded you. For then the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. But . . .’ (sometimes these buts in Scripture are pretty rough), ‘But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.’” This is one of those big red warning flags in our lives. Do not run out of patience with God. Do not take matters into our own hands. Wait on the Lord. You notice in the passage right after Saul ran out of his patience, Samuel showed up. So often, it is the same with us. When we get ahead of God, when we move too fast, afterwards He is right there. He does show up on His timing, not ours. DIGGING DEEPER I am not saying it is easy to be patient with God. But look at the lesson learned in this chapter. It may seem like a small thing that all Saul did was offer a burnt offering to the

Lord before he went into the battle. But it was disobedience to the commandments of God, and it cost him the kingdom. From this moment on, Saul begins to decrease as the Lord seeks another; a man after his own heart. That becomes David. If you are in a circumstance today that you are running out of patience with God, the red flag is up. Caution. Wait a little longer, God is right around the corner. In my journal in 2002, on this day I wrote, “Mom died this morning at 9:05 am. Her liver couldn’t recover and kidneys failed. I can’t believe it. This was not supposed to happen. She went into heart surgery on September 25th and never came out. Dad, my brothers, sister, and I watched her die. I’m sad and sick about it. It was really hard to watch Dad say his goodbyes. Memorial service is Wednesday.” PRAYER Lord, forgive us when we run out of patience. Forgive us when we take matters into our own hands. Thanks for the reminder in this chapter, You are close, right around the corner, so we need to keep waiting patiently for You. Teach us patience. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 14 Jonathan, Son of Saul

In 1 Samuel 14, Saul’s son Jonathan leads, rather than King Saul. Who are the informal leaders in your life, those with personal power, not position power? It is a long chapter, 52 verses. Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 14.

COMMENTS Today, I have another one of those great one-liners from my journal in 1983, “Jonathan defeats Philistines with dependence on God.” I am going to jump to 2007 before I go back to 2002. In 2007, I wrote, “Jonathan steps out of the pack to act but he did so in the Lord. He looked for God’s direction then acted. And God blessed his action. Saul was not leading. He followed Jonathan into battle after Jonathan’s lead and the Philistines were in disarray. He gave goofy orders but didn’t follow through on them. He almost killed his own son. He won many battles against the enemy, but never won the battle within himself.” We will come back to that thought after we look at my journal entry from 2002. I wrote, “Saul, unstable as a leader. First, he’s sitting under a tree while Jonathan goes to battle. Then he fires off an order no one can eat and then he hears that they’re eating, so he builds an altar for them to eat on. Next, he makes another oath that would cost his own son his life and breaks it in front of all his leaders. He was not spiritually grounded so he was erratic in his behavior.” It appears Saul was victorious as a king and as a military leader. “When Saul had taken the kingship over Israel, he fought against all his enemies on every side . . . And he did valiantly . . . and delivered Israel out of the hands of those who plundered them” (vs. 47-48). Yes, Saul was successful outwardly, but inwardly he was a spiritual mess. In the next chapter, it gets worse for Saul. DIGGING DEEPER How about you? Externally, are you having victory after victory, but internally, are you in turmoil? Are you winning in the battle of life and losing the spiritual battle within? As we are going to see, this inconsistency is going to cost Saul dearly. Do not let that happen to you. Win the battle inside spiritually and then praise God for the victories you have externally. PRAYER Father, we pray we can be consistent; we can be aligned both internally spiritually and externally as we fight the battles You bring to our attention in our lives. As we fight, let us win, not only externally, but internally by depending upon You. We pray these things, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 15 God Regrets

Today we come to 1 Samuel 15, almost the half-way point of this great book. Saul is rejected by God and He takes the kingdom from his hands. Is it true God never leaves or forsakes us? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 15. COMMENTS What a dramatic and very sad chapter in the Word of God. Let’s go to the journals to see what this chapter has meant to me over the years. In 1983, I wrote, “Saul disobeys God by taking spoil and allowing Agag to live. God disowns Saul because of his disobedience. Samuel rebukes Saul and God takes the kingdom away from Saul.” I continue that theme in 2002, “God regrets when we do not obey, when we go our own way, God gets hurt. What hurts God is disobedience,” and I quoted verse 15:22 (NASB), “. . . to obey is better than sacrifice . . .”. In 2007 (NASB), I wrote, “Why did Saul fail?” I quoted verse 11, “. . . for he has turned back from following Me and has not carried out My commands. . . .” I continued with verse 19, “Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord . . .”. Then verse 23, “‘For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has also rejected you from being king.’ “Saul’s response to Samuel’s accusation is verse 24, ‘. . . “I have sinned; I have indeed transgressed the command of the Lord and your words, because I feared the people and listened to their voice”’”. I continued, “Saul disobeyed, rebelled, was insubordinate, rejected the Word of the Lord, and feared people more than God. And God gave Saul every chance to succeed, but Saul couldn’t get it right. So, finally, God rejected Saul. Sad, but a great lesson for us today. “God calls, He equips, He blesses, but we disobey, rebel, reject His Word, and please people rather than Him until He removes His blessing and favor on us. Then we wonder what happened.” Maybe the prayer I recorded that day is like what you are feeling right now. I wrote, “God, please, never reject me. Keep me faithful, obedient. Forgive me for my sins and sinfulness. It is so scary to fall out of Your favor. I give You my life, everything, nothing ahead of You.” DIGGING DEEPER Go back and remember, Israel begged for a king. God did not want them to have a king, they wanted a king, so God gave them a king. He picked out the tallest, most handsome guy in all the tribes of Israel, Saul, and made him their king. Outwardly, Saul looked like a brilliant king, but, as mentioned in days past, inwardly he could never get it spiritually right. Do not let that happen to you. God gave Saul every opportunity to succeed and Saul continued to fail spiritually before the Lord. The chapter closes with a very sad verse, “And the Lord regretted that he had made Saul king over Israel” (v. 35).

How are you living your life? Is there anything God regrets He gave you or any opportunities you had that God would regret He gave you responsibility over? If so, take a moment today to seek His forgiveness. That is all He ever wants. He knows we fail, but when we fail, He wants to forgive us. He wants us to come to Him, seek His forgiveness, and He will forgive. He will do that for you today. PRAYER Father, we thank You that You are a God who forgives. All You want is our love and our obedience to You and Your Word. But if we continue to reject that, we continue to fail, You, too, will reject us as You did Saul. Lord, please do not let that happen in my life. Forgive me for anything I put before You. Restore my relationship with You today. We ask it humbly, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 16 A Harmful Spirit from the Lord?

