God backed up David’s decision, blessed Solomon as king, and allowed Solomon’s kingdom to be established (See 1Kings 2:12). After Solomon became the king, the Lord appeared to him in a dream. His encounter with the Lord reveals the heart of a man who desired to do right in ruling God’s people.

At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?”

And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. Now, O Lord my God, You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted.  Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?” 1 Kings 3:5-9

Solomon acknowledged that he was immature and did not know how to lead a nation. He recognized that he had to look to the Lord for he what did not have in himself.  The scripture tells us a lot about David’s struggles that became his training ground in shaping him to be a king, but Solomon did not have the struggles that his father experienced. He came to the position by virtue of the fact that he was David’s son. He needed God’s wisdom to take on this great responsibility as he could not rely on his past experiences. 

Sometimes we come to a position after much processing by God. In those cases, we come equipped with the leadership skills that God developed in the secret place, and then God exposes them to others.  David and Joseph experienced this type of training. On the other hand, there are those who were placed in a leadership position by God’s and/or man’s favor, but they are not seasoned in leadership. They come with the raw material, and it takes years for them to develop to become a skilled leader. Solomon had the humility to admit his lack of knowledge and depended on the Lord to develop him.

In addition, Solomon asked for an understanding heart to judge people adequately because these people belonged to the Lord! Solomon understood the immensity of his role, and he knew that it was a huge task to take on ruling and judging God’s people. Israel was God’s prized possession,  and stewarding God’s people is no small task. Solomon earnestly desired to get it right because God’s people were very valuable. 

We also need to consider the weight of leadership when we lead God’s people in whatever capacity He has given us. Sometimes we can be too easily influenced by our preferences or by people’s personalities.  God is looking for impartial leaders who judge people with a heart of understanding and discern good and evil according to God’s standard of right or wrong. God’s people are His bride. We should highly value them but recognize that they do not belong to us. We just get to have the privilege of stewarding them for a season. Therefore, we should have a holy fear in dealing with His bride appropriately for we will give an account someday. 

Our culture heavily values leadership and that value system has infiltrated the church as well. Many people wish, seek, or strive to be in leadership roles, but don’t consider the consequence of being an unprepared leader who may not be ready to do justly and treat God’s people with care and equity.

If you desire to be in a leadership position would you be able to pass the above criteria in leading God’s people? If you are in a leadership role, it is a good time to evaluate yourself and see if you are hitting the mark in leading God’s people. We all have the opportunity to repent, seek forgiveness, and adjust where change is required. 

I will continue with this subject in the next devotional. 

Please leave your comments below.

Solomon’s life offers us many lessons. This man climbed the highest heights, but he also fell to the deepest despair! He was a man of great wisdom, yet he walked in folly later in life. 

Then King David answered and said, “Call Bathsheba to me.” So she came into the king’s presence and stood before the king. And the king took an oath and said, “As the Lord lives, who has redeemed my life from every distress,  just as I swore to you by the Lord God of Israel, saying, ‘Assuredly Solomon your son shall be king after me, and he shall sit on my throne in my place,’ so I certainly will do this day.” 1 Kings 1:28-30

In the line of the succession, Solomon was not supposed to be the next king (See 2 Samuel 5:14). As a matter of fact, David’s son Adonijah was the next logical son to take the throne since a couple of David’s sons had already died. Adonijah even made preparations presuming to be the next king (See 1Kings 1-10). However, David had sworn to God and had promised Bathsheba that Solomon was going to take his place as the future king.

Solomon was favored by God and by his parents, but his favor had a purpose to bring glory and honor to God. At the beginning of his reign, Solomon humbly understood this great responsibility very well, but later in his rulership he veered off from this truth. 

Now the days of David drew near that he should die, and he charged Solomon his son, saying:  “I go the way of all the earth; be strong, therefore, and prove yourself a man. 3 And keep the charge of the Lord your God: to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn;  that the Lord may fulfill His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons take heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul,’ He said, ‘you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’ 1Kings 2:1-4

After David recognized and declared Solomon as the future king, he also left him with his leadership instructions. Inheriting the kingdom is no small task, and David wanted to ensure that Solomon had his father’s last spiritual will and testament. David charged his son to prove himself to be a man of strength. David also told Solomon that his success will be dependent on keeping all of God’s ways. Solomon was given a great favor, and now he had the responsibility to steward this gift well and prove that he was the right man for the job and follow the Lord in all His ways.

