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Author Archives: John D. Willome

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About John D. Willome

I post a blog of daily devotions that are my prayer journals based on scripture.

Parents of the Bible — The parents who asked Jesus to pray for and bless their children

13 Mar

One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him. But Jesus said, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children.” And he placed his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.
Matthew 19:13-15

Dear God, I could be wrong, but I don’t think I’ve ever looked at this story from the perspective of the parents before. In church, we’ve usually taken this as a story about the disciples and their short-sightedness. We’ve also looked at Jesus’s perspective on children. But what about these parents who didn’t really want anything specific from Jesus. No healings. No instruction even. I don’t know if the laying on of hands and blessing someone was common for rabbis to do in that time. Maybe it was.

I was just reading a commentary to see if I could get an answer to that last question when I saw this point made. Matthew chose to build this story in a way that shows Jesus’s attitude towards marriage and divorce as well as how he feels about the products of marriage–children. All is sacred. All is holy. All is worthy.

But going back to the parents, I wonder what drove them to do this. There were undoubtedly part of the crowds that were following Jesus around. Maybe some of them got the idea together. Maybe some of them just wanted their child to be touched by Jesus. Maybe it was an excuse for some of them to get that close to Jesus themselves. Whatever it was, I’m sure this was an impactful event in their lives and the lives of their children. I would love to know how this even resonated through their individual lives. I would also love to know what Jesus said as he placed his hands on their heads.

Father, parenting is about doing the best you can in any given moment. In this moment, these parents really didn’t have any idea what was going on. They had no idea that Jesus was the Messiah, and even if they did suspect it they certainly didn’t know how it would all work out. What they saw that day was a great man teaching great things. He was seemingly of you and from you, and they brought their children to him so that he could touch them and pray for them. Holy Spirit, pray for me now. Pray for my children. Pray for my and my wife’s siblings, nieces and nephews, and parents. I don’t have Jesus here in the flesh for that, but he sent you, Holy Spirit. So please give to us what Jesus gave to those children and their parents that day.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 13, 2020 in Fathers of the Bible, Matthew, Mothers of the Bible

 

Psalm 95:6-8

12 Mar

Come, let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before the Lord our maker, for he is our God. We are the people he watches over, the flock under his care. If only you would listen to his voice today! The Lord says, “Don’t harden your hearts as Israel did at Meribah, as they did at Massah in the wilderness.
Psalm 95:6-8

Dear God, it feels like the world is going crazy and we are just a couple of steps away from martial law. They are canceling public events. They are canceling travel. People are hoarding toilet paper (of all things). Fear is spreading at a rate I don’t think I’ve ever seen. If a terrorist group ever wanted to see what dropping a virus that starts a pandemic would do to our society, this is a great test case for them. They couldn’t have damaged our economy within two weeks more than this virus has damaged it.

It just feels like there is something I should be praying about here. It feels like this is something that we should be bringing to you in prayer. Not that we should necessarily be asking you to do something, but that we should be looking at ourselves. Are we too fearful? Are we not faithful enough? Have we lost our first love? Have we lost the love of our neighbors? I’m not even saying that we shouldn’t be canceling some of the things we’ve canceled and doing some of the things we are doing (although, again, toilet paper?!?), but I’m saying that we need to be coming to you in worship. We need to not be hardening our hearts. We need to be a source of your presence in the world.

Father, make this count, and make us part of your plan. Help us, your people, to not miss the opportunity before us. I don’t even know what that opportunity is, but I know that I don’t want to miss being used by you. I probably won’t know if I was or if we were until it is all over. This is an opportunity for us to grow closer to you through struggle. Please make this count. The deaths, economic hardships, etc. Make them count. Make them count for your glory and use us to be your light in the midst of this.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 12, 2020 in Psalms

 

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Fathers of the Bible — Father of a demon-possessed boy

11 Mar

One of the men in the crowd spoke up and said, “Teacher, I brought my son so you could heal him. He is possessed by an evil spirit that won’t let him talk. And whenever this spirit seizes him, it throws him violently to the ground. Then he foams at the mouth and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast out the evil spirit, but they couldn’t do it.” Jesus said to them, “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you? Bring the boy to me.” So they brought the boy. But when the evil spirit saw Jesus, it threw the child into a violent convulsion, and he fell to the ground, writhing and foaming at the mouth. “How long has this been happening?” Jesus asked the boy’s father. He replied, “Since he was a little boy. The spirit often throws him into the fire or into water, trying to kill him. Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.” “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” When Jesus saw that the crowd of onlookers was growing, he rebuked the evil spirit. “Listen, you spirit that makes this boy unable to hear and speak,” he said. “I command you to come out of this child and never enter him again!” Then the spirit screamed and threw the boy into another violent convulsion and left him. The boy appeared to be dead. A murmur ran through the crowd as people said, “He’s dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and helped him to his feet, and he stood up. Afterward, when Jesus was alone in the house with his disciples, they asked him, “Why couldn’t we cast out that evil spirit?” Jesus replied, “This kind can be cast out only by prayer.”
Mark 9:17-29

Dear God, this particular story is one of my favorites, but my favorite part is in the middle and I’ll get to that in a second. First, I want to talk about the idea of “seizures” and how they could be interpreted to be demons “seizing” a person. In this case, you also had a child who was apparently nonverbal. Is this a medical issue? Is it a demon? When we see someone with seizures now, is it a demon manipulating a person’s body or simply a medical condition? I don’t know, and I don’t know that the answer to that question is as important as the rest of the story and how this particular situation plays out.