1 Samuel 16 is one of the most difficult chapters in Scripture. God removes His presence from Saul and replaces it with a harmful spirit! Can it happen to you? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 16.

COMMENTS The first half of this chapter is the selection of Saul’s replacement, the fun part of the chapter. We get to the tough part after we cover the first part about the selection of David as the next king. As men and women, we have the tendency to look at physical appearance, physical presence, but God looks at the heart. I wrote in a journal a couple of years ago, “What do You see when You look at my heart, Lord? I hope You are pleased.” What do you think it is like when God looks at your heart? What does He see? He does not see your physical appearance; He sees your heart. When He sees your heart, what does He see in You? Is your heart pleasing to God? Even Samuel was caught up in physical appearance. Remember, Saul was the tallest and the most handsome when he was selected as king. And when he sees the sons of Jesse, he sees the first one, Eliab, and Samuel thought, “. . . ‘Surely the Lord’s anointed is before him’” (v. 6). And the Lord said, “. . . ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. . . .’” (v. 7). Eliab probably resembled Saul: tall, handsome, a great warrior. But that is not what God was looking for this time. When Samuel sees David, the Lord speaks to him. “. . . ‘Arise, anoint him, for this is he’” (v. 12). When Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed David, verse 13 says, “. . . And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. . . .” God found a replacement for Saul, but Saul was still alive and David appears to be pretty young at this point in his life. It is the next verse, verse 14, that is so troublesome. “Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a harmful spirit from the Lord tormented him.” It is scary to know the Spirit can depart and scarier to know God can send a distressing spirit to us. DIGGING DEEPER Earlier on some of the chapters of 1 Samuel, I wrote, “It appears that spirits come and go.” Now you see what I was referring to as we see Saul’s life. In 2007, on this chapter, I wrote, “It appears that spirits do come and go. The Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon Saul back in 10:6, 10, but left him here in 16:14, and an evil spirit comes upon him. And as David played the harp, the evil spirit would depart. The Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward, referring to verse 13. And we’ll see if it comes and goes.” Then I wrote, “Do I have a say on whether the Spirit of the Lord comes and goes in my life? And what about evil spirits?” I have said, I am not a theologian, I am not a pastor, I am not trained in ministry. I am just a layman, a person who reads the Bible each and every day. So I do not know the answers

to those questions, but I think I understand the protection of those things by reading the Scriptures. Just like in Saul’s life, if he would have remained consistent in his faith, in his obedience, in his trust in the Lord, this would have never happened. We will see what happens with David because the Spirit of the Lord has now rushed upon David. I think the protection of having the Spirit of God leave me, or an evil spirit get after me is just to do what God has asked me to do. To love Him, to obey Him, and to follow His Word. If I do those things, the Spirit of the Lord will stay with me. I have been a Christian for over forty-five years. I came to know Christ at fifteen-years-old. I think the Holy Spirit came upon me then, and I do not believe He departed me since. I have been consistent in staying in the Word of God. I do not have a magic formula, but I do have a life of experience, and I have the Word of God that teaches me these things. I do know this, I never want to be in a position where the Spirit of the Lord departs from me and God Himself, gives me an evil spirit. I cannot even think that. I cannot even imagine it. I cannot fathom it. I hope you can’t either. PRAYER Lord, protect us from this. Protect us from a Saul-like experience. We want to have Your Spirit in our lives forever. We never want Your Spirit to leave us. Lord, help us remain obedient to You, remain loving to You, remain faithful to You so Your Spirit remains upon us all of the days of our lives. We ask that Lord, please, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 17 David and Goliath

Today, we come to one of the most famous stories in all the Bible, the story of David and Goliath. Almost everyone knows the story of David and Goliath. Have you faced giants in your life? Did you fight them on your own or in the Lord? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 17.

COMMENTS In sports, this story is used to compare the underdog to the favorite, and the underdog has a chance to win like David against Goliath. In the real story, David is a youth and Goliath is estimated to be 9’9” tall. David is certainly the underdog in this battle. However, this story is not about that. This story is spiritual. Goliath is a Philistine, and he is calling out the armies of the living God, the people of Israel. When David engages Goliath in the battle, “. . . the Philistine cursed David by his gods” (v. 43). David has a spiritual response, “Then David said to the Philistine, ‘You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand . . .’” (vs. 45-46). The next time you hear an analogy of David and Goliath, remember it is a spiritual issue, not a physical underdog issue. David does not need Saul’s armor. He goes with what God has gifted him with. First, he goes with his experience. “. . . ‘The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine . . .’” (v. 37). Next, he goes with faith, “. . . the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand” (v. 47). And thirdly, he goes with what he knows, “And David put his hand in his bag and took out (one) stone . . .” (v. 49). I love verse 48, “When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine.” Imagine the scene. David, this young kid, is running toward this giant, with no armor, nothing but a sling and one stone. Did the sling--did the stone--did David--defeat Goliath? No way. David knows it. We know it. The Lord defeated Goliath. And He used a ruddy teenager, like David. Let’s finish this chapter by looking back at the first entry I ever wrote about this story back in 1983, “David. A heart for God. He took what he had against Goliath. No armor, no sword, only a slingshot, and faith. Incredible dependence and confidence in his Lord. He defended the God of Israel. God miraculously delivers Goliath not by David’s hand, but by His will. David was an instrument, a man of faith, and the miracle-working power was wrought through him. The heart, not the physical, is what determines success. Saul had the physical gifts to take on Goliath, but David had the spiritual gifts. He went in the name of the Lord of hosts, not in his own strength. God used a man willing to be used. Use me. Use you.” DIGGING DEEPER Regardless of how old you are, what you look like, what your physical strengths are, what your experience may be, are you willing to be used by God to take down a Goliath?

PRAYER Father, thank You for this great encouraging story. We get uplifted by stories like this in Your Word. Thank You for this story about David and his faithfulness and how You used a young boy to defeat an enemy of Israel. Use us, Lord, in any way You want. In the name of the Lord, we pray. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 18 The Lord was with David

In 1 Samuel 18, the Lord blesses David. Jonathan gets it but Saul does not. How do you respond to the blessings of God on others? Congratulations or jealousy? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 18.

