PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN ( Judges 13:7 ): This verse reminds me that You make great promises, but oftentimes they come with great responsibility and actions on our part. Thinking back, I can see many of the promises I feel You have made to my family and I being fulfilled. Does this mean I was faithful to the responsibilities on my part for the promise? I don’t think so. I know I have not been obedient nor faithful to You fully since coming to faith, Father. I have struggled quite a bit throughout my faith and failed many times. You offer so much grace to a sinner like me, though, which is probably why many of the promises given to me have become fulfilled. Please forgive me for my lack of obedience and sometimes lack of faith, Father. Forgive me for not always being fully accepting of the promises and responsibilities You have bestowed upon me. I do not know what plans You have for me, Father, but I do know that I have a lot of work to do in order to become even a semblance of the man You expect me to be.
PROMISE ( Judges 13:7 ): Samson’s mother, who could not conceive, was promised by You through Your Angel that she would in fact conceive. In fact, she would conceive a boy who would eventually grow to become the savior of Israel from the Philistines in his lifetime. This promise had conditions, however. She had several actions to take, maintain, and be obedient to in order for this promise to come to fruition fully. You made her aware of all of these and she adhered to them, but I wonder what her initial thoughts were on the matter. Did she react like I likely would have with a “that’s too much” or “I’m not going to be able to do that” type of response? Did she simply react with full trust and obedience in You? Obviously she went through with it, I’m just curious what her initial internal reaction was to this promise which had such great requirements and responsibilities on her part for it to be fulfilled.
ATTITUDE ( Judges 13:19-20 ): Attitudes of sacrifice and praise have not been my strong suit in this life, unfortunately. Have I gotten better as of late? Yeah, a bit, but I’m still lacking quite a bit compared to where I’d like to be with these attitudes. Samson’s parents, when they received the news about conception being possible thanks to You and about their son going forward to do great things for Israel, they immediately went to their attitudes of sacrifice and praise without any hesitation. This is where I want to be with these attitudes, Father. Oftentimes, I feel like I have to force both of them, but every now and then they just come naturally. Thank You for Your encouragement, wisdom, and direction on these attitudes, Father. I just hope I do not disappoint You as I try my best to embrace them both fully into my heart.
COMMAND ( Judges 13:4-7 ): In these verses, the Angel of the Lord makes a promise, but it is a promise contingent on Manoah’s wife (Samson’s mother) following a few very clear commands. She is promised to conceive a baby boy, even though she was previously known to not be able to conceive. For this promise to become fulfilled, however, she must ensure that she never drinks win or beer and she never eats anything unclean. Additionally, concerning her future son Samson, she is to ensure that his hair is never cut. These are all some pretty straight-forward commands, but in my eyes extremely difficult ones. It seems that she was able to follow them, however, as Samson was born and did some amazing things for the Israelites.
EXAMPLE ( Judges 13:19-20 ): I really love the example which Manoah and his wife provide here. They’re approached by Your Angel and after the conversation with him they immediately go into a moment of sacrificial praise and offering. They sacrifice a burnt offering to You, Father, but then when the Angel rises back up to You through the flames of the fire, they also immediately drop to the ground and praise You! This testimony serves as a reminder to me that I should not have a delay in praising You. If there is something great that has happened which I am witness to, then I must immediately go to praising You in the moment.
*DAILY NOTE: Such an amazing start to the story of Samson. I’m sure they told him the story of how they found out they would conceive him and what he would do for Israel; maybe they didn’t, though. I can only imagine how much stress that would put on someone telling them from a young age that they are destined by God to become the savior of a nation, so maybe they didn’t quite reveal ALL of the details to him in his youth. Either way, I am grateful for today’s quiet time. My curiosity sometimes gets the best of me, but I know that You only reveal to me what I need to know, not necessarily always what I want to know. If I got everything I wanted to know in this life, I would likely break down and cry on the sot because it would be too much. Thank You for knowing exactly what I can handle, Father. Thank You for an amazing quiet time today. I look forward to what the rest of the Book of Judges has in store for me.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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