At various points of children’s lives, most of us as parents charge our children and give them instructions for success. Parents want their children to do well, and they do not want to see their children to veer off in a wrong direction. Those lessons along the way are so much more valuable than any material inheritance left for the children. Nowadays, the focus is more on children’s education, grades, and sports, and the significance of walking in faith pales in comparison to all the demands and distractions around the children. 

If children do right in the eyes of God, the Lord will be with them and lead them in the way of peace and success. However, if they ignore those instructions, it does not matter how much worldly success they gain, it will leave them empty and restless. In addition, their decisions will impact the generations that come after them.

Many people prepare a last will and testament to ensure their children inherit their wealth after they leave this earth. King David provided a spiritual will and testament for his son solomon before handing off the kingdom to him. How many people actually leave spiritual instructions for their children, so their children can be reminded of their spiritual legacy and responsibility before inheriting all the wealth!?

I will continue with this subject in the next devotional. 

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The Bible shows us the consequences of people’s decisions when they go against the will of God and choose to do things according to their own ideas or in their own timing.

But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” So Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, “Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them.  According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt, even to this day—with which they have forsaken Me and served other gods—so they are doing to you also. Now therefore, heed their voice. However, you shall solemnly forewarn them, and show them the behavior of the king who will reign over them.” 1 Samuel 8:6-9

The Israelites grumbled and demanded to have a king over them just like all the other nations. Centuries prior, the Lord had already proclaimed to Abraham that kings were going to come out of his lineage. The Lord wasn’t against a king who would have a heart after Him. However, not all kings were going to follow the Lord, and  a carnal king would have had a devastating affect on His people.

The Lord told Samuel that Israel was rejecting Him not Samuel. He directed Samuel to give them what they wanted but to warn them of the consequences of their actions (See 1 Samuel 8:11-17). Despite the terrible consequences of an earthly king, the people still chose to have one.

Sometimes we want something so badly, that we are not willing to hear the consequences of our actions or don’t believe those consequences would happen to us. Worldly ideas seem great from a distance until we get very close, and then we find out, they were not what they appeared to be. For example, some Christians marry an unbeliever and go against God’s counsel in the Bible (See 2Corinthians 6:14). In God’s eyes, marriage is much deeper that just two people loving each other. It is a covenant between two individuals and between them and God. Therefore, it does not make sense to make a covenant with someone whose understanding of marriage is limited and they are not in a covenant relationship with God. Marriage is already hard work, but those who choose to go in that direction, will find that their marriage and parenting will be a lot more challenging. 

The Lord permitted the Israelites to have kings. The Lord gave them what they asked for and Israel’s history showed that until Jesus came, many kings had issues and the consequences that Samuel described to them did come pass.

If God is not for something, there must a good reason for it, and we should take heed and pay attention to it. Let’t thank God for His loving boundaries. He is a parent who is always available to counsel and guide us in the right direction. Ignoring or rebelling against Him, hurts us and does not bring about any good fruit. Praise God that He gives us the power to make our own choices, but let’s choose to glorify Him!

Jesus sought God’s will above all else. One of the first things that Jesus prayed for in His model prayer was: “Your kingdom come Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10) Paul desired God’s perfect will as well. In the last devotional, I shared Apostle Paul’s explanation on how we discover and abide in God’s perfect will.

While we all desire God’s perfect will, sometimes out of impatience, ignorance, pride, or fear we step into a realm that it is not God’s perfect will for us.

The Lord has given man the power to choose, and He does not overrule people’s will when He does not like their choices. This is God’s permissive will. God honors His own governmental system by giving room for each person to choose regardless of the quality of their choice. 

The most important thing that God desires is that all to come to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. However, He still does not force people to choose His son, even though there are eternal consequences to their choice. Instead, the Lord continually pursues us with his love, kindness, and patience with the hope that we will come to repentance.