COMMENTS Finally, I have more than a one-liner in my first journal in 1983. I wrote, “Jonathan, heir to Saul’s throne, recognizes that God has chosen David and gives him the prince’s garments. Jonathan loved David as himself.” I continued, “Saul, jealous of David because David will have the opportunity that was once his own. Saul’s jealousy eats away at him and messes up the rest of his life.” In 2002, I wrote, “David behaved wisely. The presence of the Lord was with him. Respond to God’s presence in His Spirit and it will result in wise behavior and people will notice.” In 2007 (NASB), I wrote, “David. The Lord was with him. He prospered ‘. . . in all the ways for the Lord was with him’” (v. 14). Then I quoted verse 30, “. . . David behaved himself more wisely than all the servants of Saul. So his name was highly esteemed.” I continued, “As God chooses us, He equips us, and favors us. He would have done the same for Saul, but we have to stay the course.” There are a few angles we could take when looking at this chapter, but let’s look at God’s favor. Look at how God is favoring David because David is His chosen one, His anointed one. Verse 5 says, “And David went out and was successful wherever Saul sent him, so that Saul set him over the men of war. And this was good in the sight of all the people and also in the sight of Saul’s servants.” So David is being successful, he gains favor, both in the king’s eyes and in the people’s eyes, because God is giving him favor. Verses 14-16 and 22 carry on the theme, “And David had success in all his undertakings, for the Lord was with him. And when Saul saw that he had great success, he stood in fearful awe of him. But all Israel and Judah loved David, for he went out and came in before them.” Verse 22, “And Saul commanded his servants, ‘Speak to David in private and say, “Behold, the king has delight in you, and all his servants love you.”’” As the chapter closes, verse 30 says, “Then the commanders of the Philistines came out to battle, and as often as they came out David had more success than all the servants of Saul, so that his name was highly esteemed.” DIGGING DEEPER Are you favored? Are you highly esteemed? Do you have success in everything you touch? Very few of us do, but David did. Why? Because the Lord was with him. Is the Lord with you? It is possible to have success in the things we do in life, as we stay close to the Lord. That is what David did. He stayed close to the Lord. I encourage you to ponder that today. Is your life successful? If so, praise the Lord! If it is not successful in every aspect, or in all the aspects you want it to be, then get close to the Lord and watch Him favor you.

PRAYER Lord, we thank You for this chapter. It reminds us when You call us, You equip us. You equipped David and made him successful. We pray we also could have a measure of success in our lives because You are with us. Let other people see our success, and when they do, let us give You all the glory. We give You thanks, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 19 Spiritual Yo-Yo

In 1 Samuel 19, we see an evil spirit and the Spirit of God both lite on Saul. Do you experience spiritual consistency or yo-yo Christianity? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 19.

COMMENTS In 1983, when I read this chapter, I wrote, “Saul seeks to kill David. David, saved by Jonathan and Michal, goes to Samuel.” Then, “Saul gets Spirit of God a second time?” I will come back to that thought in a moment, but let’s look at my journal from 2002. “Saul becomes David’s enemy. Why? Because the Lord was with him.” Remember in chapter 18, “He behaved wisely, he was successful, and sometimes even when we do the right things another is jealous or wants to cause us harm.” In 2007 (NASB) I wrote, “Why is Saul consumed with killing David?” Again, we go back to chapter 18:28-29, “Saul ‘. . . knew that the Lord was with David . . .’ and that his daughter ‘. . . loved him, then Saul was even more afraid of David. . . .’” And, “‘Saul was David’s enemy continually’ (v. 29). The evil spirit in Saul couldn’t stop God’s Spirit in David. Saul was double-minded. He had a hard time staying consistent with the Lord. Jonathan and Michal, Saul’s kids, both loved David and intervened on his behalf. Even Samuel the prophet and God protected David from Saul. Where do we go for help and protection?” A few chapters earlier in 1 Samuel, I asked, “Does the spirit of the Lord come and go?” We see in Saul’s life it certainly appears to be the case. Let’s look at a couple of verses in chapter 19. Verse 9, “Then a harmful spirit from the Lord came upon Saul . . .”. That is the part of the chapter when he throws the spear and tries to pin David to the wall, but David escapes. The evil spirit must be consuming Saul because all he wants to do is kill David. Before the harmful spirit came upon Saul, he swore, “. . . ‘As the Lord lives, he shall not be put to death’” (v. 6). Saul is completely double-minded. At the end of the chapter when he tries to find David and ends up in Naioth in Ramah, verse 23 says, “. . . And the Spirit of God came upon him . . .”. DIGGING DEEPER In this chapter, both a harmful spirit comes upon Saul and the Spirit of God comes upon Saul. I do not want that spiritual yo-yo happening in my life, do you? I asked the question earlier in one of my journals, “Where do we go for help and protection?” If you are experiencing an evil spirit in your life and then experiencing the Spirit of God in your life, how can we stop the spiritual yo-yo? Do exactly what you are doing, stay in the Word of God and pray. Stay consistent with Day By Day Through The Bible daily devotions. Opening your Bible and reading Scripture on a regular basis will help prevent the spiritual yo-yo. And stay close to God, like we learned in past chapters in this great book of 1 Samuel. David stayed close to the Lord, and the Lord stayed close to David.

Another answer might be, every time Saul sent people to chase after David, they ended up prophesying before the Lord. What is “prophesying” and is it part of an answer for us? Prophesying, according to my footnote in my ESV Study Bible, is “prayer and praise to God” (p. 524). Prayer and praise to God is another preventative measure from this spiritual yo-yo. I do not know how much time you spend with God beyond these daily devotions. I hope from time to time you spend time in prayer, and also in praise. I do not know about you, but I find it hard to praise God on my own, so I really enjoy going to church and fellowshipping with Christian believers and praising God in a worship service on Sundays or Saturday nights. I encourage you to do that as well. These things will help us prevent the spiritual yo-yo in our lives. PRAYER Father, none of us want a spirit of harm or an evil spirit to come upon us. Lord, we pray for Your Holy Spirit protection. Put a shield about us so no spirit like that can come upon our lives. We pray, Lord, Your Spirit will rest in our hearts and in our lives and we will spend time with You, getting closer to You in Your Word, in prayer, and in praise. And doing so will keep us close to You. Thank You, Lord, for those gifts. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 20 Friendship

Today, we come to 1 Samuel 20. I hope you are enjoying the drama of Saul, David, and Jonathan. In chapter 20, Jonathan demonstrates his love for his friend, David. Do you have a friend that sticks closer than a brother or sister? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 20.