The next thing I notice about this story is Jesus’s exasperation with the disciples: “You faithless people! How long must I be with you? How long must I put up with you?” That’s to the 12. How many times do you look at me and shake your head? How many times do you wish I would just turn to you and pray (spoiler alert for the rest of the story)?

The exchange with the father is my favorite part of the story. Here’s a dad who feels helpless and scared. “Have mercy on us, if you can.” Jesus: “If I can? Anything is possible if a person believes.” Father: “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” Boom. That’s it. That’s the line I love. I do believe, Father. Help me overcome my unbelief.

Then we have the casting out of the demon and a boy that appears dead. We’ve seen Jesus obfuscate death before. Did the demon kill him on the way out and Jesus bring him back to life, or was this simply a casting out and then regaining strength? I don’t know, but it’s an interesting thought.

Finally, we have the disciples, chastened and embarrassed, asking why. They couldn’t cast out that evil spirit. Jesus: “This kind can be cast out only by prayer.”

When my back has been up against the wall, I have taken a day to fast and pray. I don’t think you’ve ever let me down in those times. I was thinking last night about some of thing things I mentioned I am fearing in yesterday’s prayer journal to you. It came to me that I need to take a day to fast and pray about this Corona Virus thing. How it is impacting the world. How it will touch my community. How the economics of it will impact the most vulnerable. How people are losing their loved ones. How it will affect the nonprofit where I work, both in the practical terms of helping potential patients and protecting our staff and in our fundraising efforts. I need to take a day to pray about it often, but I definitely need to take a day to fast and pray about it. I might just do that this Sunday. I’ll pray between now and then, but I will really fast and put myself before you this Sunday.

Father, I love this dad. He is one of my top three or so in the Bible. I love his insight into himself. His words are what I have felt so many times. I do believe, but help my unbelief. Also, help me to turn loose of my expectations of how you will answer my prayers. In the words of the classic hymn, have thine own way, Lord.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 11, 2020 in Fathers of the Bible, Mark

 

“Arms of Love” by Amy Grant

10 Mar

“Arms of Love” by Amy Grant

Lord, I’m really glad you’re here.
I hope you feel the same when you see all my fear,
and how I fail.
I fall sometimes.

It’s hard to walk in sinking sand.
I miss the rock, and find I’ve nowhere else to stand.
I start to cry.
Lord, please help me.
Raise my hands, so you can lift me up.
Hold me close, hold me tighter.

I have found a place where I can hide;
it’s safe inside
your arms of love.
Like a child who’s held throughout a storm;
I’m safe and warm
in your arms of love.

Storms may come and storms may go.
I wonder just how many storms it takes
until I finally know
you’re here always.
Even when my skies are far from grey.
Let me stay, Lord, teach me to stay.

In the place I’ve found where I can hide;
it’s safe inside
your arms of love.
Like a child who’s held throughout a storm;
I’m safe and warm
in your arms of love.

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Gary W Chapman / Amy Grant Gill / Michael Whitaker Smith

 

Dear God, last night I had the glums. I just felt a little down. Depressed is too strong, but I was definitely feeling…well, a lack of peace. I was wondering why when it started to occur to me that they uncertainty about the Corona Virus and how it will impact the charitable clinic where I work, our fundraising, etc. might be getting to me. In the grand scheme of things, I’m embarrassed that something like this could derail me so easily.

Since I had lost some of my peace, it made me wonder what I had started doing in my relationship with you that might have distracted me. My conclusion was that I have been so focused on this Mothers of the Bible and Fathers of the Bible series that I haven’t been spending much, if any, time in personal worship.

Then, as I was going to bed, this song from my childhood came to mind. I think it came out around 1981. It wasn’t the most famous song on Amy Grant’s Age to Age album, but it’s a good one. So I thought I would spend some time with it today. It seemed to capture what I was experiencing.

Lord, I’m really glad you’re here.
I hope you feel the same when you see all my fear,
and how I fail.
I fall sometimes.

This just seems so honest and transparent. I’m glad I know I have you to pray to and talk to. I hope you’re glad you have me, even after knowing who I really am and what I’ve really done or failed to do. This beginning of the first verse is a nice set up.

It’s hard to walk in sinking sand.
I miss the rock, and find I’ve nowhere else to stand.
I start to cry.
Lord, please help me.
Raise my hands, so you can lift me up.
Hold me close, hold me tighter.

That’s what I felt like I had done yesterday. I tried to walk, but I had missed the rock. I missed your rock. I missed just spending time worshiping you. So help me to raise my hands so you can life me up (the most poetic line of the song). I’m not much of a hand raiser, but is that one of the things I’m missing out on by not raising my hands in worship? Do I miss the opportunity to have you life me up? Then there’s the last three words: “hold me tighter.” How tight can you hold me? What a great image.

Storms may come and storms may go.
I wonder just how many storms it takes
until I finally know
you’re here always.
Even when my skies are far from grey.
Let me stay, Lord, teach me to stay.

