1 Kings 8:10-11

OK, it’s been too long, but here I am again. I felt God lead me to write about my Bible reading again today, not sure why. Perhaps just because I have time this morning!

Scripture

1 Kings 8:10-11

When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD. And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple.

Observation

This comes from the story of Solomon having God’s temple built, and when it was done, dedicating it to the Lord. They sacrificed thousands of animals, made loads of musical noise, praised and prayed. And God came down in a cloud to visit them. He made his home with them, and showed them his presence, in the form they had read and heard about since their ancestors were led out of Egypt by a pillar of cloud. They understood this as a clear sign that their God was with them, so much so that the religious activity the priests were supposed to be doing had to be stopped, and the presence of God enjoyed!

Application

Firstly, God still loves His people that much! But now, instead of a cloud, we get the Holy Spirit living in us. That’s how he makes his home with us today, when we thank Him for all He has done and invite him in.  And secondly, this section speaks to me about the nature of our relationship with God, and religious activity, which may not be bad, or harmful, and may even have been ordained by God in the first place. But just like with Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet while Martha buzzed around doing stuff, God knows that the best thing for us is enjoying His presence, sitting at His feet listening to Him (which I am very bad at doing for any length of time), and the ‘stuff’ we do that focusses on church, or meetings, or whatever, will still get done, but it isn’t what’s most important.

Prayer

Father God, please make me better at enjoying your presence simply for what it is, the Holy life of God all around me, and listening to the Holy Spirit when He urges me to stop and spend time with you. And thank you for giving us your presence as a free gift!

 

2 Samuel 11-15

Scripture

2 Samuel 14: 27 “Three sons and a daughter were born to Absalom. The daughter’s name was Tamar, and she became a beautiful woman.”

Observation

OK, so this verse only stands out in importance within the context of the whole passage, 2 Sam 11-15, which starts with David’s adultery with Bathsheba and ends with David and loads of Jerusalem’s inhabitants hiding outside the city, scared of the conspiracy that has been started by his son Absalom. In the middle is the key to why this verse stands out. After the account of David and Bathsheba, we get the first fruits of David’s sin: Amnon and Absalom are half-brothers, both sons of David, and Tamar is Absalom’s sister. Amnon becomes infatuated with Tamar, and rapes her, leading her into desolation and despair, and himself into death at the hands of Absalom. This is why I love the fact that the writer of the book (unknown for sure, but some scholars think it could have been Nathan or Gad, both prophets) inserts this lovely little moment of Absalom naming his daughter after his shamed sister, and her growing into a beautiful woman – good can come out of evil, there is redemption after sin.

Application

I guess the most obvious application of this truth is that no matter how horrific a situation we might be going through, God can redeem it for good. When my mother killed herself when I was nine years old, I had no idea what life was going to be like after that. I knew my Dad loved us, and I trusted God, and today I have a wonderful step-mother, and younger sister and brother who are a result of Dad’s re-marrying – I praise God for them, because had my mum not died, they wouldn’t be here, and my life might be all the poorer. That’s exactly the kind of redemption that God can bring out of disaster.

Prayer

Thank you Lord that time and time again, both in Scriptures and modern life, your love exceeds human tragedy, and you are willing to bring hope and joy out of doom and shame. Praise you for that!

 

1 Samuel 1-5

Scripture:

 1 Samuel 1:19-20

Early the next morning they arose and worshipped before the LORD and then went back to their home at Ramah. Elkanah lay with Hannah his wife, and the LORD remembered her. So in the course of time Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I asked the LORD for him.”

 Observation:

 The phrase “and the LORD remembered him / her / them” occurs several times in Scripture, and I particularly love it here. It is not supposed to indicate that God had forgotten Hannah and was suddenly reminded – not really possible for an all-knowing God. The way I like to ‘translate’ it is something like “God decided to bless him / her / them” – and it tends to happen after that person or people have spent time pouring their heart out to God in prayer or worship. I love Hannah’s story as a whole – her selflessness, her boldness, and the way God blessed her – but this verse particularly stood out to me today.

 Application:

 I’ve been reading Bill Hybels’ book “Too Busy Not To Pray” recently, which has convicted me about how I pray, and reading this today has reinforced this. I don’t pray fervently or for extended periods of time; I get very distracted and though I might say something to God each day, it never feels like it’s anything very meaningful. But I want to be in the position Hannah finds herself in here, where she can see concrete results from her prayer – the existence of her son Samuel is direct proof that God heard and listened to her prayer. Guess I need to follow her example and pour my heart out to God a bit more.

 Prayer:

 Lord, please help me revitalise my prayer life over the next few weeks and months. Please don’t let me fall into the trap of starting unsustainable habits for the sake of it, but lead me to a place where I can make realistic changes to my prayer life, that bring me closer to you and your presence.

 

Joshua 1-5

Scripture

 

Joshua 3:5 - Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.”

