God Sees You!

The Lord said to Samuel, "...I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.”

... [Jesse] sent for [David] and had him brought in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.” So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David.

I Samuel 16:1-13

The great prophet Samuel had come to town and invited Jesse and his sons to a sacrificial feast. David’s seven older brothers and his father went to meet this great man no doubt wearing their best clothes, while David was left behind in the fields to tend the family's sheep. David appears to have been a bit overlooked and even taken for granted by his family.

David was the youngest and the least physically impressive of Jesse's eight sons. His family appears to have had no great wealth or social standing. He lived in a small, unremarkable village on the fertile edge of a desert and spent his days tending sheep and playing music. No one looked out on that young man sitting in the fields and saw greatness. No one but God!

Maybe you know that feeling. No one ever seems to notice you. No one thinks you’re all that special. Maybe you even feel a bit taken for granted. You do everything you’re supposed to, but instead of appreciation, all you get is more work or worse, complaints. Whether it's your parents, spouse, kids, boyfriend/girlfriend, or even your boss; most of us know what it feels like to be taken for granted, forgotten, or overlooked in one way or another.

Sometimes it can be tempting to think, “What am I killing myself for? It isn’t worth it. I should do what everyone else does and do just enough to get by. Do the bare minimum” But in young David, we find encouragement to keep going. God saw David sitting out in those fields by himself, and God sees you!

Today if you feel ignored or forgotten, know that He sees you. He sees you working long hours at your desk. He sees you rising before dawn to work your land, tend your animals or make lunches for your kids. God sees you doing good, hard, honest work to provide your family

In this way, David reminds us of what Galatians 6:9 says. "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." Don’t grow weary in doing good. It’s not for nothing. God hasn’t forgotten you. Continue to be faithful in the little things and in due time God will reward you. It may be in this life, as it was for David, or it may be in the next. But make no mistake. God sees you. It matters. And you will be rewarded.

The Double Blessing of Obedience

Nearly from the moment they attain speech small children begin to think they know better than their parents. You know they do because they will argue with their parents, shouting "NO!". This innate behavior captures some of what it means to have a fallen human nature. None of us likes to be told what to do. We all think we know better than others do and can get along just fine on our own.

But when it comes to God's commands, we'd be wise to take instruction. Scripture tells us that it's actually a blessing that He tells us what to do. Check out one of David's songs about the blessing of God's law.

The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul;The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.More to be desired are they than gold,Yea, than much fine gold;Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.Moreover by them Your servant is warned,And in keeping them there is great reward.

Who can understand his errors?Cleanse me from secret faults.Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins;Let them not have dominion over me.Then I shall be blameless,And I shall be innocent of great transgression.(Psalm 19:7-13)

In verse eleven we find out that God's commands are actually a double blessing. First, they serve as a warning, protecting us from the many dangers that await us when we go our own way. Sin always brings pain and difficulty. God's commands are designed to protect us from that pain and difficulty.

Second, walking in the paths of righteousness laid out by God's commands brings reward. That doesn't mean life is always easy when you obey, but it's certainly easier and better in the long run than it would have been if you had not obeyed.

So, do something for yourself today. Obey God!

Be Silent Before Him (W.o.W. Rewind)

The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.
Habakkuk 2:20


Have you ever known someone who talked too much? I'm talking about the kind of person who just doesn't know when to shut up, even if it's for their own good? I bet you have. To be honest, I've been accused of talking too much myself on occasion. It's a problem. It's off-putting and annoying. But as guilty as I am of doing this to people, I can't help but wonder how much more guilty I am of doing it to God. How often do I go to God talking on and on when I ought to simply be silent?

Silent in awe of His glory.
Silent before Him bearing the weight of my sin and guilt.
Silent in repentance.
Silently rejoicing in the great grace He has shown me in Christ Jesus the Lord.
Silent in worship.
Silent in meekness, listening to hear what He might say to me.

Sometimes it is simply impossible to wrap words around the fear, the guilt, the joy, the love, or the gratitude that our hearts feel toward God. In these moments it is often better to simply lift our hearts up to God in silence than to try to explain to Him what He can already read plainly on our hearts.

When was the last time you sat silent before God, too overcome by His goodness to even form words? I encourage you to spend some time with the Lord today. Try to speak less and listen more.

Giving Up Our Mirrors

They made the bronze basin and its bronze stand from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

Exodus 38:8

This isn't a passage of Scripture that you are likely to read. It's buried well into a sixteen-chapter section of Exodus that deals almost exclusively with the minutia of the tabernacle including lengthy discussions on the dimensions and details of the tent, its posts, its coverings, and all its furnishings and their utensils. In fact, the only reason you would likely come across is if you are working through a Bible reading plan that requires you to read the entire Bible. Yet, I always find that the Spirit mines treasures out of the depths of Scripture when I really dig into it. And that proves true here. 

The Israelites had taken up a love offering to gather all the materials they would need to construct their place of worship in keeping with the Lord's command. In this section of Scripture, we find how much gold they collected, how much silver, how much bronze, and all the other necessary materials as well. But no other individual or group is specifically credited for their gift like these women are. Why? What made their gift worthy of special mention?

First, it was a costly gift. A mirror would have been a prized possession for women living in a desert. It's not like there was a lot of pools of water around that they could see their reflection in! Assuming that they didn't have multiple mirrors, it meant that they would be considerably less able to manage and check their appearance. Can you imagine the possibility of living completely without mirrors for the rest of your life? So, it cost them something to give away this comfort and this control. It is also entirely possible that the only valuables these women owned were their jewelry and these mirrors. Without the ability to work and make money, this was a financially costly gift as well. 

Second, it was a wise gift. Many of the pagan religions of the day encouraged worshipers to engage in sexual acts with temple prostitutes as an expression of worship for these false gods. It isn't hard to imagine how people could get the wrong idea about these women who were standing at the entrance to the tabernacle, especially if they were beautifully dressed and attractively groomed. By giving their mirrors to the Lord, these women were committing to avoid allowing their presence at the tabernacle turn into something unholy. 

For you and I this should be a powerful reminder that requires expression. When we love someone, we do big and difficult things to express that love to them. And somehow by the act we remind ourselves again of just how much we do love them. When was the last time you gave an offering to the Lord that was actually costly for you to give? When was the last time you gave until it hurt? Maybe it's time for you to give a love offering to the Lord. If so, consider giving something or fasting from something that would also serve to safeguard you from some sin or excess in your life.