Stop And Rededicate Your Service To God

2 Chronicles 5:4-7 -  When all the leaders of Israel arrived, the Levites moved the Ark,  along with the special tent and all its sacred utensils. The Levitical priests carried them all up to the Temple.  King Solomon and the entire community of Israel sacrificed sheep and oxen before the Ark in such numbers that no one could keep count!  Then the priests carried the Ark of the LORD's covenant into the inner sanctuary of the Temple -- the Most Holy Place -- and placed it beneath the wings of the cherubim.

 

The temple was finished…the leaders were called…and the priests picked up the poles on their shoulders and carried the Ark of God to its new home.  Placed beneath the protective wings of its guardian angel…the tablets containing God’s rules for living rested in the Holy of Holies….in the most holy presence of God. 

 

The great procession took place during the annual Festival of Tabernacles….and renewed both the peoples commitment to serve and love the one true God…and the trust they had in his ability to protect and guide them. God was so pleased with the incalculable sacrifices they offered that day…he allowed the cloud of his Holy presence to fill the temple.

 

It was a grand praise service where the priests….musicians….choirs….hundreds of instruments …and all the people who could crowd into the public courtyards….filled the air with praises to Yahweh.  They celebrated this day that he had provided for them a new permanent home…remembering where he had brought them from…and all that he had done for them along the journey.

 

It reminds me this morning to stop more often and offer my own thanks for the many things God has done for me.  I sure can’t remember a time when I offered up so many praises that they couldn’t be counted. I developed the routine of worshiping God at the regular times our church has services…and thank him quietly in a daily time of prayer and Bible study…but I sure don’t have an annual Festival of Praise and Thanks.

 

What we need is a mass revival…that will ignite the hearts and lives of the people of God like never before.  God will be so pleased with the gathering of his people shouting praises to his name that his Holy Spirit will descend on the celebration and heal the physically sick…mend the hearts of the broken hearted…and give new hope and courage to the entire world through all that take part.  God’s love would spread like a wildfire…to everyone that came near to those that received power from the gathering.

 

Father…I thank you for the Celebration you had Ezra record for us in the Bible….and the reminder it gives me to stop and give you praise more often.  Help me rededicate in this moment… my commitment to you …and trust you completely for the courage and strength to do the work you have called me to do.  You have called me to another year in the public classroom of SLMS…and today I will meet the souls of the children you have picked especially for me to work with.  My mission call for this moment is to touch the lives of these children you have placed in my care…and help them see the love of your son that can change their lives forever. Give me the discernment and wisdom I need to be all that you have called me to be it the lives of each child you have sent me. Amen.

Follow God's Rules....Exactly

2 Chronicles 4:7-9 -  Solomon then cast ten gold lampstands according to the specifications that had been given and put them in the Temple. Five were placed against the south wall, and five were placed against the north wall.  He also built ten tables and placed them in the Temple, five along the south wall and five along the north wall. Then he molded one hundred gold basins.  Solomon also built a courtyard for the priests and the large outer courtyard. He made doors for the courtyard entrances and overlaid them with bronze.

 

As Solomon was building the temple…he referred often to the plans God had given Moses on Mount Sinai.  He followed directions completely…..making everything the priests would need to offer sacrifices to God…making sure it was from the finest gold and bronze.   He built the inner court for the priests to worship…and even made sure the people who came to offer thanks and bring sin offerings to God had a place to offer their praise and prayers before leaving the temple.

 

Perhaps that is one reason that Solomon was so blessed as a young king.  His knowledge of the words God gave to Moses were so deeply embedded in his heart that he dared not stray from exactly what they told him to do.  The last words of his father must have constantly urged him to continue to follow all the Lord’s commands…and walk carefully in his ways…..so his family could continue to rule the land of Israel.

 

I have to admit my failings in this area…for I am prone to want my own way…and take short cuts from point A to point B.  It makes me wonder just how many blessings I missed because I got in a hurry and did things my own way. Like Sarah…waiting is not my best character trait.  I tend to find ways to help God along….and make a mess with the plans he had for me in the process.

 

I need to be more like Solomon…and follow God’s word more closely.  I need to heed the words of Paul to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15…and study to show myself approved unto God…so I can be his workman ….proud of the work  he has given me to do…because it is based solely on the truth.  Paul had just told his friend in 2 Timothy 2:5 …. “Follow the Lord's rules for doing his work, just as an athlete either follows the rules or is disqualified and wins no prize.”

 

Father…thank you for the reminder that my study of your word means nothing if I do not follow what it says for me to do.  Help me to understand each passage you allowed to be recorded in your great Bible…so that I can develop a passion to follow its plan for my life exactly…and stop trying to insert my own ideas and wishes.  Grant me the peace that surpasses understanding when you ask me to wait on you….so I don’t make any more messes…and the blessings you have planned for me are not diluted with my selfishness and pride. Amen.

