Women in the Word

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2/13/2017 7:54 am  #121


Re: 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 26

S: The Lord rewards every man for his righteousness and his faithfulness (26:23).
 
O: David’s statement was as much a condemnation of Saul’s actions as it was a prayer for safety.
 
A: Do I expect the Lord to look on me with favor regardless of my actions?  When I’m not acting righteously or faithfully am I surprised when He disciplines me?  Yet we must also be careful with what we expect in regards to rewards.  I can be the most righteous and faithful person yet still face trials, the Apostle Paul’s life shows us that.  However, I can take comfort in knowing that my reward waits in eternity.
 

 

2/13/2017 11:54 am  #122


Re: 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 26

Scripture 26:9
But David said to Abishai, "Do not destroy him, for who can put out his hand against the LORD's anointed and be guiltless?"

It is the Lord's place to rise up or to take down. Who are we to take things into our own hands. But no one can rule or prosper unless God allows it. So leave it to God to judge and ultimately bring justice. But we should not act in our own anger.

The wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. James 1:20

Scripture
26:12
So David took the spear and the jar of water from Saul's head, and they went away. No man saw it or knew it, nor did any awake, for they were all asleep, because a deep sleep from the LORD had fallen upon them.
26:21 Then Saul said, "I have sinned. Return, my son David, for I will no more do you harm, because my life was precious in your eyes this day. Behold, I have acted foolishly, and have made a great mistake."

It is almost like God is giving Saul a chance to repent. He is revealing the hearts of Saul and David and showing Saul how wrong he is and how unjust he is in comparison's to David's faithfulness.

God does not desire that any perish, but is patient in continuing to show us our heart and show us His truth so that we would come to repentance and be saved.

Optional GMG Discussion Question: David trusted that God would reward his righteousness and faithfulness. Do you trust that God will honor your faithfulness and how have you seen this in your life?

I don't know if I think of it like that. I trust that God will be faithful to complete His work in me in transforming me into His image and in preserving me in the faith until I see Him. I trust that He will walk with me and carry me through anything that comes. But, I am not sure that I look at it with a perspective of "reward." I think by trying to live righteously and being faithful that I will have intimacy and relationship with God that gives me peace, hope, and joy. And when I don't like this way I am lost and hopeless and have no real life.

It reminds me of an older christian song with the lyrics "If heaven never were promised to me, neither God's promise to live eternally, it's been worth just having the Lord in my life, living in a world of darkness He came along and brought me the light."

God removed me from the dark, set my feet of solid rock and gave me life, hope and a future. I guess that is all I am really looking for.

Last edited by TBG (2/13/2017 11:55 am)

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2/14/2017 8:01 am  #123


Re: 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 27

S: Then David said in his heart, “Now I shall perish one day by the hand of Saul.” (27:1)
 
O: David knew that he was anointed of God, and that God had been faithful to keep him safe, yet his faith still floundered.  “Long trials are in danger of tiring the faith and patience even of very good men,” Matthew Henry.
 
A: It is so easy to get discouraged when we go through trials.  As the trial stretches on we can grow weary and worn down.  It is when we realize that this is happening that we need to be even more purposeful about clinging to the Lord.  We need to run to Him in our weariness and let Him strengthen us.
 
For me that means singing and listening to praise music.  When I was going through chemo, I would listen to praise music while getting my treatments.  When I grew tired of the pain and the exhaustion and the other crazy side effects, I would sing.  The music helped draw me closer to God and I was able to rest in Him.
 

 

2/14/2017 11:35 am  #124


Re: 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 27

Scripture 27:1  Then David said in his heart, "Now I shall perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will despair of seeking me any longer within the borders of Israel, and I shall escape out of his hand."

O: David stopped believing in God's promise; he lost hope; his faith faltered. Then since his faith was weak, he decided that he would have to come up with a plan to protect himself. He stopped trusting God to protect him and took it into his own hands. He did not pray to the God or seek God's guidance as he had in the past chapters. He just acted.

This ended up drawing him into things that were not honoring such as lying and manipulation.

A: When we stop really trusting God to provide for us or to solve our problems, we act in our own wisdom and strength and this can lead us into more compromise.

Optional GMG Discussion Question: David was discouraged and said in his heart, he was about to die – even though God had promised deliverance. What we say in our hearts has incredible power to influence our choices. In what ways has your heart discouraged you in the past?

It is so easy to allow that one thought to rattle around in your head and then you start believing the lie and it discourages you and pulls you further from God and further into acting on your own wisdom out of desperation. It is so important to learn and meditate on scripture and to recognize the lies of the enemy and to respond to those lies with the truth of God's Word.