 

Observation

 

The verse in context: Joshua has taken command of the people of Israel, succeeding Moses in this post, just as they are poised to cross the Jordan river into the promised land. He’s clearly not feeling too ready for this, as both God and the members of 3 of the Israelite tribes tell him to ‘be strong and courageous’ throughout chapter 1. Chapter 2 tells the story of the spies going into Jericho and Rahab’s kindness to them, and when they bring back their report, something changes for Joshua. He is no longer worried or afraid, perhaps because he now knows that what God has done for his people in the past 40 years has got around, and the people of Jericho are afraid themselves. So before God has told him that anything amazing is going to happen, he makes this very bold statement from verse 5, declaring his total trust and faith in his God.

 

Application

 

This is not rocket science. How can we build our faith, and step into the shoes that God has laid in front of us? Well one way, which Joshua practiced here, is to hear about what God has done for you and other people, and what he has been doing in the background while things looked bleak for you. I’m guessing Joshua didn’t greatly enjoy the 40 years of wandering the desert, especially as he was someone who trusted God to give them the land the first time they were ready to go in! But what he didn’t know was that during those 40 years, God was preparing the way for them to step fairly easily into the promised land, and for Joshua to be able to be the bold and courageous military leader that Israel needed. So it’s good for us to build our faith by reading about what God did for his people in the Bible, but also what he’s doing for his people around the world today. And maybe something he’s doing for others will inspire us to become the people he has always designed us to be.

 

Prayer

 

Praise you God, for not being inactive even when we feel like things are bleak. Thank you that you made each one of us with a purpose to fulfil in this life. And please, Father, help us to achieve that goal, and build our faith in you, living in expectation of you doing amazing things in our lives. Amen.

 

Esther 6-10

Scripture

Esther 8:7-9

King Xerxes replied to Queen Esther and to Mordecai the Jew, “Because Haman attacked the Jews, I have given his estate to Esther, and they have hanged him on the gallows. 

Now write another decree in the king’s name in behalf of the Jews as seems best to you, and seal it with the king’s signet ring —for no document written in the king’s name and sealed with his ring can be revoked.”

At once the royal secretaries were summoned—on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. They wrote out all Mordecai’s orders to the Jews, and to the satraps, governors and nobles of the 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush. These orders were written in the script of each province and the language of each people and also to the Jews in their own script and language.

Observation

What really jumped out at me when read this was how far Xerxes’ empire stretched,  which I really hadn’t appreciated before – from India to Cush (today’s Ethiopia). That’s huge! And when you look at a map (like this one)you notice how far north it went as well. And the text tells us that they used every language represented in that whole space, which must have been loads and loads, to tell the Jews that they were free from persecution. No wonder the feast of Purim dates from these events – the freedom that the actions of a couple of brave Jews brought, namely Esther and Mordecai, led to a massive change in circumstances for their people all over the known world.

Application

In my job as a teacher and position as a parent, thoughts like these are quite pertinent. The bravery of Mordecai and Esther led to the freedom of millions of Jews across the world at their time, and a feast that has been celebrated ever since in all Jewish communities around the world. It has been said that the influence a teacher can have can never be measured – if I impart something good to one of my pupils or my own children (a bit of advice, a story, a worldview, who knows), and they impart it to someone they know, or their children, and their children pass it on to others, who knows where it could go. Equally, the responsibility that teachers, youth workers, parents etc. have should not be underestimated – if we can pass on good stuff, we can also pass on the bad, whether we realise it or not. 

Prayer

Help me Lord not to underestimate either my potential influence or my responsibility to future generations represented by the pupils I teach. And be with all those who teach children, work with children and young people or are parents, so that good values, and actions that bring freedom not oppression, are passed on.

 

Nehemiah 1-4

Scripture

Nehemiah 2:1-5

In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before; so the king asked me, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart.” 
      I was very much afraid, but I said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?” The king said to me, “What is it you want?” 
      Then I prayed to the God of heaven, and I answered the king, “If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it.”

Observation

The main thing that stood out to me was how Nehemiah approached the challenge before him. In chapter 1, he gets righteously upset about the fate of Jerusalem, when he hears the state it’s in, and spends some time in prayer about going to the King to ask permission to return home. Then, when the time comes to say what he wants to the King he serves, he begins by praying a quick prayer inwardly, and asks the King what he wants. I don’t know if this is the only example of an ‘arrow prayer’ being prayed in the Bible, but it’s a great one.

Application

The result of all this prayer is quick and clear – Nehemiah gets permission, and goes off to do what God has called him to do, namely re-build the walls of Jerusalem, with the help of the remnant families who are there. God honours his prayerful requests, and though this is not rocket science to most Christians, shows that prayer works! Personal testimony to this – my wife passed her driving test first time two weeks ago, and in every lesson with her instructor that week had been told that she didn’t really have a chance of passing if she carried on driving how she was. I had been praying most days since she started in August, and asked friends to pray specifically on the day of her test, and God totally honoured those prayers too.

Prayer

Father God, help me to remember that prayer actually works, and to take my concerns to you on a regular basis. Holy Spirit, please inspire me to pray ‘arrow prayers’ regularly too, especially when something particularly challenging needs praying about.