January 15, 2010 (the rest of 2 Samuel, I Chronicles and lots of Psalms)

Well, with my back injury, I've been reading but not feeling like posting, and to be honest, not getting much out of my reading. It could be the drugs I was on, it could be my mental state. But whatever 'the funk', I must renew my trust in God and His love and faithfulness to me, regardless of how I feel. We are to live this life in the realm of faith.

In the final chapters of 2 Samuel, David once again made some foolish decisions - one being to take a census of the people. I guess God was angry with that, because David was trying to see the strength of his military, thereby showing that he was trusting in his military might rather than in God.

In the final chapters of 1 Chronicles we see that God told David that because he was a man of 'war and bloodshed', he would not be the one to build the temple, but that his son Solomon would. But David still made preparations for his son. Which is what we need to do - we need to make preparations for our kids, for them to have every advantage for them to fulfill God's plan. And I think most of those preparations come in the 'spiritual realm' - walking with God ourselves and showing them what that looks like. I've copied below some of David's most memorable words:


^{1 Chronicles 28:6} He said to me, ‘Your son Solomon will build my Temple and its courtyards, for I have chosen him as my son, and I will be his father. ⁷ And if he continues to obey my commands and regulations as he does now, I will make his kingdom last forever.’

⁸ “So now, with God as our witness, and in the sight of all Israel—the Lord’s assembly—I give you this charge. Be careful to obey all the commands of the Lord your God, so that you may continue to possess this good land and leave it to your children as a permanent inheritance.

⁹ “And Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. Worship and serve him with your whole heart and a willing mind. For the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. ¹⁰ So take this seriously. The Lord has chosen you to build a Temple as his sanctuary. Be strong, and do the work.”

²⁰ Then David continued, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Don’t be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you.

And then David's closing words, recognizing the majesty of God:

^{1 Chronicles 29:10} Then David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly:

“O Lord, the God of our ancestor Israel, may you be praised forever and ever! ¹¹ Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty. Everything in the heavens and on earth is yours, O Lord, and this is your kingdom. We adore you as the one who is over all things. ¹² Wealth and honor come from you alone, for you rule over everything. Power and might are in your hand, and at your discretion people are made great and given strength.
¹³ “O our God, we thank you and praise your glorious name! ¹⁴ But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to you? Everything we have has come from you, and we give you only what you first gave us! ¹⁵ We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace.
¹⁶ “O Lord our God, even this material we have gathered to build a Temple to honor your holy name comes from you! It all belongs to you! ¹⁷ I know, my God, that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there. You know I have done all this with good motives, and I have watched your people offer their gifts willingly and joyously.
¹⁸ “O Lord, the God of our ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, make your people always want to obey you. See to it that their love for you never changes. ¹⁹ Give my son Solomon the wholehearted desire to obey all your commands, laws, and decrees, and to do everything necessary to build this Temple, for which I have made these preparations.”

²⁰ Then David said to the whole assembly, “Give praise to the Lord your God!” And the entire assembly praised the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and they bowed low and knelt before the Lord and the king.