COMMENTS In 1983, I wrote in my journal “Chapter 20,” but I did not write one thing, not even a one-liner. So let’s go to one of my other journals. In 2007, I wrote, “In the natural, Jonathan would have been the next king, for he was the son of King Saul. He could have done all he could to secure his throne. Particularly, killing David. But God had already designated the next king as David. Nothing Saul, Jonathan, or David was going to do would interfere with God’s plan. Jonathan gives up power, authority, riches for his friend David. Who am I loyal to?” Friendship. I have had good friends over the years, how about you? I had a good friend in my growing up years in Baltimore, Maryland. I had another good friend in my teenage years in Colorado Springs, Colorado. In college, I had another good friend. He was my best man in our wedding, but unfortunately, though my same age, he has already gone home to be with the Lord. I have good friends in my adult years, as well, but would I be as good a friend as Jonathan was to David? Verse 17 shows the depth of their friendship, “And Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul.” Jonathan and David had a very deep friendship. Jonathan is willing to give up power, authority, riches, the very throne he is likely to inherit, for his friendship with David. The chapter closes with the two saying goodbye. “Then Jonathan said to David, ‘Go in peace, because we have sworn both of us in the name of the Lord, saying, “The Lord shall be between me and you, and between my offspring and your offspring, forever.”’ And he rose and departed, and Jonathan went into the city” (v. 42). DIGGING DEEPER Our takeaway is obvious, friendship. Who have been your friends? Do you think about them? Do you stay in touch with them? Maybe today, you will even reach back to some of those friends you had in your life and give them a greeting or say hello. For those current friends in your life, give them a call, text them, send them an email. Say “thank you” for being my friend. I did have a journal entry back in 2002 on 1 Samuel 20 and it reads, “This was the passage I read when my mom was in peril, ‘. . . You say not die . . .’ (v. 2), rang in my ears that morning as she teetered between life and death. She did not die that day, but she did not recover, either. Two weeks later, she is dead. I did not recall 1 Samuel 20:3, ‘. . . “there is but a step between me and death.”’ This was true for my mom. She took that step two weeks later and is now in the presence of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”

PRAYER Lord, we thank You for the assurance when we die, we can be in Your presence if we accepted You as Lord and Savior of our lives. Lord, we also thank You for the friends, the friendship, You have allowed us to have over our lives. Thank You for our friends, thank You for being a friend to us. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 21 White Lies

In 1 Samuel 21, David lies to save his skin. When the going gets tough, do you exercise faith or utter white lies? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 21.

COMMENTS At the end of chapter 20, you might remember David and Jonathan parted, and now David is on the run, running for his life. Chapter 21 is the first stop on his run for his life. In 1983, I had one of those great one-liners again. “David flees Saul, takes priestly bread, and Goliath’s sword.” I sure had a way with words when I was twenty-eight-years-old! In 2002, I wrote, “David lies to a priest for food. He also eats holy bread. Does the end justify the means? Even Jesus refers to this incident inferring that religious ceremony does not come before preservation of life.” In 2007, I wrote, “Survival. David is on the run. He lies to the priest, he eats consecrated bread, goes to the enemy for safety, and falsely acts insane to save his life. All this, for a guy anointed King of Israel. Where is his faith? Jesus refers to this chapter in Matthew 12:3-4, so He read more than the Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament.” We have all used the term “white lies.” What are they, anyway? Lies that somehow justify the means? In this chapter, we can count about three white lies David uses. First, he lies to a priest. Imagine that, lying to a religious figure, a priest, a pastor? He tells the priest he is on the king’s business. Lie number two, he says a gang of men are with him, but he is running alone. The next lie is more like a half-truth, “. . . For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste” (v. 8). Sure he ran out of there in haste, but it was not because of the king’s business. It was because he was running from the king. It could have been the king’s business because he is running “from” the king. That is a bit of a half-truth. Next, he runs to Gath, which is in the enemy’s territory. Gath is a city in Philistine, so he is now running behind enemy lines to save his own bacon from Saul. David made the Philistine nightly news quite a bit, so they know exactly who he is, they recognize him. What does he do? “So he changed his behavior before them and pretended to be insane in their hands and made marks on the doors of the gate and let his spittle run down his beard” (v. 13). DIGGING DEEPER This chapter is full of white lies. Maybe, you too are stuck in some uncomfortable circumstances at the moment. Are you acting on your faith in God or are you tempted to offer up a few white lies yourself? One thing I like about the Bible is it is filled with stories about real people. Though David is certainly one of the most famous and most faithful people in all of Scripture, he is a flawed human being, like the rest of us.

If my life was in jeopardy, maybe I would stretch the truth a little bit too, to save my own skin. I would like to say to you I would not do such a thing. I would like to tell you I would just rely on my faith in God and pray, hope, and expect Him to save me, but . . . PRAYER Father, when faced with uncomfortable circumstances in my life, I pray You would put a shield of protection around me, You would strengthen me so I could stand on my faith in You. Lord, I hope that would be my response. But, Lord, I pray, if I do stretch the truth a little bit, if I have some white lies in my life, I thank You that You are a God of forgiveness and You forgive me when I fail You. Help me, Lord, to walk with You when the circumstances get a little uncomfortable in my life. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 22 Looking Over Your Shoulder

In 1 Samuel 22, Saul is looking for David. David is on the run from Saul. Saul cannot seem to find David, while many others do. Are you on the run? Are you hiding? Do you live in fear? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 22.

COMMENTS I bet you are waiting for one of those one-liners again from 1983, and I have one for you. “David continues to flee from Saul.” In 2002, I wrote a little bit more. I wrote about leadership, “Many gathered around David to help him. Leadership draws people. Saul, on the other hand, gives a direct order to his people to kill the priests of the Lord and none obey him. Saul was no leader.” In 2007, I wrote, “Saul in fear. He thinks David is waiting in ambush. David was on the run. But Saul had lost his faith so he lived in fear: everybody is out to get me; David, my own son, the priests, God. What a sad way to live, but many do, in fear, looking over their shoulder, running, hiding, wandering.” DIGGING DEEPER Are you looking over your shoulder? Are you running? Are you hiding? Do you live in fear? Do you think everybody is out to get you, or do you think someone is out to get you? I certainly hope that is not the case in your life, but if it is, it is no way to live. Live in fear? The New Testament tells us, “for God gave us a spirit not of fear” (2 Timothy 1:7). If you are living under a spirit of fear, it is not from the Lord. May I ask you to stop? Stop running, stop hiding, stop looking over your shoulder, and really think about the circumstances going on around you. Are they imagined or are they real? Either way, take it to the Lord. Pray and ask God to get you out from under those circumstances, or out from under looking over your shoulder, or running or hiding from your past. Before we leave this chapter, I found something pretty interesting you may have thought about while you were reading or listening. David is on the run. King Saul cannot find him, yet his brothers and all his father’s house found him. He was also found by 400 men. So he has 400 men hanging out with him. It is pretty hard to hide when you have 400 people hanging out with you. Let’s see what’s going to happen in the next chapter. I sure hope you are enjoying our walk through 1 Samuel. May I ask you to spread the word about Day By Day Through The Bible to your family, your friends, your church, or anyone who struggles to find time to read the Bible? Tell them about Day By Day and ADDBIBLE®. Let’s close in prayer. PRAYER Father, I thank You for providing the resources for Day By Day Through The Bible and ADDBIBLE®. I pray, Lord, You continue to provide the necessary means to support the

Ezra Project so many more can be blessed by spending time in Your Word each and every day. We give You thanks, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 23 Specific Prayer, Specific Answers

Today we are in 1 Samuel 23. David prays though still on the run. He models specific prayers and God models specific answers. How is your prayer life? Are your requests specific or too general? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 23.