Be A Pillar Of God's Love

2 Chronicles 3:15-17 -  For the front of the Temple, Solomon made two pillars that were 27 feet tall, each topped by a capital extending upward another 7 1/2 feet.  He made a network of interwoven chains and used them to decorate the tops of the pillars. He also made one hundred decorative pomegranates and attached them to the chains.  Then he set up the two pillars at the entrance of the Temple, one to the south of the entrance and the other to the north. He named the one on the south Jakin, and the one on the north Boaz.

 

The day finally came when talk about building the temple actually became real.  The soil was broken…the foundation laid…the plans carried out with the finest cedar…gold and gems available. A blue and white linen curtain was hung to separate the inner Holy of Holies…and two huge pillars were set at the entrance ….so grand they were given names.

 

These two pillars were more than just decoration…they symbolized the establishment of a permanent relationship with God….they represented the complete strength that could only be found in Yahweh.  One was named Jachin…which meant established by God.  Solomon meant to place importance on the line of David….which God had promised to continue his love forever.  The other was named Boaz…which meant strength of God…giving importance to the line of Judah…which God had strengthened from the days of Abraham.

 

We are given a promise by God to become pillars ourselves….if we follow his commands and stand firm to the end.  John wrote in Revelation 3:12… “The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name.”

 

I am reminded of the pillar of my family…my earthly father…who has modeled the love of God for me all my life. His quiet way…full of wisdom and love…has been rewarded with 90 years of life….today.  What an honor to be counted his child…and raised by his love. How blessed I am to have shared his love for so long.  I thank God for the blessing of such a great earthly father …who has loved and raised me in God’s love.

 

We are all to become pillars of faith…strength…and hope for each other.  We are to establish a permanent relationship with God…and learn to rely on his strength to provide for all our needs. We are to become the Jachin’s and the Boaz’s…and the Phil Simpson’s of the current world….and model for others the only way to survive the end of the world.  We must spread God’s message to everyone…so they all have a chance to know his great love.

 

I am beginning a new school year today…it marks number 32 that God has allowed me to work with children…and teach them…some small part of what they will need to be competent citizens when they grow up. I will need to God’s strength and wisdom as I begin this new year…so I will not become weary…so I will rely on my relationship with God to guide me.

 

Father…I thank you so much for the reminder that I am to be a pillar to others around me.  Help me to grow and mature in your strength and wisdom …so I can be a pillar for someone else that needs your love.  Thank you for an Earthly father that taught me about your love…and modeled for me how to give it away to others. Thank you for your only son that sacrificed his divinity to save me from my sins. Bless my Earthly father with even more years of life….and help me to become a pillar of strength and wisdom to the children you have placed in my hands for this year.  Amen.

Testify Of God's Greatness To Others

2 Chronicles 2:3-5 - Solomon also sent this message to King Hiram at Tyre: "Send me cedar logs like the ones that were supplied to my father, David, when he was building his palace. I am about to build a Temple to honor the name of the LORD my God. It will be a place set apart to burn incense and sweet spices before him, to display the special sacrificial bread, and to sacrifice burnt offerings each morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, at new moon celebrations, and at the other appointed festivals of the LORD our God. He has commanded Israel to do these things forever.  "This will be a magnificent Temple because our God is an awesome God, greater than any other.

 

Solomon gathered one of the biggest construction crews ever known to man to build the temple of God.  He used local craftsman and those from other lands that had been gifted with stone cutting….and metal working skills. Lumber was bartered for from the King of Tyre. The message Solomon sent to King Hiram was a testimony of the great God that would be worshiped in the grand temple he was building.

 

Solomon took the opportunity to testify about the one true God….Yahweh…when he sent his message requesting materials and laborers to help in the building of the temple. He knew that King Hiram worshiped many Gods…and wanted him to know that this temple was being built for the God of Israel…the greatest God….the most powerful God. 

 

It is a reminder to me to always take the time to testify to the greatness of God in my own life. As our day progresses we naturally cross paths with people who need to hear about God…and the great things he has done to give us strength. They need to hear the stories of how he has blessed us….and the positive influence it has had on our growth as a person.

 

Many of us don’t share what God has done in our life these days because we are afraid of being politically incorrect.  We don’t want to offend anyone who might believe another way.  We dilute the truth….we share only the stuff they might accept…or worse yet…remain silent.  We simply don’t take a stand for God….concerned that other people will be offended.

 

Hiram wasn’t offended…he saw the greatness of God through his servant Solomon…and sent blessings back in return.  He sent him all the wood and laborers he requested….building a partnership that God could use to model his love.  The long days of labor and work on the temple modeled the love of the one true God to  a nation of people who believed and worshiped more than one.

