Week 13. March 29. Bound securely in the Lord's treasure pouch.

Week 13.  We have been reading about David this week.  Some familiar stories and some surprises. 

I wonder why the writer of 1 & 2 Samuel does not mention more about David’s writings.  After all, most of the Psalms were written by David.  I wonder…when did he write them?  Did he write them all his life as things were happening, or did he write them later in life as we was writing is memoirs?  Did he write them all on little scraps and keep them in a secret place?  Or did he “journal” a little bit every day? 

Also, I can’t help but wonder why it was OK for David to go out to besiege neighbors.  And why sometimes they killed every living thing and took no plunder, and other times they took some of the people or animals, and sometimes they took some of the plunder. 

Also, why was it OK for them to have so many wives? 

Kinda hard to understand.

I found a verse that I really liked this week.  I Samuel 25: 29.  …”Even though someone is pursuing you to take your life …you are…bound securely in the bundle of the living by the Lord your God”…so I looked it up in New Living Translation: “your life is safe in the care of the Lord your God, secure in His treasure pouch”  What a neat thought! 

We are entering the Passion Week before Easter…and the Lord has bound us securely in his treasure pouch.  I wonder if Jesus thought of that scripture as he faced his accusers. 

Week 12. March 22. God looks at the heart.

Week 12.  We have entered into familiar territory.  We remember the stories of Samuel, Saul, and David from childhood days in Sunday School.

I liked the sweet story (in Chapter 1-3) of the little boy Samuel who grew “in the presence of God” under Eli.  I liked thinking about his mother bringing him a new little robe each year as he grew up, and how he wore a little linen ephod.   I liked Chapter 3 when God began to reveal himself to Samuel.

It was interesting as we read about tall King Saul, Samuel the dedicated prophet, and the chosen boy David, that they all had strengths and weaknesses. The scriptures don’t hide the ugly parts.  But that makes the characters seem more real to us.  So, there were many familiar scriptures this week, and a few surprises, too…those Philistines continued to be a problem.  The ark was moved around.  Battles continued.   The people forgot to honor God, but God continued to work on their behalf anyway.

One of my favorite verses was Chapter 16, verse 7.

We are in the midst of the Lenten Season…  

The Lord looks at our heart. 

Week 11. March 15. Seek protection under His wings.

Week 11, we have finished Judges and Ruth.

This week there were several stories of gruesome deaths:  from cutting off big toes and thumbs (chapter 1), from a sword being driven through the belly(Chapter 3)… from having a tent peg driven through the head (Chapter 4) beheadings (Chapter7)…dismembering (Chapter 19)

It sounds a little bit like some of the unrest in our world today, doesn't it? Scary, appalling, disgusting, terrifying.  Judges chapter 2 was a sad commentary: The people had forgotten the Lord of their ancestors and did evil in His sight.  God never forgot His covenant with them, but He could not help them when they turned their backs on Him.   So, today, we must still be diligent to remember and honor the God of our ancestors and continue to obey him if we desire to know Him and enjoy His blessing. 

The story of the virgin daughter being sacrificed as a burnt offering in Chapter 11 was sad…and the story of the women being treated like property in Chapter 21 was shocking… strange customs from an ancient time. 

The story of Gideon was interesting…a story of triumph in the face of overwhelming odds.

The story of Samson was also interesting…He had so much potential and physical strength and yet he was such a shallow man who just didn't seem to have self-control when there was a beautiful woman around. 

Ruth was certainly the bright spot in this week’s readings.  I loved the verse in Ruth 2: 12: “May you be richly rewarded by the LORD, the God of Israel, under whose wings you have come to take refuge.” 

It reminds me of another familiar verse: Psalm 91:4: “He will cover you with his feathers; under his wings you will find refuge.”   

This is a beautiful image of protection and rest under a bird’s wings for their vulnerable little baby birds. 

We are in the midst of the Lenten Season.   We search our souls and seek the Lord in a special way during this time of year as we prepare for Easter.  So, even today, we continue to seek shelter under God’s wings.  And He always welcomes us with open arms to give us rest under his “wings” of blessing and protection.   That is the best place to be. 

Week 10. Promises fulfilled.

We read through Joshua this week.  The land was divided up and Joshua stepped up as the new leader after Moses died. 

There were a couple familiar Bible stories about Jericho in this week’s readings: The story of quick-thinking Rahab hiding the spies and the story of how the walls of the city fell down.  We toured that area a few years ago and I have a strong memory of standing on the site where the old walled city of Jericho stood.   Jericho is still like an oasis in the desert, and even back then, they called it "The City of Palms".  

There was a surprise for me in this week’s reading:  The Jordan River parted so the people could cross over.   That was the second time God had done that.  I had forgotten that.  Joshua said in Chapter 3 verse 5: “Tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.”  He wasn't kidding!   I liked reading about how they made a pile of 12 stones to designate where it happened.  Memorials are good to help us remember important events.  Several times in our reading thus far we have read that things still existed “to this day”.  So the oral history telling continued, to remind each new generation about what God had done in the past. 

The story of the Sun standing still was another miracle, and a familiar Bible story I remembered from my childhood days in Sunday School. 

But all the conquering of the cities and leaving no survivors is a little unsettling.  It’s one of those questions and mysteries we just need to leave in God’s hands to sort it all out. 

Finally, the Promised Land was allotted for the tribes.  Here is a map from another Bible that shows the territories. 

I like Joshua 21: 45.  “Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.” 

 But God is rarely in a hurry...

  And now, we move into Judges together.