Planned and Organized (and other devotionals)

Planned and Organized

Today's reading: 1 Kings 5:1-18

As we're learning more and more about Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, one of the things I noticed here in 1 Kings 5 (and in 1 Kings 4) was that Solomon was organized and a planner, two qualities that are very helpful when we're leading or taking on a project. Why is it that so often we get a goal or a project in our mind, and in our excitement, we head off without being fully prepared? (I've certainly done it and I'm guessing you have too.) We've only planned a step or two ahead, and our strategy (whether we realize it or not) is to make decisions as they come up. Sometimes that works out, but more often than not our lack of planning and organization leads to frustration, extra steps, the spending of extra money, and worst case scenario, a failed, unfinished or unattained project or goal. Not the case with Solomon.

What planning step(s) does Solomon use that you might implement the next time you take on a project? What does Solomon's example show us about the value of working and partnering with other people? 

~Tami~

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I will give myself unto prayer (Ps. 109:4).

We are often in a religious hurry in our devotions. How much time do we spend in them daily? Can it not be easily reckoned in minutes? Who ever knew an eminently holy man who did not spend much of his time in prayer? Did ever a man exhibit much of the spirit of prayer, who did not devote much time in his closet?

Whitefield says, "Whole days and weeks have I spent prostrate on the ground, in silent or vocal prayer." "Fall upon your knees and grow there," is the language of another, who knew whereof he affirmed.

It has been said that no great work in literature or science was ever wrought by a man who did not love solitude. We may lay it down as an elemental principle of religion, that no large growth in holiness was ever gained by one who did not take time to be often, and long, alone with God.

--The Still Hour

'Come, come,' He saith, 'O soul oppressed and weary,
Come to the shadows of my desert rest;
Come walk with Me far from life's babbling discords,
And peace shall breathe like music in thy breast.'

~L. B. Cowman~

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In the midst of them - Joshua 19:49

Since Joshua prefigures the Lord Jesus, we are led to think of his inheritance in the midst of his brethren.

In the midst on the Cross. - " They crucified Him, and with Him two others, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst." Forasmuch as we partook of flesh and blood, He shared the same; and since we were under the curse of a broken law, He also bowed beneath its weight, and was made a curse for us. He took the mid-current of pain; where the pressure was heaviest, there the Lamb of God bore the sin of the world. On Him God made to meet the iniquities of us all; alike of those who refuse, as did the one thief, and of those who accept, as did the other.

In the midst, in the gatherings of His People. - "Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them". He is the center of unity. We come from different quarters with our peculiar prepossessions and preconceptions, with no special affinity to each other; but touching Him, we become one with all who touch Him also. See that, not the sermon, nor the supper, nor the form of worship, is the center of fellowship; but Christ always and in all. Then let Him be the center of thy home life and thy business life under all circumstances.

In the midst in Heaven. - " In the midst of the throne, and in the midst of the elders, a Lamb standing." All the circles of the re- deemed, of angels, and of all other beings, revolve around Jesus, as their common center. They thus become concentric. Jesus is the Heart of Heaven; the Sun of Paradise; the Essence of its bliss; the Center of its love; the innermost Soul of its life.

~F. B. Meyer~

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Making the First Thing the First Thing

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Who can understand his errors? Cleanse Thou me from secret faults.” Psalm19:12

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

I believe in church attendance, but if your relationship with the Lord and with others is suffering, then you need to stay at home and get on your face before God.

Sometimes a businessman will get very prosperous in his business—and at first it seems a good thing. He tells his wife, “Honey, you know how I couldn’t give you much when we got married? Well, now I can.” But soon the pursuit of a nice home and nice things consume him. A sadness descends upon his wife and children, and they lament, “Oh, Daddy….Oh, Husband…what we would give to just have you spend time with us.”

ACTION POINT:

What tragedy it would be if what you do for Jesus keeps you from Jesus. Stop the cycle today. If you know you’re a workaholic, stop it. If you know your walk is far from God, get it right.

~Adrian Rogers~

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Hearing God’s Voice

And when they say to you, "Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter," should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living? Isaiah 8:19

We are doing a study right now on hearing God’s voice. We didn’t realize how many misconceptions there were and how much fear exists in the lives of the people who say that they hear the Lord. The fear mostly deals with wondering if it was really God who spoke. There is a definite problem if we question hearing God’s voice because we would end up more double minded than if we didn’t consult the Lord at all. If we just do what we want to do, we deal with the consequences of our own decisions and actions and don’t have to get God involved. When we get God involved, even if our interpretation is wrong, we end up having an issue with Him.

When I see a large group of women all struggling with the same thing, I know that the enemy is having his way. Why? Because satan tries his hardest to distract the believer and make them doubt their faith. There is not very much victory in the church today, so if a group of people are dealing with the same issues without victory, satan is involved. How do we resolve the problem of doubt and fear when hearing God’s voice?

The verse above shows us that God’s people have been struggling with the same thing for a long time. It is easier to consult mediums and spiritualists who really don’t know than to consult the Lord. A medium or spiritualist whispers and mutters and focuses on the dead while a Christian should be all about life. But to hear God’s voice takes time, effort and the fighting of the flesh. To know the will of God means that we need to get into the Scriptures and acquaint ourselves with the character of God as well as our own desires before Him. Then we need to lay down our desires so that the Lord can work on our hearts from His perspective instead of our own. That’s how His desires become ours. When we are not threatened by God’s ways, we are able to hear His voice. We have to remember that God is on our side. We are His children; He does not want us walking around confused and frustrated. He wants us walking around sensing His love and His life. If you are a Christian who struggles with knowing the voice of God, talk to Him about it. Tell Him that you don’t want to consult anyone or thing else because His will matters most to you. He is not going to reject a prayer like that. Jesus said that His sheep hear His voice and follow. Be sure that you are listening because you do hear if you have come to know Him. He will not lead you astray and His will is not to confuse you. Ask, seek and knock and you will find God. That’s a promise.

~Daily Disciples Devotional~