I often try to put myself in the position of the songwriters when I hear songs like this. I don’t know if it was Michael, Gary, or Amy that wrote these lyrics, of if they sat together and wrote them, but I can see exploring the idea of the ups and downs of life and how we are continuously learning to have the same relationship with you regardless of our circumstances. The same peace. The same joy. Yes, we might mourn, but there can be a peace and joy that under-girds it all.

I have found a place where I can hide;
it’s safe inside
your arms of love.
Like a child who’s held throughout a storm;
I’m safe and warm
in your arms of love.

It seems like there were several songs with this sentiment back in the 80s. Twila Paris’s “The Warrior is a Child” and such. I guess there have been a couple of times in my life where I just wanted to shut down and hide from the storm, but I’m not sure that’s what you are calling me to do. When I think of this, I think of Elijah running and hiding in the cave. You finally ask him, “What are you doing here.” (1 Kings 19:9-13) The thought of hiding in your arms is nice, but I think you are more interested in us walking through the storm with you by our side (or carrying us through the storm as in “Footprints in the Sand“). It’s a fine line to walk between hiding in your arms and riding in your arms.

Father, thank you for your arms of love. Thank you that they stretched out through Jesus to forgive me. Thank you that they reach out and lift me up. Thank you for holding me and comforting me. And thank you for using them to provide for me, even when I don’t feel like you are.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 10, 2020 in Hymns and Songs

 

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Mothers of the Bible — Gentile Woman Who Asked Jesus to Heal Her Daughter

09 Mar

Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Gentile woman who lived there came to him, pleading, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is possessed by a demon that torments her severely.” But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word. Then his disciples urged him to send her away. “Tell her to go away,” they said. “She is bothering us with all her begging.” Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel.” But she came and worshiped him, pleading again, “Lord, help me!” Jesus responded, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.” She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their masters’ table.” “Dear woman,” Jesus said to her, “your faith is great. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was instantly healed.
Matthew 15:21-28

Dear God, this story has always been hard for me because Jesus comes off as a bit of a jerk. Is he racist? Is he elitist? Is he none of those things, but simply testing her? I’m sure it’s the latter, but it doesn’t seem that way at first.

I think I’m going to do what I did with Jairus yesterday and just make bullet points about another rich story that is told in a tight eight verses.

  • This Gentile woman already lived among the Jewish people in Tyre and Sidon. Had she already started to become acclimated to Jewish traditions, or was she overcoming a lot of racism she had experienced to go to Jesus in the first place?
  • She calls him “O Lord, Son of David!” Is this an admission on her part that he is the Messiah? He isn’t only a rabbi to her. Jairus’s friends called him a teacher. That’s not who she says he is. I could be wrong in how I’m reading this, but I think she’s willing to put the Messiah label on him. Now maybe this is just kissing up out of desperation. Maybe she doesn’t have a barrier to calling him that because the Messiah doesn’t mean as much to her as if she had been raised Jewish. But it’s still quite an admission.
  • The labels her daughter’s illness as a demon that torments her. I don’t know how this manifests itself, but that’s the language she uses with him.
  • “Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word.” That seems harsh? A test?
  • “Tell her to go away. She is bothering us with all her begging.” Did Jesus set a bad example for the disciples here. Was this incident reshaping his own attitudes towards his being there for Gentiles too. I think he had already healed the Centurion’s servant at this point, so it’s probably not that. But it’s interesting that his response to her seems to encourage racism and bigotry among the disciples.
  • “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep–the people of Israel.” Again, racism or a test?
  • “She came and she worshiped him.” She didn’t just plead. She acknowledged his God-ness over her as well. She asked to be considered one of his people. She worshiped him.
  • They have their exchange about food and scraps from the table. This is the part of the story everyone remembers. If you try to bring this story to someone’s mind, all you have to say is, “The one where the woman just wants scraps from the table like a dog.” I was thinking about my dogs the other day and how grateful I am they can’t talk back. We definitely have a master/slave relationship with them. We tell them when to go to sleep, where to sleep, when to go to the bathroom, when to eat, to be quiet, to go away, to come here, etc. Then there is the part of the relationship where we play with them and scratch them. We feed them. We walk them. We give them shelter. We even pay a sitter to come and care for them when we leave town so they won’t have to be boarded. I’ve always kind of just read over this story, but maybe there is something more to this being a representation of my relationship with you than I’ve given it credit for.
  • Jesus is impressed with her answer and heals her daughter.

Father, I don’t know that this woman would ever have been driven to worship Jesus without going through this terrible thing with her daughter. It humbled her. Her love for her daughter and desperation brought her to her knees. I’m sure she told her daughter from that time forward how this man named Jesus, a Jewish Messiah, healed her. I wonder how she felt when she heard about the crucifixion. Did she hear about the resurrection too? You made the pain she experienced count, and I’m grateful for that. I’m grateful for her, and, as a Gentile, I’m grateful for myself as well.