 

Father….thank you for this reminder that God requires us to praise him to others.  Help me to always see the opportunities you place in my path to witness to others…and tell them the great things you have done in my life.  Give me words like you gave Solomon…that will show your glory…that will make them stop and listen…and consider that God might have a place in their lives as well. Give me courage to always speak boldly for you…and not water down your word.  Amen.

Seek God First....He Has Great Gifts For You Too

2 Chronicles 1:3-6 -  Then Solomon led the entire assembly to the hill at Gibeon where God's Tabernacle was located. This was the Tabernacle that Moses, the LORD's servant, had constructed in the wilderness.  David had already moved the Ark of God from Kiriath-jearim to the special tent he had prepared for it in Jerusalem.  But the bronze altar made by Bezalel son of Uri and grandson of Hur was still at Gibeon in front of the Tabernacle of the LORD. So Solomon and the people gathered in front of it to consult the LORD.  There in front of the Tabernacle, Solomon went up to the bronze altar in the LORD's presence and sacrificed a thousand burnt offerings on it.

 

From day one…Solomon was blessed by God to become a great king…and Solomon did not take his favor for granted.  He gathered the leaders and led them up the hill leading to Gibeon…about 6 miles…to the site of the original tabernacle…the one Moses had built using the blueprint of God.  There he offered a huge sacrifice to God...to seek his direction in his life.

 

Perhaps that is why God visited him that evening…and offered him anything he wanted.  God’s favor was multiplied with no boundaries…because Solomon sought the will of God from the very beginning of his rein. Solomon was a wealthy man….so he took an appropriate sacrifice.  Solomon had many people to advise and help him lead…so he took them all with him.  They all stood before the altar of the Lord…and offered what they had to praise and thank him for everything good in their lives.  They sought him for direction in their future…so they would be in his will.

 

I think it was important that he traveled to the tabernacle of God that Moses built. Even though the ark was housed in a tent close to the palace….Solomon felt a need to travel to God’s complete tabernacle.  For me…it shows his need to seek God …instead of taking the easy way…and placing God where we want him to be.  Something drew Solomon this day to seek God in the tabernacle of his forefather’s…not just enter the tent his father had built to house the ark.

 

I chanced upon a sweet spot by a gentle creek this weekend. My travels made me tired before I reached my true destination…so I stopped for the night…picking the town because I remembered an aunt and uncle stayed there in the summer months.  God led me straight to a motel by the creek…where my room opened on porch next to the rushing water. As I sat by the creek that first night…old memories flooded my soul of how close I felt to God when I am near the river.

 

I would drive sometimes after work…just to sit somewhere close to the creek…where I could put my feet in the cold refreshing water and talk to God. The farther I could afford to go up the mountain …the better. We had some of the best conversations back then…maybe because I was a better listener when the sound of the water drowned out the worries that led me there in the first place.

 

Solomon must have felt the same way….so he gathered up everyone who needed to hear from God…and they hiked up the hill…where he knew for sure God would be.  They left the worries and noise of the city behind them…and they took God presents…and sacrificed them there.  They spent time worshiping and consulting God…perhaps in audible cries…or maybe it was simple silent prayers.

 

Most of us know how this was rewarded by God. God followed him home to the palace that night…and appeared in person to Solomon…to tell he was so pleased he could have anything he wanted. And Solomon just humbly replied that he had been given such great gifts already…he wanted nothing more than the wisdom to lead …and judge…and honor God with all that he had been asked to be in control of. And God granted him al that he asked for and more.

 

Father….thank you for this story that reminds me to seek you first...and all other things will fall into place.  I thank you for the perfect place to have this epiphany …and for renewing my soul with the living water in your Bible.  Help me father to be wise like Solomon…and seek you always for the direction you would have me to go...so you can use me as you did this young king.  Help me to make all my decisions based on your will for my life and the word you gave me to live by daily.  And thank you for going with me anywhere I go.  Amen.

God Owns It....EVERYTHING We Own Is On Loan

1 Chronicles 29:11-14 -   Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O LORD, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things.  Riches and honor come from you alone, for you rule over everything. Power and might are in your hand, and it is at your discretion that people are made great and given strength.  "O our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name!  But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to you? Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you have already given us!

 

David’s last moments on Earth were so consumed with God’s presence in in his life….his words to others showing them that he understood the power and control God has over our lives.  As he handed the crown to his son…he was overcome with just how unworthy he was to hold the position and wealth God had showered on him throughout his life…in spite of the many mistakes he had made.  He asked a question…but it is clear he already knew the answer.

 

God is the owner of everything…EVERYTHING…that we have been allowed to touch in our lifetime.  The land….the house…the car…the money…and all the petty material wealth we have collected around us.  It’s all God’s folks…on loan so to speak….and we are simple the caretakers of it. Everything we have been given is not ours….it has been placed in our hands because God wanted to bless us.

