Today's Reading:
Deuteronomy 9:1-10:22
Acts 5:1-42
Psalm 51:1-9
Click on Text Link to Read Online
Focus Verses:
Psalm 51:6,10,17
6 Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place. - - - 10 Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. - - - 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
Insight:
When
Samuel rebuked King Saul and told him the kingdom would be taken away
from him (1Sam. 13:14), he said the Lord had "sought out a man after
his own heart and appointed him leader of his people." That man was
David. In Acts 13, the Apostle Paul also makes reference to David as
being "a man after God's own heart" who "would do everything God wanted
him to do."
How can it be that David is described as a
man "after God's own heart?" He was every bit the sinner that Saul
was. In fact, David’s adultery with Bathsheba and the murder of her
husband (one of his most faithful soldiers) might surpass any of Saul's
sins.
Obviously, "having a heart after God" does not
mean being without sin. David and Saul were both sinners, but David was
quick to recognize his sin, humble his heart, ask God for cleansing,
and turn his heart back toward following and obeying God.
Response and Action:
I
want to have a heart after God. This does not mean that I will never
sin or make mistakes. It does mean, however, that I am seeking God. It
means that I am humble before God and ready to recognize my sin and
my need for forgiveness. It means that I desire to obey and serve God.
It means that I will look to God for direction, for cleansing, for
purpose. It means that I acknowledge Jesus as my Lord and Savior, and
that I will seek first his kingdom and his righteousness.
O
God, create in me clean heart -- a heart that is after your heart.
Search me and try me to see if there is anything hurtful or sinful in
me. Forgive me, purify me, and lead me in your everlasting ways. Put
your truth and wisdom in my inmost parts. Help me to delight in your
will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your name. Amen.
Spiritual Formation Verses: 2 Corinthians 7:9b-10
9b ...your sorrow led you to repentance. For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us. 10 Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.
Resources:
A Heart for God: Learning From David Through the Tough Choices of Life
by Rebecca Manley Pippert
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