PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN ( 2 Samuel 10:3 ): I am guilty of the same thing, in a sense, that Hanun is guilty of here, Father. Hanun took the misconstrued advice of his leaders that David’s intentions with the condolences and emissaries were actually to spy on his kingdom, not due to kindness towards Hanun for his father’s death. I have often misconstrued the intentions of others or accepted the opinion of others as facts instead of seeing and embracing the truth. This has led to many bad decisions and many bad circumstances in my own life just as it had for Hanun here. Please forgive me for oftentimes seeing negative in people’s intentions when they are positive. Please forgive me, Father, for often giving into the world instead of keeping focused on You. Help me, Father, to become a better man than the one I have been in the past.
PROMISE ( 2 Samuel 10:2 ): You gave a promise early on that not only will David be king and have a great reign as king, but also that he was a man after Your own heart. This doesn’t mean he is God as Jesus was. This means that his heart is mostly aligned with You, but that he is still not perfect. This promise is evident here, because he continues to try and show Your grace and Your kindness to others, but at the same time he is not one to just roll over and be defeated when others reject that grace and kindness. Thank You for revealing this to me today, Father.
ATTITUDE ( 2 Samuel 10:2-3 ): The above promise journal kind of rolls right into the attitude adjustment/application I need to make in my life. I often fail to show kindness to others in a way that glorifies You, Father. I often fail to see the kindness intended from others and instead see a negative intention that isn’t there. Help me to fully embrace Your kindness in this life, Father. Help me to understand what it means to show and receive Your kindness, but also to accept it for what it is from others. Help me to not misconstrue things according to the world’s ways, but instead discern things properly according to Your truth.
COMMAND ( 2 Samuel 10:2 ): Once again, I see the same command as yesterday’s quiet time. You want me to live in kindness FAR more than I have been. I need to be better at this myself, but I also need to be better at recognizing, accepting, and fully embracing the kindness I receive from You, Father. The mistakes of my past need to be left in the past, which is a constant reminder from You and I am grateful for the grace, mercy and kindness You’ve shown to me through all of these things I’ve been trying to “fix” in my life, in my head, and in my heart with Your guidance and counsel.
EXAMPLE ( 2 Samuel 10:19 ): The example shown to me today is concerning the kings and subjects of Hadadezer and their people in this verse. They had gone to war with Israel, but alongside the Ammonites, solely due to the fact that Hunan listened to his leaders about the misconstrued perceptions of David’s intentions. The fact that their hearts could be changed towards those they had just gone to war against is a great example for me personally. If someone wrongs me in this life or betrays me, or even the other way around, I don’t have to keep them as “enemies” per se. I can still soften my heart towards them and live a life alongside them faithfully to You instead of faithfully to this world. Thank You for this amazing example of a changed heart and truth being revealed, Father.
*DAILY NOTE: Kindness, softening of my heart, a changed heart towards others…I feel like You are yelling at me this morning, Father. I know I’m not perfect and I know I’ve made mistakes in my past on ALL of these topics today. I continue to make these mistakes every now-and-then, but thankfully because of You they are becoming far less often. Please continue Your great works in me, Father. Continue to reveal to me Your methods, Your wisdom, and Your plans. Continue to bless me with affirmations and revelations of what it truly means to embrace my new, born-again identity in Christ. Thank You, Father.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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