FINISH WELL to HIS GLORY

I love the Old Testament because it is full of stories of real and frail humans just like me.  Each year, I choose to read through the Bible, and the same dread slowly comes as I read of King David and then his son, King Solomon.  How grateful I am that God's reputation can handle the likes of us who desire to be Christ followers, yet at times, we fumble, stumble, and maybe limp along. Truly, we are more flawed than we realize!

 I grieve as I read of David's frailties, even though a man after God's own heart....disobedience with Bathsheba and his weaknesses in rearing his boys.  I sense that he was able to recoup and finish well, but I also sense he was bruised and bore some scars from the rebellion of his sons and of himself.  I see Solomon,one of his sons, who had the heart of obedience and desired to follow the LORD, at least in the beginning of his reign.  As the narrative moves along, he has disobeyed the LORD in regard to pagan wives who helped to steal his heart from God and then his love for horses, which caused him to trust in his resources rather than God in warfare.  I do not sense that Solomon finished as well as his dad because Ecclesiastes, if written by him, seems to portray a broken and crusty individual who was even more bruised and scarred than his dad. 

I am grateful that my life has not been staged in the Word of God for everyone to read and to sort through my frailties. The old song by the Gaithers come to mind, HE has made something beautiful of my life... in spite of me!  My heart cry, "O LORD, please allow me to finish well to your glory." 

 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

LAST THOUGHT ON LEVITICUS

Image
  For the first time in many years, I have enjoyed reading through Leviticus.  I have skipped it several times and read on.  This go round, I have sought to focus on some thoughts, words, phrases, or practices that God had instituted for the Israelites and their physical and spiritual well-being.  The Ten Commandments and many of the laws have real practical value for society and the Christ follower today.  The Lord God gave them a standard, a commandment, which is applicable for today, "You must obey my laws and be careful to follow my decrees.  I am the Lord (Jehovah) your God (Elohim).  Keep my decrees and laws, for the man who obeys them will live by them.  I am the LORD."  Leviticus 18:4-5   My concluding thought from Leviticus is this admonition or commandment:  " You are to be holy to me because I, the LORD, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own."  Leviticus 20:26.  Even though spoken to Israel, the truth of being holy is directe
Read more

REHEARSALS

Image
  I wonder how much time do I give to rehearsing God's goodness and how He has intervened in my life to "save" me from myself?  How alike the Israelites I can be, complaining about what goes wrong, how it affects me, and what I lack.  As a Christ follower, I have the Indwelling Holy Spirit to give me remembrance NOT of my complaining and grumbling, but of a recall of God's faithfulness to me.  It is recorded in Psalms 78 and 106 that " They forgot what He had done, the wonder He had shown them", "They did not remember His power--the day He redeemed them from the oppressor...", "They did not remember Your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea.", "But they soon forgot what He had done and did not wait for His counsel.", and "They forgot the God who saved them, who had done great things in Egypt...". Contrast with me, God's remembrance: Ps. 106:44-46, "But He took note of their distress
Read more

ORDER AND DESIGN

Image
    I do not have OCD, but I do confess that I like order in my home.  Now that I am retired, I am not so much into spotless, but "picked up" and "kinda" clean. (Do not open drawers and closets!) I might go to more trouble when I know I am having company, but otherwise, I remove the clutter that seems to reproduce on its own.   When I began the reading in Genesis in January, I was again taken with the with the orderliness and design of God in creation, and have seen Him use Moses and Aaron to ORDERLY marshal the Israelites to move out of Egypt. How do you move some 600+ males and that is not even wives and children? Animals also?  They have been one year+ out of Egypt, and have been camped at Mt. Sinai where God has given them laws for their spiritual and physical welfare.  God gives Moses the design of the Tabernacle and Moses is able to bring together the workers to complete the Tabernacle.   The clip art at the top is the positioning of the 12 Tribes and the
Read more