COMMENTS As we look into chapter 23, I have one of those great one-liners from my 1983 journal, “David’s prayer life: specific prayer, specific answers.” That is a powerful, short summary of this chapter, which we will come back to in a minute. In 2002, I wrote, “David seeks God’s counsel and divine intervention before he acts, not after. Saul is chasing David around without regard to what God wants. Jonathan can get to David and reassures him Saul will not find you, and you, not me, will be King of Israel, referring to verse 17. Jonathan, an amazing man.” That is what I wrote in 2002. It is certainly true, Jonathan is somebody to look up to. In 2007, I wrote, “David inquired of the Lord. He asked God what to do in his daily life; the challenges he was facing. And God answered him with specific direction. God cares about what is going on in our daily lives, too. Ask Him for direction. Listen for His voice and act.” This chapter is really an insight into David’s prayer life. Let’s check out a few verses. Notice David’s specific prayers and God’s specific answers starting in verse 2, “Therefore David inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall I go and attack these Philistines?’ And the Lord said to David, ‘Go and attack the Philistines and save Keilah.’” David utters a specific prayer and God gives him a very specific answer. But, the men with David are afraid, so David inquires of the Lord again, “Then David inquired of the Lord again. And the Lord answered him, ‘Arise, go down to Keilah, for I will give the Philistines into your hand’” (v. 4). Again, David asks specifically and God answers specifically. And, by the way, that is exactly what happened. David went down and was victorious in the battle. Go to verses 10-11, David, again, inquiring of the Lord, “Then David said, ‘O Lord, the God of Israel, your servant has surely heard that Saul seeks to come to Keilah, to destroy the city on my account. Will the men of Keilah surrender me into his hand? Will Saul come down, as your servant has heard? O Lord, the God of Israel, please tell your servant.’ And the Lord said, ‘He will come down.’” Again, this is a very specific prayer and God gives a very specific answer. David’s prayer continues in verse 12, “Then David said, ‘Will the men of Keilah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?’ And the Lord said, ‘They will surrender you.’” David is praying about specific things happening in his life and God is giving him specific answers. I cannot say I hear the voice of God as clearly as illustrated in chapter 23. But I can say I have prayed many, many times for very specific things and God has answered me specifically, just like He did David. And just like He can do for you.

DIGGING DEEPER How specific are your prayers? I think sometimes Christians do not want to pray specifically because we think we are going to put God in a box. Really? So we might pray something like this, “Lord, give me a job.” Then we get a job. Do we know that job came from the Lord? If we had a little more courage in our prayer life, we would pray a little more specifically. “Lord, I would like this kind of job, in this kind of place, making this amount of money,” then when God answers specifically, we know it is from the Lord, and He gets all the glory. May I encourage you today to strengthen your prayer life by modeling David and praying more specifically, listening to God’s specific answers, and then, of course, giving Him all the glory. PRAYER Father, give us courage in our prayers to ask specifically. Thanks for the examples from David. Be pleased with us as You were with him, so we may see specific answers to our specific prayers. When we do, we will give You the glory. We ask it in Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 24 David Spares Saul’s Life

In 1 Samuel 24, David spares Saul’s life. God places Saul right in David’s hands. The crowd says do it, but David says no. Do you think like David? Do you act under the circumstances, or under the sovereignty of God? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 24.

COMMENTS This chapter is so exciting even in 1983, I had more than one line about it. I wrote, “David spared Saul’s life, talks with Saul. David has a chance to kill Saul and end flight, but he won’t do it. David’s love for Saul. Saul ends pursuit of David.” In 2002, I wrote, “Doing the right thing. Here David has the chance to kill Saul, but he doesn’t do it. Did God give Saul into his hand? Open door. David has a high principle not to take God’s anointed. Live right, regardless of circumstances, and God will reward.” In 2007, I wrote, “David’s conscience bothered him, according to verse 24:5. Reading the circumstances according to God’s sovereignty. Saul is right here. ‘Kill him,’ the advice of the crowd. David, driven by God, not men, says, ‘No. I will not stretch forth my hand against Saul because God anointed him king. Even though Saul is trying to kill me, and the Lord has lead him right here into my hands, there’s a bigger picture. God’s sovereignty.’ David’s conscience bothered him because he was driven by God, not men. Praise the Lord! We need more of this today.” DIGGIND DEEPER Do I think like David? Do you think like David? Sometimes it is so hard to know what to do. Here, it appears God has given Saul into David’s own hands. He could kill him right here and end this crazy pursuit, this fleeing from Saul, his whole life. Surely, in David’s humanity, he wanted to do it. His band of men in the cave were going, “Kill him, kill him!” But David walks by the beat of a different drummer. He walks by the heart of God, not the heart of men. Where are your eyes? Are they on the circumstances around you, or are they on the sovereign will of God for you and those around you? David has a grasp of the bigger picture, do you? Do I? He knew God anointed Saul king and it was not his position to take him out of that role. We will see how this plays out in the final few chapters of 1 Samuel. PRAYER God, help me. Help me have a higher view of my own life, of my own circumstances. Help me have a view from Your perspective. Keep me from taking matters into my own hands. Help me rely on You and Your sovereignty in my life and in those around me. In Your name, we pray, amen.

1 SAMUEL 25 Abigail

In 1 Samuel 25, David, still on the run from Saul, runs right into Abigail. By God’s direct intervention, she becomes his wife. Do you think God is working in and around your life? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 25.