I pray all of this in the name of that same Jesus,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 9, 2020 in Matthew, Mothers of the Bible

 

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Fathers of the Bible — Jairus

08 Mar

Then a leader of the local synagogue, whose name was Jairus, arrived. When he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet, pleading fervently with him. “My little daughter is dying,” he said. “Please come and lay your hands on her; heal her so she can live.” Jesus went with him, and all the people followed, crowding around him. While he was still speaking to her, messengers arrived from the home of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue. They told him, “Your daughter is dead. There’s no use troubling the Teacher now.” But Jesus overheard them and said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith.” Then Jesus stopped the crowd and wouldn’t let anyone go with him except Peter, James, and John (the brother of James). When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw much commotion and weeping and wailing. He went inside and asked, “Why all this commotion and weeping? The child isn’t dead; she’s only asleep.” The crowd laughed at him. But he made them all leave, and he took the girl’s father and mother and his three disciples into the room where the girl was lying. Holding her hand, he said to her, “Talitha koum,” which means “Little girl, get up!” And the girl, who was twelve years old, immediately stood up and walked around! They were overwhelmed and totally amazed. Jesus gave them strict orders not to tell anyone what had happened, and then he told them to give her something to eat.
Mark 5:22-24,35-43

Dear God, so much happens in this story. That’s the pretty incredible thing about the Bible overall. It has some of the tightest, best editing ever. In this case, it takes just 12 verses to say so much. It paints quite a picture.

Here are the key phrases that communicate so much:

  • “Leader of the local synagogue”– This wasn’t just anyone. This was someone with some community standing and pride. He should be able to handle something like this on his own. Why would he need to go to a traveling rabbi and get his help?
  • “My little girl is dying”– When one becomes a parent…well, there’s just a mystery there that you and I have discussed before. Imprinting. Bonding. Call it whatever you want, but there is something powerful about your child.
  • “Heal her so she can live”– It’s not like healing was common in those days. Jairus wasn’t making a common request. He was making a desperate request. He wanted his daughter to live. He wanted it for his own sake. I’m sure he wanted it for his wife as well.
  • “There’s no use troubling the Teacher now”–It’s one thing to heal. It’s another thing to resurrect. We were now beyond healing, and resurrection was too much to expect.
  • “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith”– Faith in what? That you’re going to raise her from the dead? Really? There’s no way.
  • “The child isn’t dead; she’s only asleep”– What? Was Jesus being intentionally deceptive here in order to prevent a furor after the resurrection about to take place? Did he try to protect the little girl from being the one who was raised from the dead as opposed to simply being someone who was healed? Was he protecting Jairus and his wife from that kind of attention as well? I’ve always seen this as being…well, I’ll call it a misleading. I’ve always seen this as a misleading that would protect Jesus from unwanted acclaim, but maybe it was for Jairus’s family’s benefit as well.
  • “They were overwhelmed and totally amazed”– Yeah, I would imagine so. Despair to elation. Hope. I wonder where Jairus was the week of Jesus’s crucifixion. It’s too bad we don’t have any further information about him or his family. I’d like to know if he became like Nicodemus. It’d be nice if we had that follow up.
  • “Jesus game them strict orders not to tell anyone what had happened”– Back to the…misleading. Obfuscation? This is the part that must have struck Don Francisco in the song I liked to above: “I’ve Got to Tell Somebody“
  • “Give her something to eat”– She’s been sick a while. It’s probably been days since she has eaten, but she isn’t only alive. She isn’t sick anymore. Give that girl something to eat.

Father, I wish I knew more about Jairus. What I do know is pretty great. And I’m about to go through some stories about more fathers like him. I don’t have too many parents left really, but there are several who bring their children to Jesus for healing. I was going to bunch them together, but my wife encouraged me to break them out separately to see if there is anything unique about this. In this case, I would say that Jairus being the local synagogue leader is significant. The implications of what this would mean to his position in the community is significant. And that fact that he had to keep it quiet and participate in the obfuscation is unique as well. Thank you for his example of a father who really loved his daughter beyond what it would cost him personally and professionally.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 8, 2020 in Fathers of the Bible, Mark

 

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Mothers of the Bible — The Widow Who Helped Elijah

07 Mar

Then the Lord said to Elijah, “Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there to feed you.” So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her, “Would you please bring me a little water in a cup?” As she was going to get it, he called to her, “Bring me a bite of bread, too.” But she said, “I swear by the Lord your God that I don’t have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die.” But Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid! Go ahead and do just what you’ve said, but make a little bread for me first. Then use what’s left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There will always be flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the Lord sends rain and the crops grow again!” So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days. There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah. Some time later the woman’s son became sick. He grew worse and worse, and finally he died. Then she said to Elijah, “O man of God, what have you done to me? Have you come here to point out my sins and kill my son?” But Elijah replied, “Give me your son.” And he took the child’s body from her arms, carried him up the stairs to the room where he was staying, and laid the body on his bed. Then Elijah cried out to the Lord, “O Lord my God, why have you brought tragedy to this widow who has opened her home to me, causing her son to die?” And he stretched himself out over the child three times and cried out to the Lord, “O Lord my God, please let this child’s life return to him.” The Lord heard Elijah’s prayer, and the life of the child returned, and he revived! Then Elijah brought him down from the upper room and gave him to his mother. “Look!” he said. “Your son is alive!” Then the woman told Elijah, “Now I know for sure that you are a man of God, and that the Lord truly speaks through you.”
1 Kings 17:8-24

Dear God, what made this woman so obedient to Elijah? Was it inherent kindness? Was it respect for men in that culture? Every time I read this story I’m always so surprised by how quickly she responds to his requests.