“Everything is permissible for me,” but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me,” but I will not be mastered by anything. 1 Corinthians 6:12 (CSB)

“Everything is permissible,” but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible,” but not everything builds up. No one is to seek his own good, but the good of the other person.1 Corinthians 10:23-24 (CSB)

In the above scriptures, Paul is  stating that there are many choices given to us. However, just because something is permitted, it does not mean that it would be beneficial to us or others. Those areas or people that have the potential to trap us emotionally, spiritually, physically, relationally, or financially, we should pay close attention to them. Those things that tear us down or hurt others are not beneficial to us. This kind of evaluation has to do with being sensitive to the Spirit of God and being in tune with what is happening in us and around us.

God’s permissive will does not mean that He has pleasure in what we do, but He gives us a choice. This could be in the areas of entertainment, relationships, personal habits, employment, or even conversations. Choosing what is beneficial means that we continue as a living sacrifice not seeking our own pleasure or dreams, but we pay attention to what is good, true, and noble. This allows us to turn away from bad choices that could lead to years of pain and distress, it gives us the opportunity to live a life that is simple and peaceful.

Some questions that we can ask ourselves about our choices are as follows: What are the long term affects of my decision? Do my decisions please and honor God? Do I reflect the character of Jesus by what I am involved in? Do my actions distract me from my intimacy with Christ?

How do we know God’s will in any given situation? The scripture tell us that God has a perfect will that He desires to make known to us. As we begin to grow in our relationship with the Lord, we develop the desire to know His will. We look to the Word of God to find out His instructions for life. We also seek Him in prayer to hear God’s will in various situations. The scripture tells us that there are some foundational things that need to be in place before God’s perfect will is revealed to us and in us.

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 12:1-2

The scripture tells us that we can know God’s perfect will when we are no longer seeking to conform to our environment or passively live by its value system. In addition, we can know God’s will when we allow God to renew our minds from false cultural values, traditions, and past patterns. When our minds are not clogged with old ideas, we are available to receive the mind of Christ and be transformed into his way of thinking brilliant thoughts.

We have a tendency to hold on to the past patterns because they give us false security and safety. In some twisted way, they have worked for us, but if we desire to grow and have the mind of Christ, we have to let go and trust God for new ways of thinking and doing things. When our minds think right, our emotions will follow suit, and we become available and acceptable vessels to God who are willing to be a living sacrifice.

Some people confuse being a living sacrifice with doing things to the  extreme to show their devotions to God. That’s actually just religious works that stems from our strong volition rather than God’s leading. There are religions where people walk on fire, beat themselves with chains, or kill themselves and others to show their devotions and faith towards their God.  That is not being a living sacrifice. If we have  to jeopardize in any area of our lives, such as our marriages, children, health,or  finances in the name of being a living sacrifice, please seek Godly counsel. There is a great chance that the enemy is using your zeal to confuse you and destroy your life and your relationships. 

Being a living sacrifice is about allowing the spirit man to rule our minds, emotions, will, and body. It is about denying self to follow Jesus. The ultimate goal of being a living sacrifice is to look like Jesus and display the fruit of the Spirit. As a living a sacrifice, we are not trying to prove anything to ourselves or others, and we are not in the driver’s seat. We are just willing to do what the Lord ask us to do. Whether He asks us to be still, go, sit, or wait, we are willing to do it in spite of not having all the answers.  

When we no longer conform to the patters on this world, have renewed minds, and we are offering our bodies as living sacrifice, God’s perfect and acceptable will becomes evident in our lives. 

Consider paying closing attention to your thoughts for the next 21 days. When your thoughts about yourself, others, or circumstances are destructive, reject them right away. Replace those thoughts with words of faith, hope, and love. Ask the Lord to give you the mind of Christ about yourself, others, or your circumstances. You will begin to see your emotions changing and the fog lifted off of your spirit man. 

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As I shared in the last devotional, Paul make some key points about the ministry of reconciliation and what it means to us as believers. Jesus came to the world to reconcile man to God, and in turn, He has given us the ministry of reconciliation that we can draw others to the truth. I will continue with the same scripture from last time.

Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.  Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation,  that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5: 16-19

In the above scripture, Paul states that “we regard no one according to the flesh.” This is a critical point that sometimes we forget. The Cross showed that everyone is in need of reconciliation with God. We cannot regard people according to the flesh. That means that we cannot hold a different standard for our family members, friends, those in power, or those with similar political views.

Sometimes, when you ask someone if their loved one is a born again believer, they have to go through a long dissertation to explain this person’s relationship to religion or God. They seem to have a hard time saying that their loved one is not a believer. How can we reconcile someone to God if we are not clear about their spiritual state? Every person has to be looked at through the prism of the Cross and every person is in need of repentance before God. While we can be merciful and compassionate towards others, we still understand that God’s word is the way to the truth and the freedom that the person is seeking. 

Furthermore, as ministers of reconciliation, we need to hold on to the Biblical standards in relationships, so we can assist in reconciling people to one another and avoid showing favoritism due to our fleshly love for one of the parties in the relationship. This leads to the issue of loyalty in relationships. If we are loyal to someone more than being loyal to the truth, we are not in a position to be effective minsters of reconciliation.

Loyalty to the truth will get us out of our comfort zone and will make us uncomfortable with the facts. We cannot justify anyone’s sin or shortcomings because they are our friends. If we know their actions or attitudes have not lined up with the Word of God, the Lord is available to forgive them when they repent. However, by us taking their side or act like they are always right, we are not doing them a favor, and neither are we fulfilling our call as ministers of reconciliation. In addition, when we protect our loved ones from facing their sins or shortcomings, we reinforce those issues to continue to grow and become a stronghold in their lives. Eventually, our loved ones’ actions or attitudes will come back to bite us as well. 

If we are going to be effective in our ministry, our focus should be that God is always right, and He is the only perfect one. Each person has to look at their own actions and allow the Lord to deal with their part in the relationship. Seeking His wisdom and His heart rather than someone’s side, is going to help us in understanding the situation and speak the truth lovingly to both sides.  

Are you able to remain neutral in dealing with others’ relational issues and listen to the Lord about the relationship?

I will continue to with this subject in the next devotional. 

Therefore, from now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.  Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation,  that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5: 16-19

Reconciliation is the essence of our faith. We are all in need of reconciliation with God. We were not capable of doing anything to wipe out our sins before a Holy and loving God. It was Jesus who did the work and extended His hand to reach us and bring us back to the original plan that God intended when He created Adam.

In addition, the Lord has given us the ministry of reconciliation to bring others to Christ and to reconcile people. Just as we have experienced forgiveness and freedom, we are called to share the Good News with others. This requires us to purify our hearts, so we can be in a position to help reconcile others. The above scripture gives us insight about the ministry of reconciliation.

1. Every man is a sinner in need of forgiveness and reconciliation with God. Everyone was guilty of sin and was powerless to do something about it. The Lord reconciled us to Himself through the work of Jesus. Every person has to repent to receive this reconciliation. We were at war with God, but Jesus ended the war! There is no one on the face of this earth that does not need reconciliation with God. After salvation, we are still subject to sin, and when we sin, we need to be reconciled to God through Jesus and with repentance on our part. 

2. Paul states that we no longer can look at others in their old nature. Those that God has reconciled to Himself are His new creation. There was a time that Paul looked at Jesus in His humanity and saw Him as a threat to his religion, but now that Paul understood Jesus’ work on the Cross, he no longer regarded Jesus as a threat. Instead he saw Jesus as His Lord and Savior. This is also true of people who accept Christ are believers. We need to look at them with new eyes and see them in their new nature. Do we honor the work of God in others’ lives? 

3. If we are going to be effective in ministering reconciliation, we need to let go of our prejudices towards others.  Jesus set the standard by reaching the Samaritan woman at the well and having dinner at a tax collector’s house.  Those actions were looked down upon by the Jewish people, but Jesus came to reconcile people to God. That was more important than trying to have the approval of the religious and cultural people. 