COMMENTS In 1983, when I read 1 Samuel 25, I was actually in Minnesota where I was born, for a family reunion. Even there, I was in the Word of God. I wrote one of those great one-liners, “Samuel dies, Nabal and Abigail, God intervenes, Abigail becomes David’s wife.” That certainly is the Reader’s Digest summary of chapter 25. Let’s see what else we can glean from this chapter. In 2002, I wrote, “Samuel died. He was born to serve. He did so his whole life. For such a spiritual leader, not much is said in verse one. I wonder if Saul went to his funeral. Samuel anointed him king. David probably couldn’t go to such a public gathering; the second man Samuel had anointed king. I pray I could live a life for the Lord, from beginning to end, like Samuel.” In 2007, I wrote, “Samuel died. The way of man, to live and die. All Israel gathered together and mourned for him and buried him. Life is short. Do kingdom building. I wonder how David felt, knowing Samuel anointed him king, and now he was dead and David is a long way from being king. And, no one else knows he is to become king.” DIGGING DEEPER Those are a few other insights from this chapter. Let’s look at a couple more before we finish. Look at the main characters in this chapter, Nabal and Abigail. What a difference in who they are. Nabal, described as a worthless man, and no one could speak to him. He is very rich, harsh, and badly behaved. He railed at David; and his name--his very name--means folly. Compare that to how Abigail is described: discerning and beautiful. When she met David, she fell on her face and bowed to the ground before him. She was humble, she was honoring, discerning. Let’s look at the descriptions of her discernment. What did she know about David when she met him:

Please forgive the trespass of your servant. For the Lord will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord is fighting the battles of the Lord, and evil shall not be found in you so long as you live. If men rise up to pursue you and to seek your life, the life of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of the living in the care of the Lord your God. And the lives of your enemies he shall sling out as from the hollow of a sling. And when the Lord has done to my lord according to all the good that he has spoken concerning you and has appointed you prince over Israel, my lord shall have no cause of grief or pangs of conscience for having shed blood without cause or for my lord working salvation himself. . . . (vs. 28-31).

How did she know all that about David? Who knows? But certainly, Abigail was discerning. David even recognizes her discretion when he says to her after she speaks to him:

And David said to Abigail, ‘Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who sent you this day to meet me! Blessed be your discretion, and blessed be you, who have kept me this day from bloodguilt and from working salvation with my own hand! For as surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, who has restrained me from hurting you, unless you had hurried and come to meet me, truly by morning there had not been left to Nabal so much as one male.’ Then David received from her hand what she had brought him. And he said to her, ‘Go up in peace to your house. See, I have obeyed your voice, and I have granted your petition’ (vs. 32-35).

Praise God for the gift of discernment exhibited by Abigail. And praise God for David. Not like Nabal that no one could speak to, but David hears from a woman and obeys and saves her household. What is the result of all this? Because David did not take matters into his own hands, God, once again, intervenes for him. In verse 38, “. . . the Lord struck Nabal, and he died,” not David. And David was so impressed with Abigail he took her as a wife. PRAYER Father, grant me the gift of discernment. Like Abigail, help me discern, help me understand the things going on around me. Help me be gracious and humble and honoring to those around me. Help me be like David, and not take matters into my own hands, but listen to the counsel of those around me and then watch You work. Thank You, Lord, for divine intervention in David’s life. I pray it so in my own. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 26 David Spares Saul Again

In 1 Samuel 26, David has another chance to take Saul’s life. Though he is running for his life from Saul, he will not stop the madness himself. David believes the Lord, in His time, will take care of Saul, and himself. Do you have that kind of faith? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 26.

COMMENTS In 1983, still in Minnesota at a family reunion, I read 1 Samuel 26 and had one of those famous one-liners, “David spares Saul again.” In 2002, the day I should have read 1 Samuel 26, was a Saturday. Then, and often still in my life, I go to a Gideon prayer breakfast on Saturday morning where we always read a chapter of Scripture. So I did not read 1 Samuel 26 on Saturday because I went to the prayer breakfast. I wrote this in my journal, “Gideon prayer breakfast” and “Reading: 1 Timothy 6.” And I wrote, “My first prayer breakfast in a while. Been going to Colorado Springs a lot, and my last one for several weeks because I leave for Thailand on Wednesday.” I know sometimes Christians have a tendency to take weekends off from their daily Bible reading. I had a friend once tell me if you take Saturday and Sunday off from Bible reading, it is over 100 days a year. Though in 2002 I did not read from my normal daily Bible reading, I did get my daily dose of Scripture from the Gideon prayer breakfast; but in my later days, like now, I do both. I read on my own before I go to prayer breakfast, even on Saturdays. The next day, when I did read 1 Samuel 26 (NKJV), I wrote in my journal, “Again, David has the chance to kill Saul and doesn’t do it. He understood sovereignty. Chapter 26 verses 10-11 say, “. . . ‘As the Lord lives, the Lord shall strike him, or his day shall come to die, or he shall go out to battle and perish. The Lord forbid that I should stretch out my hand against the Lord’s anointed . . .”. Then I quoted the next verse, “. . . For they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from the Lord had fallen on them” (v. 12). I wrote, “Why didn’t they wake up and kill David? God’s Protection, even when we do not see it or understand it.” Some of these scenes are made for movies. Can you imagine David sneaking into the camp, getting right through all the enemy lines, and going right up to Saul who is probably laying on the ground asleep with his spear? He gets that close and nobody wakes up and takes him out. He grabs the spear and the jug of water and walks off. That would be a fun

Hollywood scene! It is only possible because of the Lord. Verse 12, “. . . no man saw it or knew it, nor did any awake, for they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from the Lord had fallen upon them.” In 2007, I wrote, “Saul’s word is no good. He told David he would let him live, but he constantly pursues him to kill him. Saul can’t be trusted, yet David has several opportunities to kill Saul but doesn’t do it. He respects God’s sovereignty. What molding of character to be under God’s sovereignty rather than the circumstances.”

DIGGING DEEPER I hope as we walk through 1 Samuel you are gaining faith, you are seeing how God intervenes in lives, how God is above your circumstances. And if you put your trust in Him, things will turn out all right. Though it is so tempting to take matters into our own hands, from these chapters, we should learn we do not have to do that if we believe in the sovereignty of God. I do not know what you are facing today, but let’s depend on the sovereignty of God rather than taking matters into our hands. PRAYER Father, help me do that today. Help me to see through Your eyes, not my own, and depend on You. I trust You, in Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 27 Escape

1 Samuel 27 is a pretty short chapter, only twelve verses. David, still on the run from Saul, escapes to the land of the Philistines. Are you on the run, escaping from a life circumstance? Is God training you for something great? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 27.

