Where There's A Will...
Scripture: 1 Kings 9:57-58
"May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us or abandon us. May he give us the desire to do his will in everything and to obey all the commands, decrees, and regulations that he gave our ancestors."
Observations:
As he was dedicating the Temple of the Lord, King Solomon asked for God to be gracious to His people as they again pledged themselves to be faithful. Solomon understood very clearly the implications of what Israel's disobedience could bring- separation, slavery, and loss of God's presence. But without having unrealistic expectations and just being real and honest with God, Solomon also realized that being faithful was not always easy. For that reason he included in his prayer these words, "May he give us the desire to do his will in everything". The wisest man who ever lived felt it necessary to recognize the limitations of his good intentions and to request divine assistance in helping him do the will of God.
Application:
If we are all honest with ourselves, even on our best day we are never that "good" in and of ourselves. Some days we may feel more spiritual than others, and for that very reason true faithfulness to God cannot be gauged by how we feel. God quantifies true spirituality in terms of obedience, not feelings. But even our obedience to God is not rooted in our strength but in God's grace. We are each responsible for our choices and whether or not we are obedient to His will, but wisdom also recognizes that our best strength is insufficient and that we dependent on God's grace us the desire to do His will each and every day. Paul put it like this, "Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him." (Phillippians 2:12-13).
Prayer:
Father, thank You for Your grace that enables us each moment to obediently do Your will in everything. Help us even when we don't feel like doing ghe right yhing to rely more fully on Your grace. Amen.
Daily Bible Reading Plan
"May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our ancestors; may he never leave us or abandon us. May he give us the desire to do his will in everything and to obey all the commands, decrees, and regulations that he gave our ancestors."
Observations:
As he was dedicating the Temple of the Lord, King Solomon asked for God to be gracious to His people as they again pledged themselves to be faithful. Solomon understood very clearly the implications of what Israel's disobedience could bring- separation, slavery, and loss of God's presence. But without having unrealistic expectations and just being real and honest with God, Solomon also realized that being faithful was not always easy. For that reason he included in his prayer these words, "May he give us the desire to do his will in everything". The wisest man who ever lived felt it necessary to recognize the limitations of his good intentions and to request divine assistance in helping him do the will of God.
Application:
If we are all honest with ourselves, even on our best day we are never that "good" in and of ourselves. Some days we may feel more spiritual than others, and for that very reason true faithfulness to God cannot be gauged by how we feel. God quantifies true spirituality in terms of obedience, not feelings. But even our obedience to God is not rooted in our strength but in God's grace. We are each responsible for our choices and whether or not we are obedient to His will, but wisdom also recognizes that our best strength is insufficient and that we dependent on God's grace us the desire to do His will each and every day. Paul put it like this, "Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him." (Phillippians 2:12-13).
Prayer:
Father, thank You for Your grace that enables us each moment to obediently do Your will in everything. Help us even when we don't feel like doing ghe right yhing to rely more fully on Your grace. Amen.
Daily Bible Reading Plan
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