Hold it. Let me back up. You instructed a widow to support Elijah? My logic would have sent Elijah to a wealthy family that had enough resources to care for Elijah in addition to the rest of the household. I wouldn’t have sent him to a widow with a child. Widows had a hard enough time providing for themselves in that culture, much less adding another mouth to feed. I’ve never thought about this before, but maybe you already knew her son would die and she would need Elijah. You knew the son would need Elijah. It’s too bad we don’t know who this son became, but it’s obvious to me now that you weren’t as much providing for Elijah in this situation–you could have done that anywhere–but you were providing for the widow and her son.

I’m glad I saw this because I was going to join Elijah in his prayer when he said, “O Lord my God, why have you brought tragedy to this widow who has opened her home to me, causing her son to die?” Did Elijah still have that limited level of vision of you that he thought you sent good things to those who love you and bad things to those who don’t? I guess this process was part of his own education and refining too. Of course, he was also responding to the pressure of the moment and the fog of war that he was in. After all, he had a dead boy in front of him and a distraught woman saying, “O man of God, what have you (emphasis mine) done to me? Have you come here to point out my sins and kill my son?” Again, the link between you sending punishment for sin instead of a view that life is life and tragedy will sometimes come regardless of the level of holiness in someone’s heart.

One more thing on Elijah before I return to the widow. I love how excited he is to have raised the son. “Look (exclamation point) Your son is alive (exclamation point)” What a relief! What a time to celebrate! He had to be thinking, “Oh, thank you, God!”

Going back to the widow, she woke up one morning in the midst of a famine and she knew she was at the end of the line. One more day’s worth of food. Then she was done. No more food to buy. No more food to cook. It was time to face facts. Their lives were coming to an end. Then you sent this guy into her life and she had nothing left to lose so she listened to him. I wonder if she would have helped him out a week before. Did she need to be at the end of her rope as a widow and a mother before she would help him? Maybe not. Maybe she would have helped him. But you certainly exhibited your power to her. After Elijah left, I would think there would never be a reason for her to doubt you or your love for her again.

Father, thank you for the reminder that sometimes we are just doing the best we have with the circumstances in front of us. That’s what she was doing. In this case, you had a plan for her life and her son’s life. I don’t know what you did with the rest of their lives or how they have rippled through time to impact mine except for me sitting here learning from them thousands of years later. She certainly probably never knew she and her son would be part of your scripture. It’s a reminder that I have no idea what you’re doing or how my life will work out, but it’s not important that I know. It’s just important that I am faithful to you and rest in the peace that you are in control.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 7, 2020 in 1 Kings, Mothers of the Bible

 

Mothers of the Bible — Bathsheba

05 Mar

In the spring of the year, when kings normally go out to war, David sent Joab and the Israelite army to fight the Ammonites. They destroyed the Ammonite army and laid siege to the city of Rabbah. However, David stayed behind in Jerusalem. Late one afternoon, after his midday rest, David got out of bed and was walking on the roof of the palace. As he looked out over the city, he noticed a woman of unusual beauty taking a bath. He sent someone to find out who she was, and he was told, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” Then David sent messengers to get her; and when she came to the palace, he slept with her. She had just completed the purification rites after having her menstrual period. Then she returned home. Later, when Bathsheba discovered that she was pregnant, she sent David a message, saying, “I’m pregnant.” Then David sent word to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” So Joab sent him to David. When Uriah arrived, David asked him how Joab and the army were getting along and how the war was progressing. Then he told Uriah, “Go on home and relax. ” David even sent a gift to Uriah after he had left the palace. But Uriah didn’t go home. He slept that night at the palace entrance with the king’s palace guard. When David heard that Uriah had not gone home, he summoned him and asked, “What’s the matter? Why didn’t you go home last night after being away for so long?” Uriah replied, “The Ark and the armies of Israel and Judah are living in tents, and Joab and my master’s men are camping in the open fields. How could I go home to wine and dine and sleep with my wife? I swear that I would never do such a thing.” “Well, stay here today,” David told him, “and tomorrow you may return to the army.” So Uriah stayed in Jerusalem that day and the next. Then David invited him to dinner and got him drunk. But even then he couldn’t get Uriah to go home to his wife. Again he slept at the palace entrance with the king’s palace guard. So the next morning David wrote a letter to Joab and gave it to Uriah to deliver. The letter instructed Joab, “Station Uriah on the front lines where the battle is fiercest. Then pull back so that he will be killed.” So Joab assigned Uriah to a spot close to the city wall where he knew the enemy’s strongest men were fighting. And when the enemy soldiers came out of the city to fight, Uriah the Hittite was killed along with several other Israelite soldiers. Then Joab sent a battle report to David. He told his messenger, “Report all the news of the battle to the king. But he might get angry and ask, ‘Why did the troops go so close to the city? Didn’t they know there would be shooting from the walls? Wasn’t Abimelech son of Gideon killed at Thebez by a woman who threw a millstone down on him from the wall? Why would you get so close to the wall?’ Then tell him, ‘Uriah the Hittite was killed, too.’” So the messenger went to Jerusalem and gave a complete report to David. “The enemy came out against us in the open fields,” he said. “And as we chased them back to the city gate, the archers on the wall shot arrows at us. Some of the king’s men were killed, including Uriah the Hittite.” “Well, tell Joab not to be discouraged,” David said. “The sword devours this one today and that one tomorrow! Fight harder next time, and conquer the city!” When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she mourned for him. When the period of mourning was over, David sent for her and brought her to the palace, and she became one of his wives. Then she gave birth to a son. But the Lord was displeased with what David had done. After Nathan returned to his home, the Lord sent a deadly illness to the child of David and Uriah’s wife. Then on the seventh day the child died. David’s advisers were afraid to tell him. “He wouldn’t listen to reason while the child was ill,” they said. “What drastic thing will he do when we tell him the child is dead?” Then David comforted Bathsheba, his wife, and slept with her. She became pregnant and gave birth to a son, and David named him Solomon. The Lord loved the child and sent word through Nathan the prophet that they should name him Jedidiah (which means “beloved of the Lord”), as the Lord had commanded.
2 Samuel 11:1-27, 12:15, 18, 24-25