Peter saw certain groups of people as unclean, so God had to come to him in a trance and break that prejudice ( See Acts 10) . This allowed him to go to Cornelius and share the gospel with him, and thereby opening the door to the Gentiles to come to salvation. Peter could not hold on to the old religious rules, his childhood upbringing, or the cultural expectation, and be a minister of reconciliation. 

Are there any prejudices that keep you away from people who are inside or outside the church? I will continue with this subject in the next devotional. 

Please leave comments below.

In our intellectual and humanistic world, we have become very facts oriented. Many of us believe that to be responsible, we need to gather all the facts before we can make a good decision. Obviously, it would be irresponsible for us to ignore the facts  or act like they do not exist.

There is wisdom in considering the facts and slowing down before we make a decision. It is also important not to be presumptuous and not try to make something happen. However, trusting God should take us to a level beyond the facts and move us to the plane of faith.  If we only relied on facts, there would be no need to exercise our faith in any given situation.

When Jesus told His disciples to feed the multitudes, His statement appeared unreasonable to them (See Mark 6:30-44). Sometimes trusting in God looks unreasonable and foolish.

For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” I Corinthians 1:19 (NIV)

The Lord gave me this scripture years ago when I was dating my husband, and I was trying to figure out if he was the right man for me to marry. Because of my past mistakes and pain, I was trying to gather all my information and weigh those facts to determine if he was the right person. However, I could not reach a conclusion based on my understanding. I was relying on my wisdom rather than relying on the Lord and trusting Him. Finally, I had to give up and release the relationship into the Lord’s hands. I asked the Lord to just show me what He wanted me to do. His direction did not come right away, and I had to wait for quite a while. However, when it did, the Lord did not answer all my questions, I just knew that the Lord had permitted me to move forward and trust Him in the process.

If you are frustrated with an area of your life and you don’t seem to find the answers, it may be that you have been trying to solve the problem in your own effort. Sometimes, the best we can do is to release the situation into the Lord’s hands, and then stop focusing on the issue. Give Him time to work on it, and when doubt and uncertainty knock on our door, we need to remind ourselves that we have already surrendered this situation to the Lord.

If we truly remain open to the Lord’s leading, in due time, He will show us what we need to do. Our waiting is not a waste of time because He is always working something out in several different dimensions that we may not be aware of. Instead of getting frustrated or impatient with God, it is always worth it to trust Him and wait on Him to give us direction. He is faithful, and He will direct us in due time!

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Our world is in continual turmoil, and it is evident in the daily news we hear. Jesus came to take away the power evil and change our hearts by trusting in Him. 

Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. Hebrews 2:14-15

On the cross, Jesus destroyed the power of death. Those who believe in Him no longer have to fear death because they will not face eternal death but will appear before the Lord’s throne of grace.  Obviously, no one wants premature death for themselves or others. Family and friends will still grieve the loss of a loved one, but if someone is a believer we know that they have graduated to a better place where there is no evil anymore. 

Fear of death grips many people. Therefore, it is  important to have a living relationship with the Lord and encourage others to get their lives right with God. We may love people deeply and enjoy our relationship with them, but their eternity is more important than our earthly relationship with them.  There are times that we we may have to risk the relationship to tell our loved ones about Jesus. We need to remind them that they are subject to eternal separation from God if they do not submit their lives to Jesus’ work on the Cross. Our ultimate goal should be to help people find their Lord and Savior, so they can be freed up from bondage of sin and the fear of death. 

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. John 14:27 (NKJV)

Jesus offers peace to all of us when we look to Him and trust His amazing and incredible work! While He lived in this world, He was a man full of peace. The world could not have Him. He was clear in His priorities and His mission. As a result, He did not agonize or worry about the things He didn’t get to do.

Jesus walked with God and had alone times wth Him. Jesus was secure about who He was. The scripture never tells us that Jesus was fearful or he worried. He was always faced with opposition, but that did not make Him question His call. His face was set as a flint to the finish line and His goal was to share what He had with those who believe in Him and partake of His spiritual nature. 

Our old nature will continue to worry, and we have to shut that voice by talking to ourselves and reminding of the work Jesus did to set us free from the bondage of fear. He is worthy to be trusted. We may not get all the answers we want, but He is walking with us and promising us that goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our lives. Praise the Lord!

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