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2/14/2017 11:38 am  #125


Re: 1 Samuel

Michelle wrote:

1 Samuel 27

S: Then David said in his heart, “Now I shall perish one day by the hand of Saul.” (27:1)
 
O: David knew that he was anointed of God, and that God had been faithful to keep him safe, yet his faith still floundered.  “Long trials are in danger of tiring the faith and patience even of very good men,” Matthew Henry.
 
A: It is so easy to get discouraged when we go through trials.  As the trial stretches on we can grow weary and worn down.  It is when we realize that this is happening that we need to be even more purposeful about clinging to the Lord.  We need to run to Him in our weariness and let Him strengthen us. 

Very true. We sometime minimize the strain of long trials on believers, but they are hard and we need supernatural strength to persevere.
 

Michelle wrote:

For me that means singing and listening to praise music.  When I was going through chemo, I would listen to praise music while getting my treatments.  When I grew tired of the pain and the exhaustion and the other crazy side effects, I would sing.  The music helped draw me closer to God and I was able to rest in Him.
 

That is beautiful.
 

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2/15/2017 7:03 pm  #126


Re: 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 28
 
Scripture 28:5 When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly.
 
He used to not be afraid of the Philistines. But, now, God’s presence had left him and he did not even have Samuel to ask for God’s guidance from. So, without God, he was afraid. Yet, the reason he was without God was because he was prideful and took credit for his victories and success and worshiped himself instead of God. Now, he suddenly realizes that he cannot do it by his own ability after all and that he needs God.
 
Scripture 28:6 And when Saul inquired of the LORD, the LORD did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets.
 
He did not repent; he was just wanting God to help him or give him information. He was using God like a genie. He had no fear of God as seen in the next verse when he goes after witchcraft, which God had expressly prohibited in the strongest way.
 
Scripture 28:9 The woman said to him, "Surely you know what Saul has done, how he has cut off the mediums and the necromancers from the land. Why then are you laying a trap for my life to bring about my death?"
 
O: Matthew Henry points out that the woman was afraid of Saul killing her body, but she was not afraid of God dooming her soul.
 
A: How often do we fear temporal consequences or more than spiritual and eternal consequences? Or we value physical desires more than eternal blessings or eternal consequences. This world is so important to us and what we have or don’t have seems to be at the forefront of our mind. We devalue eternal things because we want to hold onto the cheap and worthless things of this world.
 
K: Lord help e to have eternal eyes. Help me to value what You value, to love what You love, to see what You see. Help me to run from all love of the world and things in the world and to love only You and only Your kingdom and only Your pleasure.
 
A single day spent in your Temple is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a doorman of the Temple of my God than live in palaces of wickedness. Psalm 84:10
 
One day spent in your house, this beautiful place of worship, beats thousands spent on Greek island beaches. I’d rather scrub floors in the house of my God than be honored as a guest in the palace of sin. (TM)
 
Scripture 28:15-16 Then Samuel said to Saul, "Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?" Saul answered, "I am in great distress, for the Philistines are warring against me, and God has turned away from me and answers me no more, either by prophets or by dreams. Therefore I have summoned you to tell me what I shall do." And Samuel said, "Why then do you ask me, since the LORD has turned from you and become your enemy?
 
It is almost as if he just does not get God’s sovereignty and control. He still thinks he can rely on first himself, then another man.
 
Samuel never had any power or wisdom of himself. It was always God working in Samuel based on God’s will and direction, not Samuel’s will or control. How can Samuel help him if God has decided to not help him?
 
Scripture 28:20 Then Saul fell at once full length on the ground, filled with fear because of the words of Samuel. And there was no strength in him, for he had eaten nothing all day and all night.
 
And, yet, he still did not repent. Till the very end, he was too prideful to repent and turn to God and to submit himself and humble himself before God.
 
A: Do we keep turning to ourselves of other people for guidance and for solutions? Do we try to use God as a genie to just help us instead of completely surrendering to His authority.

Optional GMG Discussion Question: God was silent when Saul called on him because he had not been following God’s revealed will for him. Have you gone through a time of silence from God when you were living disobediently?
 
God was silent when I was living obediently! I just could not understand why God would not show me what He wanted me to do. This was over the period of a year or more. It was a journey where He was just really showing me that I needed to trust Him each day and for each day. He was not going to show me the overall answer to what He wanted in this area, but to trust whatever it would be to Him, to live in trust and faithfulness to Him each day and to stop trying to plan ahead and figure out things, just trust Him.