Dear God, as I think about Bathsheba as she experiences this course of events, I can’t help but think of the illustration I’ve used a few times over the last three or so weeks about the blind men who experience an elephant for the first time. Each one has a different description of the elephant because they are touching a different part. Here’s what I perceive to be a point-by-point experience for Bathsheba:

  • Her husband Uriah is gone to war and she is home alone. Living all alone? With any family? I don’t know, but we’ll presume she is alone.
  • She gets summoned to see king David and doesn’t know why. Did David have a reputation for doing this? Had he done this before with other women? Did she know what to expect when she got there?
  • She slept with David. Did she want to sleep with him? Did he force her? Did she have a choice? She had just finished her period. Was there a part of her that was lonely with Uriah gone and wanted to sleep with the King? In any event, she slept with him and I’m sure felt shameful as she went home.
  • She finds out she’s pregnant several weeks later. Let’s say it’s about 6-8 weeks. I don’t know how long it took to figure it out back then. I can’t imagine the horror she must have felt. Her husband is away at war and she is pregnant by the King. Well, she won’t be able to handle this problem alone so she involves David.
    • At this point I’d like to point out that apparently at least one other person knows about this whole situation. Someone had to summon her for David and someone had to deliver the pregnancy message to him. It might have been the same person, but the total number of people who know about that is at least three. I would venture to say more.

    • We aren’t told that David responded directly to her, but all of a sudden Uriah is back! What? How did she feel when she saw him? Did he know? Do the king tell him? Would someone else tell him? Why is he here? But he wouldn’t sleep with her. David had finally met his ethical match. Uriah followed his own code of honor.

    Uriah is gone again.
    She gets word that Uriah is dead. She is pregnant with, presumably, her first child and now her husband is dead. She mourned appropriately for him.
    David publicly moved her to the palace and married her, pregnant and all. Was it the worst kept secret in Jerusalem that the baby was his? Was the company line that it was Uriah’s from when he visited home and David was being a great guy by marrying her. How much shame and confusion did she feel during this time? What a whirlwind! What a tragedy.
    But something worse is coming, and she doesn’t deserve it. David does. The child is going to die. I have to tell you, Father, this seems so mean to me.
    After the son dies she is now left with a dead husband (I assume she loved him–he was apparently an honorable man) and a dead son. She has nothing.
    She has another child with David. This one turns out to be Solomon. She gets word from Nathan that he is “beloved of the Lord.” Who will this boy be?
    We saw yesterday how she orchestrated Solomon’s attaining of the throne. He wasn’t the obvious choice from a line-of-succession standpoint. Adonijah was. And I don’t know when David made his promise to her about Solomon getting the throne (1 Kings 1:17), but did he do it as part of his comforting of her back when she was pregnant with him or when he was born? Either way, it seems that she was ready to do what it took to see that Solomon became king.

Father, this seems like such a terrible deal for her. It seems so unfair. She got caught up in circumstances that were so much bigger than her. She made the best of them, but I can’t help but not like this story even more when I think about how she must have experienced it. But I guess life can be like that. We can get caught up in circumstances that are beyond us. It’s not fair. But as you ultimately did with Solomon, you can come along and redeem it. You can redeem the divorce. You can redeem the criminal. You can redeem anything. You can make us stronger through driving us to depend upon you. Thank you for ultimately providing for Bathsheba. In the end, she got to see her second-born son become king of Israel. I hope that at the end of her life she was able to be at peace.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 5, 2020 in 2 Samuel, Mothers of the Bible

 

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“Empty Chairs and Empty Tables” by Fred Smith

05 Mar

Dear God, I was reading Fred Smith’s weekly blog this morning and I thought I’d spend some time with it. He titled it, “Empty Chairs and Empty Tables.”

It’s interesting to me that my perspective changes so much as I age. I knew so much when I was 16. When I was 25, I saw how much I didn’t know when I was 16. I was older and wiser by then. Then at 35 I got my first job as the top leader of an organization. I felt very ready for that moment. I was married with two children (who were 9 and 6 at the time). Life was good and I was doing it right. Yes, I was much smarter. Now, being 50 and looking back I can see how naive I was. I had a lot to learn. I was arrogant about what I thought I could control and what I couldn’t control. I can’t believe I was 35 when they hired me to do the job I am doing now. One day, when I’m 60, I’ll look back at 50 and see it as being young. The same of 75…85. You get the point.