 

David’s many storms in life had helped him develop a humbleness few of us can imagine.  In this moment…soon before his death…he thanked God for allowing such a sinner as himself to be so powerful and wealthy…then he gave everything God had blessed him with back to God.  He had spent a great portion of his life amassing the materials his son would need to build a grand home for God….and now he gave everything else he had been given back to the one who had given it to him.

 

When we start to soak in the truth that God is the master of our lives…and he has given us what we have not just to bless us….but to do some work for him as well…then our hearts begin to understand the meaning of stewardship.  Tithing …. charity…. offering… giving to others….it all takes on a new meaning when we look at it through David’s eyes. God’s generosity toward us should spur our hearts into new realms of generosity to others…. So that we become better stewards of what he placed in our hands. 

 

I can’t help but think of that story in Matthew 25….where the master of a fortune gave three different servants some gold to manage while he was away.  God was not too pleased with the one who dug a hole and hid it in the ground…but he praised the two for taking what he had given them and multiplied it into more than they started with. Pretty clear to me that I am not supposed to sit on what he gives me and do nothing….I am supposed to invest it in the lives of others…and give it back to him to use to build his kingdom.

 

Father…thank you for this reminder that I am not the owner of anything that I touch around me.  You have simply loaned it to me to use in some way for your glory.  Show me this morning how I can be a better steward of what you have placed in my hands.  Give me open eyes and sharp hearing…so I can hear the Holy spirit prompting me to use what you have given me to do you work here on Earth.  Amen.

The Secret to Happiness....Security...And True Justice

1 Chronicles 28:8-9 -  So now, with God as our witness, I give you this charge for all Israel, the LORD's assembly: Be careful to obey all the commands of the LORD your God, so that you may possess this good land and leave it to your children as a permanent inheritance.  "And Solomon, my son, get to know the God of your ancestors. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and with a willing mind. For the LORD sees every heart and understands and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.

 

David knew it was time to step down off the throne.  He was old…and knew he had fulfilled all that God had told him to do….so he gathered the political leaders….religious leaders….and all that he had given duties at the palace or palace grounds.  Then he addressed them with a speech that reminded all who were present of the great God they worshiped….making sure to explain that he was stepping down as king…and passing his crown to his son Solomon.

 

David’s charge to his son as he was passed the full responsibility of being king …reminded them all that he had been given all the plans to the temple…how he had collected all that they would need…and why God had chosen Solomon to build it.  Then he charged his son to chase after God with all his heart and soul…to get to know him…worship him…..serve him…with a willingness to learn all that he could. 

 

David was imparting to his son the secret of his own happiness….security…and sense that God had been just and merciful to him.  He knew that Solomon would need to rely on the same source of power if he were to be successful in the job God had given him to do. David knew that we have to seek God…if we are to find him a presence in our lives.

 

God doesn’t just sit at our doorstep and hope we trip over him…he requires us to develop a personal relationship with him through prayer….Bible study….and worship at a church.  We need to build around us people who love God…and model for us how to love him only….people who will provide fellowship and a safe worship environment.  We need to develop a prayer routine that gives us a daily time to talk to who should be our best friend….and find a consistent time to study his word…every day.  We need to memorize the passages that will give us the strength we need …when satan comes around to try and trick us away from spending time with our Lord.

 

I can testify to how God has changed my life ….given me strength beyond what I ever imagined…even through the darkest valleys of life….because I have learned to sit down with his word EVERY evening 3 years ago.  I simply can’t sleep…till I spend some time reading a chapter from the book of directions he gave us to live by. The quiet time I spend in the morning…allowing God to help me understand what wisdom I might need each morning to help me grow is the most precious time of the day….the icing on the cake so to speak. I truly can’t imagine how dark my life would be if I had not begun to chase God….and seek him each day.

 

I will admit that I am still working on the prayer part of our relationship…trying to make it a more consistent… deeper… more unselfish time with God.  I am good at shouting to God all my needs…and lifting up the needs of my friends…talking TO him is not a problem.   LISTENING….to his voice is where I need to grow….so I can be confident …like David…that what I have done is because the Holy Spirit gave it to me to do.

 

Father…thank you for this great father David…who learned through the mistakes of his own life that you should be his best friend…and he should spend more time with you than anybody.  Thank you for recording his charge to his son…as he passed the crown of Israel to him the day he stepped down as king.  Help me to chase after you the way he told Solomon to seek you…with my whole heart….all of my mind….and my thirsty soul.  Keep my passion strong to study your Bible…..and open wide my ears to help me listen to your Holy Spirit tell me how to fulfill your will for my life.  Amen.