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2/16/2017 8:19 am  #127


Re: 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 28

S: And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets. 28:6
 
O: “Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that he will also reap” (Galatians 6:7).  Saul would not receive answers by dreams for his sins had caused the Spirit of the Lord to depart from him.  He did not receive answers from the Urim, for he had killed the high priest.  He did not receive answers from prophets for he had hated Samuel and David.
 
A: If we turn our back son the things of God, we cannot expect an answer from the Lord when we inquire of Him.
 

 

2/16/2017 1:40 pm  #128


Re: 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 29

1 Samuel 29:6 Then Achish called David and said to him, "As the LORD lives, you have been honest, and to me it seems right that you should march out and in with me in the campaign. For I have found nothing wrong in you from the day of your coming to me to this day. Nevertheless, the lords do not approve of you.

O: God saved David from his foolishness, unfaithfulness, and lies.

1 Samuel 29:8 And David said to Achish, "But what have I done? What have you found in your servant from the day I entered your service until now, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?"

O: This is a real moral failure. You think David would feel guilty when Achish keeps reiterating how honest David is when David has been lying all along. Yet, instead of being grateful that he got bailed out of a tough spot he pushes his luck.

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2/17/2017 8:11 am  #129


Re: 1 Samuel

1 Samuel 30

S: But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God (30:6).
 
O: When faced with the loss of all that he had, David turned to God.  And it was because of his trust in the Lord, that he was able to pen Psalm 28:7, “The Lord is my strength and my shield; in Him my heart trusts and I am helped.”
 
A: When faced with trials I try and focus on verses in the Bible that tell of God’s promise to strengthen me and help me and to be there for me.  One of my favorite verse snippets is that God is a very present help in times of trouble.  Its’ from Psalm 46, and verses 1 – 3 really spoke to me today.
 
God is our refuge and strength,
A very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way,
Though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
Though its waters roar and foam,
Though the mountains tremble at its swelling.  Selah 
 

 

2/17/2017 5:43 pm  #130


Re: 1 Samuel

I’ve been MIA the last few weeks. Please pray for me as I struggle in this spiritual warfare. My heart wants to follow but my mind is struggling…

Only two chapters spoke to me the week of February 6-10.

S: 1 Samuel 22: 14-15 (MSG) Ahimelech answered the king, “There’s no official in your administration as true to you as David, your own son-in-law and captain of your bodyguard. None more honorable either. Do you think that was the first time I prayed with him for God’s guidance?  Hardly! But don’t accuse me of any wrongdoing, me or my family. I have no idea what you’re trying to get at with this ‘outlaw’ talk.

O: Ahimelech inadvertently defended David. To hear the loyalty and faithfulness of David defended must have annoyed Saul considerably. Ahimelech made a case for his innocence by declaring his ignorance of the breach that had occurred between Saul and David.

A: Just because someone is your friend’s enemy doesn’t make him your enemy. If you are a Christian, you will pray for both. – That the animosity between the two will be removed.

DQ: What are you afraid today and how can you trust God more?

I’m afraid that I will not measure up to what God expects of me. I still struggle with my faith and Christianity at 52. I truly believe if I can cross this barrier (whatever it is) I can fully understand God’s plan for me and wholeheartedly trust him.
 


S: 1 Samuel 23: 16-18 (MSG)  Jonathan, Saul’s son visited David at Horesh and encouraged him in God. He said, “Don’t despair. My father Saul, can’t lay a hand on you. You will be Israel’s king and I’ll be right at your side to help. And my father knows it.” Then the two of them made a covenant before God. David stayed at Horesh and Jonathan went home.

O: Jonathan always went to David with news regarding his plight with his Father. To visit David, his father’s archenemy was really risky.  Jonathan had God’s favor upon him. They both loved God and Jonathan continued to encourage David to be obedient with his walk with the Lord. Jonathan knew that David was going to be the next king and was content to take second place beside him because it was Gods will. David and Jonathan once again solidified their relationship and protection of each other.

A: Oh what to have a friendship as David and Jonathan's. We all need a friend that will continue to keep us in check with our walk with God. 

K: Father, I ask that you encamp around me positive people who love you just as much as I do. When I do wrong, they are to gently remind me what I should be do as a child of yours. 

DQ: Is there someone in your life who is in an inescapable trial? You may not be able to rescue them but how can you strengthen them today?

​Yes, I have one friend. I try to encourage her and myself with God's word and testimonies. 
 

Last edited by cochrans (2/17/2017 5:43 pm)

 

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