May 16, 2024 – 1 Samuel 8:10-18
May 16, 2024 – 1 Samuel 8:10-18
10 So
Samuel told all the words of the Lord to
the people who were asking for a king from him. 11 He
said, “These will be the ways of the king who will reign over you: he
will take your sons and appoint them to his chariots and to be his horsemen and
to run before his chariots. 12 And he will appoint
for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to
plow his ground and to reap his harvest, and to make his implements of war and
the equipment of his chariots. 13 He will take your
daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He
will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards and give
them to his servants. 15 He will take the tenth of
your grain and of your vineyards and give it to his officers and to his
servants. 16 He will take your male servants and
female servants and the best of your young men and your donkeys, and put
them to his work. 17 He will take the tenth of your
flocks, and you shall be his slaves. 18 And in that
day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for
yourselves, but the Lord will
not answer you in that day.”
Samuel confronts the
Israelites with the truth of the reign of an earthly king. Such a king will use
the Israelites for his personal gain. He will enslave the Israelites. He will
take from the Israelites. And then Samuel prophesizes in verse 18: “And in
that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have chosen for
yourselves, but the Lord will
not answer you in that day.”
Very strong words of
warning that yet again go unheeded by the Israelites. I know what God wants for
me but there are times when I want my way. These times generally do not go well
for me. I must repent and turn from my own desires. Do you find yourself wanting
your own way when God’s way would be so much better? Ponder that thought today
as you go about your business. Wait on the Lord.
Heavenly
Father, I know I am not good at waiting.
I never have been good at waiting on things to happen. I always seem to want things to be on my
schedule. I guess most people are that
way, but I know Your timing is always best.
How is it that even when I know what is best, I’m not willing to wait on
it. I wish I could say I get better at
that as I get older, but I know the truth.
Help me be willing to work on Your time schedule and not demand my
own. My heart wants what You want, but I
have to admit my brain doesn’t always go along with my heart. Help me not just KNOW what You want, but
giving me willingness and strength to wait on what is best. Thank You for Your patience with me. You are an amazing Father.
In Jesus’
name.
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