Fred mentioned in his piece that he spent a lot of his time trying to influence people how to live their lives: “I even started a few projects inside. File I kept in my office labeled “Get Out Of Town” where I encouraged kids to leave and start life elsewhere. Experience a wider world! Escape the pull of gravity and tradition!” That concept kind of hits something I’ve been learning more and more lately. I don’t even know what I should be doing from one day to the next. I certainly don’t know what my children should be doing—much less people who aren’t even my children.

I suppose my big lesson in all of this is to simply be a conduit of pointing people to you and then letting you direct their path. I wouldn’t have know what was best for Ruth and Naomi. I wouldn’t have known what was best for Mary and Joseph. Like I said, I can’t even really tell you what is best for my wife and me. But I have faith that, even if I screw something up and get outside of your will, my pursuit of you will enable you to redeem whatever mistakes I make and still accomplish your plans either through or in spite of me.

Father, if life is like a mountain that must be climbed, I have a better perspective on it from this elevation that I did 10 years ago. I expect I’ll have a better view of it in 10 years than I do now. It’s not about me being right. It’s not about me being wrong. It’s just about me being yours today. Help me to be yours today and work around my foolishness.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 5, 2020 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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Fathers of the Bible — David (Part 5)

03 Mar

About that time David’s son Adonijah, whose mother was Haggith, began boasting, “I will make myself king.” So he provided himself with chariots and charioteers and recruited fifty men to run in front of him. Now his father, King David, had never disciplined him at any time, even by asking, “Why are you doing that?” Adonijah had been born next after Absalom, and he was very handsome. Adonijah took Joab son of Zeruiah and Abiathar the priest into his confidence, and they agreed to help him become king. But Zadok the priest, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, Nathan the prophet, Shimei, Rei, and David’s personal bodyguard refused to support Adonijah. Adonijah went to the Stone of Zoheleth near the spring of En-rogel, where he sacrificed sheep, cattle, and fattened calves. He invited all his brothers—the other sons of King David—and all the royal officials of Judah. But he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the king’s bodyguard or his brother Solomon. Then Nathan went to Bathsheba, Solomon’s mother, and asked her, “Haven’t you heard that Haggith’s son, Adonijah, has made himself king, and our lord David doesn’t even know about it? If you want to save your own life and the life of your son Solomon, follow my advice. Go at once to King David and say to him, ‘My lord the king, didn’t you make a vow and say to me, “Your son Solomon will surely be the next king and will sit on my throne”? Why then has Adonijah become king?’ And while you are still talking with him, I will come and confirm everything you have said.” So Bathsheba went into the king’s bedroom. (He was very old now, and Abishag was taking care of him.) Bathsheba bowed down before the king. “What can I do for you?” he asked her. She replied, “My lord, you made a vow before the Lord your God when you said to me, ‘Your son Solomon will surely be the next king and will sit on my throne.’ But instead, Adonijah has made himself king, and my lord the king does not even know about it. He has sacrificed many cattle, fattened calves, and sheep, and he has invited all the king’s sons to attend the celebration. He also invited Abiathar the priest and Joab, the commander of the army. But he did not invite your servant Solomon. And now, my lord the king, all Israel is waiting for you to announce who will become king after you. If you do not act, my son Solomon and I will be treated as criminals as soon as my lord the king has died.” While she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet arrived. The king’s officials told him, “Nathan the prophet is here to see you.” Nathan went in and bowed before the king with his face to the ground. Nathan asked, “My lord the king, have you decided that Adonijah will be the next king and that he will sit on your throne? Today he has sacrificed many cattle, fattened calves, and sheep, and he has invited all the king’s sons to attend the celebration. He also invited the commanders of the army and Abiathar the priest. They are feasting and drinking with him and shouting, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ But he did not invite me or Zadok the priest or Benaiah or your servant Solomon. Has my lord the king really done this without letting any of his officials know who should be the next king?” King David responded, “Call Bathsheba!” So she came back in and stood before the king. And the king repeated his vow: “As surely as the Lord lives, who has rescued me from every danger, your son Solomon will be the next king and will sit on my throne this very day, just as I vowed to you before the Lord, the God of Israel.” Then Bathsheba bowed down with her face to the ground before the king and exclaimed, “May my lord King David live forever!” Then King David ordered, “Call Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada.” When they came into the king’s presence, the king said to them, “Take Solomon and my officials down to Gihon Spring. Solomon is to ride on my own mule. There Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet are to anoint him king over Israel. Blow the ram’s horn and shout, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ Then escort him back here, and he will sit on my throne. He will succeed me as king, for I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and Judah.” “Amen!” Benaiah son of Jehoiada replied. “May the Lord, the God of my lord the king, decree that it happen. And may the Lord be with Solomon as he has been with you, my lord the king, and may he make Solomon’s reign even greater than yours!” So Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah son of Jehoiada, and the king’s bodyguard took Solomon down to Gihon Spring, with Solomon riding on King David’s own mule. There Zadok the priest took the flask of olive oil from the sacred tent and anointed Solomon with the oil. Then they sounded the ram’s horn and all the people shouted, “Long live King Solomon!” And all the people followed Solomon into Jerusalem, playing flutes and shouting for joy. The celebration was so joyous and noisy that the earth shook with the sound. Adonijah and his guests heard the celebrating and shouting just as they were finishing their banquet. When Joab heard the sound of the ram’s horn, he asked, “What’s going on? Why is the city in such an uproar?” And while he was still speaking, Jonathan son of Abiathar the priest arrived. “Come in,” Adonijah said to him, “for you are a good man. You must have good news.” “Not at all!” Jonathan replied. “Our lord King David has just declared Solomon king! The king sent him down to Gihon Spring with Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah son of Jehoiada, protected by the king’s bodyguard. They had him ride on the king’s own mule, and Zadok and Nathan have anointed him at Gihon Spring as the new king. They have just returned, and the whole city is celebrating and rejoicing. That’s what all the noise is about. What’s more, Solomon is now sitting on the royal throne as king. And all the royal officials have gone to King David and congratulated him, saying, ‘May your God make Solomon’s fame even greater than your own, and may Solomon’s reign be even greater than yours!’ Then the king bowed his head in worship as he lay in his bed, and he said, ‘Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, who today has chosen a successor to sit on my throne while I am still alive to see it.’” Then all of Adonijah’s guests jumped up in panic from the banquet table and quickly scattered. Adonijah was afraid of Solomon, so he rushed to the sacred tent and grabbed on to the horns of the altar. Word soon reached Solomon that Adonijah had seized the horns of the altar in fear, and that he was pleading, “Let King Solomon swear today that he will not kill me!” Solomon replied, “If he proves himself to be loyal, not a hair on his head will be touched. But if he makes trouble, he will die.” So King Solomon summoned Adonijah, and they brought him down from the altar. He came and bowed respectfully before King Solomon, who dismissed him, saying, “Go on home.” As the time of King David’s death approached, he gave this charge to his son Solomon: “I am going where everyone on earth must someday go. Take courage and be a man. Observe the requirements of the Lord your God, and follow all his ways. Keep the decrees, commands, regulations, and laws written in the Law of Moses so that you will be successful in all you do and wherever you go. If you do this, then the Lord will keep the promise he made to me. He told me, ‘If your descendants live as they should and follow me faithfully with all their heart and soul, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel.’ “And there is something else. You know what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me when he murdered my two army commanders, Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether. He pretended that it was an act of war, but it was done in a time of peace, staining his belt and sandals with innocent blood. Do with him what you think best, but don’t let him grow old and go to his grave in peace. “Be kind to the sons of Barzillai of Gilead. Make them permanent guests at your table, for they took care of me when I fled from your brother Absalom. “And remember Shimei son of Gera, the man from Bahurim in Benjamin. He cursed me with a terrible curse as I was fleeing to Mahanaim. When he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, I swore by the Lord that I would not kill him. But that oath does not make him innocent. You are a wise man, and you will know how to arrange a bloody death for him. ” Then David died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. David had reigned over Israel for forty years, seven of them in Hebron and thirty-three in Jerusalem. Solomon became king and sat on the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.
1 Kings 1:5-2:12

