PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN ( 1 Samuel 7:3 ): Samuel has to remind the Israelites that they should not be worshipping false idols or false gods in their lives; that God is the only One worthy of our worship. I often have brought false idols in my life, Father. I am sure I even have some to this day at times when I put my wife or kids above You, when I put a game or TV show above You, or even when I put others above You, Father. Please forgive me for not keeping You at Your rightful position in my life, number 1. Continue to remind me, just as Samuel had to do on Your behalf here, that I must keep my worship focused on You and nothing else in this life. You must always be the top priority in my life.
PROMISE ( 1 Samuel 7:3, 13 ): These two verses not only show us a great promise made to Your people through Samuel, but also that promise being fulfilled. Your promise to Your people was that if they worship only You and they set aside all of their false idols and false gods, then You will surely rescue them from the hand of the Philistines. Then, just a few verses later, You fulfill this promise by allowing Your people to subdue the Philistines and keep them protected throughout the life of Samuel as the new judge of the Israelites. This promise reminds me that if I keep You as my top priority, then everything else will work itself out according to Your will for my life.
ATTITUDE ( 1 Samuel 7:8 ): I love this verse. Although I doubt Samuel was going to stop, the Israelites finally have the attitude of God first. They hear about the Philistines preparing for a grand attack as the Israelites are moving. They remind Samuel and each other, most likely, to not stop crying out to You, Father, because You have the power to save them from the hand of the Philistines. Their attitude of faithfulness, obedience, and worship is what gave them Your power to defeat the Philistines this time around! Help me to embrace this attitude fully in my heart as well, Father, no matter the circumstances that arise.
COMMAND ( 1 Samuel 7:5-6 ): Not necessarily a direct command from You, but it does draw the implication of a command. In these verses, Samuel gathered Your people together for prayer, fasting, and confession. The command I feel in my heart here is that I should never feel too ashamed to confess my sins to You. If the Israelites can do so here all together in a large gathering after doing horrendous acts against Your will for decades, then what is my excuse? Help me to be better at confession, Father. Help me to be better at reaching out to You for forgiveness no matter the level of shame I feel inside. Also, please help me to forgive myself as that is often the more difficult part of forgiveness for me personally.
EXAMPLE ( 1 Samuel 7:7-8 ): The Israelites really turned things around greatly under the leadership and Judging of Your servant Samuel. They went from being out of Your favor and losing thousands of their men due to their extremely sinful ways to being favored by You by getting rid of all of their false gods/idols and repenting fully! They kept their focus on You, which is reflected in these verses. They fought through their fear to keep You as their focus, even when faced with the adversary who had just defeated them greatly in battle not too long before this moment. Help me keep You as my top focus, Father, just as they adjusted to here.
*DAILY NOTE: Thank You for a great quiet time today, Father. I see You are speaking to me about my focus and priorities. I know they are starting to get a little out-of-whack, so I thank You for giving me a nudge back in the right direction. If the Israelites can do it after all of their sinful issues for decades, then I have no excuses. Please keep giving me these gentle nudges, Father, so that I may continue to walk the path on a firm foundation which You have set before me instead of the one I keep trying to pave out of hay and stubble. Thank You again, Father, for Your great inspiration today.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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