COMMENTS We have a very short chapter, and I also have some very short journal entries about this chapter. In 1983, one of those great one-liners. “David flees to Philistines to avoid Saul.” Not much better in 2002, a one-liner too, “David lies to stay alive in Philistine country.” But if you think you are going to get done early today, not the case. I do have more in 2007. “David retreats to the Philistine’s again. He stayed there for sixteen months. How long was it between Samuel anointing him king and actually becoming king? What was his training? To depend on God, not man. To follow God’s timing and sovereignty, not his own. To be a survivor. To be a leader, he was over 600 men by now. To be compassionate, Abigail. To negotiate, Saul and Achish. To be a warrior. To honor God’s anointed, Saul. God was training David to become king.” Training. I am not absolutely sure, but I think it is about sixteen years between Samuel anointing David king and the time he actually becomes king. In that time, God is training David. We saw no such training for Saul. David is in the tender hands of God Almighty, and He is developing David’s character. DIGGING DEEPER What have you been going through in your life? Maybe it has not been easy. By what we are reading, it has not been easy for David, either. Are you trained? Are you usable for God, yet? What assignment might God be training you for? Look back in your own experiences, the good, the bad, and the ugly, and ponder them in the light of what God may have been doing for your training. Then, look up and ask God if you are ready, then ask Him for your assignment. PRAYER Father, like David, we are created by You for a purpose. You may not be grooming me to become a king, a governor, or a mayor, but Lord, whatever You need me to do, train me up to do it. Thank You for training me. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen. ENRICHMENT I hope you’re enjoying Day By Day Through The Bible from the Ezra Project. If so, I hope you will share it with someone else. Tell someone. Tell someone in your family, tell your friends, tell your church friends. Let others know about the opportunity to read or listen to God’s Word and get an explanation and application to their lives each and every day.

Many Christians find it difficult to get time for daily Bible reading. If you know someone who struggles to spend time with the Lord, tell them about ADDBIBLE® and Day By Day. Get them involved in reading or listening to the Bible, and understanding and applying God’s Word in their lives. Thank you.

1 SAMUEL 28 Saul Calls up the Dead

Today, we are in 1 Samuel 28, one of these strange chapters in Scripture. God stops answering Saul, so he visits a medium and calls up Samuel from the dead. Is this real? Can one call up the dead? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 28.

COMMENTS What is the problem that gets us into this chapter? Verse 6, “And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets.” Why was Saul inquiring of the Lord? Because once again, he was going to go up against the Philistines and the verse right before it says he was afraid, “. . . and his heart trembled greatly.” In a spirit of fear, Saul acts in a very strange way. Because he is not hearing from the Lord, he seeks other ways. Verse 7, “Then Saul said to his servants, ‘Seek out for me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her. . . .’” The Lord had not answered Saul because He had rejected him. According to my ESV Study Bible footnote, “Necromancy and other forms of divination were common throughout the ancient Near East, and many divination texts have been discovered; biblical religion is the only one known to forbid it. The Hebrew word rendered ‘medium’ in 1 Samuel 28:3,9 can mean, ‘the spirit of a dead person.’ Necromancy means divining by a medium” (p. 536). What do we do with this chapter? In 1983, I had one of those one-liners, a bit more serious, “Saul calls up the spirit of Samuel for prophecy. Samuel says Saul will die at the hands of the Philistines.” In 2002, I wrote, “Saul has a séance conducted to bring up Samuel. Amazing. Samuel tells him he’s going to die. He is so wishy-washy, two-faced, he casts out mediums and spiritesses from Israel, but then he wants to use one. He later refused to eat, but then he changes his mind. Saul was double-minded, unstable, in all his ways.” In 2007, I take this issue head-on as I wrote in my journal after reading 1 Samuel 28, “Saul was afraid of the Philistines. He inquires of the Lord, but God was not answering. He should have feared that more than the Philistines. I don’t understand the rest of this. Can people call up the dead? If so, is it by Satanic intervention or God’s intervention? In this case, it appears that God revealed Samuel to Saul. Why would he speak to Saul through a medium or a spiritess rather than by dreams, the Urim, or prophets? It appears Saul really contacted Samuel’s spirit because the message comes true. Why do prayers go unanswered? Because we disobey God but expect Him to answer our prayers. We ask God to show us the future, but do we really want to know?” DIGGING DEEPER Did Saul, through this medium, really contact the spirit of Samuel? It appears so. Do I understand it? Absolutely not. Is it a practice I support today? No. In fact, in my journal in 2007, after what I wrote, my prayer was against sorcerers, divinations, spiritesses, occult,

and for my own obedience, so my prayers can be answered by the one, true God. I certainly think that is a much safer place to be. PRAYER Lord, help me stay faithful to You so I do not end up in a place like Saul where when I inquire of You, You are silent. Lord, may that never happen to me. I pray You would keep me obedient to You so my prayers can be heard by You. I give You thanks for that. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 29 David Gets Himself in a Mess

1 Samuel 29 is only eleven verses, but what a mess. David is in the land of the enemy, the Philistines. They are going to war with Israel. What will David do, fight with the Philistines against his own nation? David is in a mess. Have you ever got yourself in a mess? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 29.

COMMENTS Remember, David fled from Saul and is in the land of Philistines. In chapter 29, the Philistines are going to go up against Israel. David’s reputation was well known among the Philistines, as we can see in this chapter. The commander of the Philistines, Achish, is okay with David, but all the rest of the commanders are not. Once again, that is probably God’s protection. Look at David’s reputation with Achish. “. . . For I have found nothing wrong in you from the day of your coming to me to this day . . .” (v. 6). Later he says, “. . . ‘I know that you are as blameless in my sight as an angel of God. . . .’” (v. 9). Yet to the commanders of the Philistines, he is public enemy number one. There is no way they are going to let him fight against the Israelites because they think he will turn on them. I did not write anything in my journal in 1983 related to chapter 29, so let’s go on to 2002. I wrote, “God intervenes again in David’s life. He did not need to make the decision to fight against his own people. The Philistines’ lords prevented it. Thanks be to God. Sometimes we need to come right to the brink of a difficult decision before we see God get involved. It is important to pursue a right course, though. David had the respect of Saul and Achish, one of the Philistine kings. He walked a fine line because, as verse 6 says in the next chapter, ‘. . . David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.’” From my journal entry in 2007, I had a similar thought, “Another illustration of God’s sovereignty and divine intervention. David didn’t know what to do. He just kept moving, figuring it out as he went. Finally, God acts through others, solving the problem for David.” Then I wrote, “Help me trust You are always working around me, helping me wait long enough to see You show up.” DIGGING DEEPER There was a time early in the Ezra Project when I was not sure if we could keep going. I had come to the end of the year, and I did not have enough money to keep going into the new year. I remember leaving the office for Christmas and someone saying, “See you next year!” And I said, “I’m not so sure I’ll be back.” In between Christmas and New Year’s, the largest financial gift our young ministry had ever received came in. Enough to allow us to start the new year. Sometimes God takes us right to the brink, to the edge of the cliff, so to speak. Why? For a few reasons. One, He wants to remind us we are not smart enough to get ourselves out of every situation we often get ourselves in. Remember, David was the one who left Israel for the Philistines. Two, God wants us to rely on Him. He wants to build our trust in Him. It has been over 10 years since that gift came into the Ezra Project. We trust in the Lord. Do you?