Dear God, does all of this conflict really come down to simple lack of estate/succession planning on David’s part? What did he think was going to happen?

His firstborn (Amnon) was killed by his third-born (Absalom). His second-born, Daniel, I believe died of natural causes as a child. That left his fourth-born, Adonijah as the “natural” choice. I’ve never understood how Solomon got in there. According to Bathsheba, David had promised her, but I can’t find any reference to that promise in 2 Samuel. Perhaps I missed it, or perhaps it’s just something David said when she was mourning the loss of her first child. Either way, this looks to be another incredible lack of family leadership on David’s part. What was he thinking?

I’m not saying that Adonijah did it right or that he should have been king. But if David was going to make Solomon king all along then he should have been preparing him for it. He should have been guiding him. I suppose it is important to note here that there is another telling of this story in 1 Chronicles. That telling makes things look a little more organized. I think I believe the chaos of this story a little more.

Why was he like this? I was thinking today about the idea that David was a man after your own heart. What did that mean for all of the areas of his life?

  • There was David the servant of you–Check, man after your own heart.
  • There was David the warrior–Check, man after your own heart.
  • There was David the friend–Check, man after your own heart.
  • There was David the king–Check, pretty much a man after your own heart.
  • There was David the husband–Well, I don’t see his heart for you as much here.
  • There was David the father–Well, no, I don’t really see it here either.

David had this great integrity when it came to his worship of you and his humility before you. He had integrity as a warrior (letting Saul live twice) and as a friend (taking care of Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, after Jonathan died). I think the power started to corrupt him a bit as king, but he certainly tried to lead the nation in following you. But when it came to husbanding and fathering, he seemed absolutely lost.

I talked to a mother of two teenagers today. I could feel her pain. I experienced some of it. Sometimes, it can be easier to just be a good public person and let the private life suffer. Is that what David did.

Then there is this whole angle of dealing with his estate planning and succession plan. I think I counted that he had 17 sons, although how many were alive when he died is a bit unclear. Did he deal with them and tell them how things were going to be? If not, why? Is there anything I need to be doing now to set my children up for good relationships after I’m gone by being open about what my and my wife’s estate plans are now?

Father, help me to be as attuned to my personal life as I am my public one. Scratch that! Make me more attuned to my life as a husband, father, brother, son, etc. than I am to projecting a good public image. Help me to do the hard work and to lead under your grace and mercy.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 3, 2020 in 1 Kings, Fathers of the Bible

 

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