PRAYER Father, I thank You for sometimes taking me to the brink, and probably some reading this devotion today, may be right there. I thank You that You come through, You showed Yourself faithful to David, to the Ezra Project, and I hope, to those in need today. Thank You for building our trust in You by reminding us that sometimes we are not smart enough to get ourselves out of situations we got ourselves into, and we are thankful You are there to help us when we come to You, when we rely on You, when we pray to You. Lord, build our trust in You. We give You praise. We give You thanks. In Jesus’ name, amen.

1 SAMUEL 30 From Bad to Worse

Today we are in 1 Samuel 30, coming to the close of this wonderful book, only two chapters to go. But in this chapter, David is rejected by the Philistines. They go home to Ziglag to find the town burned and wives and children captured. His own band of men turn against him. When things go from bad to worse, what do you do? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 30.

COMMENTS David’s followers are ready to turn against him after they get turned away by the Philistine lords. They go home where their wives, kids, and possessions have been taken and the town burned. After being on the run for so long, this had to be a low point in David’s life, “. . . But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God” (v. 6). He strengthened himself. He did not look to others to help him. He acted in the Lord. He went to someone who could help him, his God. David had made the Lord, his God, personal. He could find strength from God because he had decided before the problems, the Lord was his God. DIGGING DEEPER Do you strengthen yourself in the Lord your God? Is God personal to you? We can know about God, but do you know Him personally? When you are in trouble, when you are facing tough decisions or difficult circumstances, do you strengthen yourself in your personal relationship with God? If you have a personal relationship with God, praise the Lord! If you do not, you may be wondering how to have one. I share how you can have a personal relationship with the Lord right now. Do you realize God loves you? John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Romans 5:8 says, “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” First, receive, accept, the fact God loves you. Next, understand we are all sinners. Romans 3:23 says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:10 says, “As it is written: ‘None is righteous, no, not one . . . .’” We are all sinners, you and me. Sin separates us from God; it keeps us from having a personal relationship with Him. But then, step three is God’s remedy for sin. Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” And John 1:12 says, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God”. That is God’s remedy for sin. You probably have heard about Easter; you may know about the cross. That is what Jesus did. He paid the price for our sins so we can have a personal relationship with Him. But knowing that, and accepting that are two different things. So lastly, we can give our hearts to the Lord, even right now. He invites us. In Revelation 3:20, He says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens

the door, I will come in to him . . .”. Romans 10:13 says, “For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’” It is an action step on our part. We can know about God, but at some point, we have to accept His redeeming grace, His forgiveness, that price He paid on the cross for our sins. The final step is receiving it. Decide to confess your sins before God, even now, wherever you are. Confess your sins by praying to Him, then accept His redeeming grace, His forgiveness, He offers you. PRAYER Maybe it is a prayer like this, “Confessing to God that I am sinner, and believing that the Lord Jesus Christ died for my sins on the cross and was raised for my justification, I do now receive and confess Him as my personal Savior.” You can have a personal relationship with the Lord by praying a prayer like that, right now. I encourage you to, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

1 SAMUEL 31 Saul and His Sons Die in Battle

Today, we come to the conclusion of 1 Samuel. 1 Samuel 31 is only thirteen verses as we wrap up this amazing book. God finally acts. David’s running from Saul comes to an end. The way forward to becoming king is now clear. Are you still waiting on God? Please read or listen to 1 Samuel 31.

COMMENTS We conclude 1 Samuel by looking into the three journals used throughout this whole book. Let’s go back to 1983. I do have more than one line on this chapter, as we wrap up 1 Samuel. I wrote when I was twenty-eight-years-old, “Jonathan and Saul are killed fighting the Philistines. It’s sad to finally see Saul die. What a spiritual struggle he had most of his life. Jonathan, a man of love, who knew David was destined for the throne, and said, ‘I will be next to you.’ These deaths paved the way for David to become king.” When I was forty-seven-years-old, in 2002 I wrote, “Saul and all his sons die in battle. God finally takes Saul’s life. Rather, Saul is severely wounded in the battle, then takes his own life. The bodies were cremated. With no survivors, God opens the way for David to become king.” Lastly, at fifty-two-years-old, in 2007, I wrote, “1 Samuel 31, Jonathan gets a one-line obituary. David’s friend dies in battle. All the sons of Saul die, leaving no heir to the throne, opening the way for David. Saul, wounded in battle, takes his own life. Is Saul in Heaven? Not because he took his own life, but did he live for God, give his life to God? Was he favored enough by God as Israel’s first king to get to Heaven? His spiritual life was inconsistent. I don’t know.” DIGGING DEEPER It is certainly not up to me, or up to us, to decide anyone’s fate. It is up to us to decide how to live our own lives. There are many models in 1 Samuel. Saul, Samuel, David, Jonathan. Who did you like? Who would you like to model your life after? Maybe you want to be completely consistent, like the prophet Samuel. Maybe you would like to have the love of a Jonathan. Or maybe you would like to strengthen yourself in the Lord, like David did, over and over in this book. But the fact is, most of us are probably more like Saul. We struggle to maintain consistency in our spiritual lives. Remember early, the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon Saul. God gave him everything. He was going to be the first King of Israel. But also remember those very difficult times, when an evil spirit came from the Lord upon Saul because of his disobedience, his inconsistency with his walk with the Lord. God finally removed His Spirit, removed His blessing, removed His favor, and removed the throne from the household of Saul. We may not really know the struggle of Saul, but we are probably like him. In our own heart of hearts, can we maintain consistency in our spiritual walk with the Lord Jesus Christ and God Almighty? I hope from 1 Samuel you have been encouraged, or you have

been challenged to strengthen your walk in the Lord and become far more consistent in your faith, in your love, in your walk with God Almighty. One way to do that is to stay in the Word of God each and every day. Like Saul, the Philistines were after him all the days of his life. We are the same. Satan, our enemy, is after us every day of our lives. God loved us enough to give us His Word. I pray you will stay in it consistently, each and every day of your life. We cannot leave the story here, can we? Join us for 2 Samuel, where we will continue the story about David, as he becomes the King of Israel. PRAYER Father, thank You for the great lessons we have learned from 1 Samuel. Help us, Lord, become more consistent in our spiritual lives. Draw us to your Word, where we can learn more about You. We love you, Lord. Thank You for loving us. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.