Devos 365

1 Samuel 29 1 Now the Philistines had gathered all their forces at Aphek. And the Israelites were encamped by the spring that is in Jezreel. 2 As the lords of the Philistines were passing on by hundreds and by thousands, and David and his men were passing on in the rear with Achish, 3 the commanders of the Philistines said, “What are these Hebrews doing here?” And Achish said to the commanders of the Philistines, “Is this not David, the servant of Saul, king of Israel, who has been with me now for days and years, and since he deserted to me I have found no fault in him to this day.” 4 But the commanders of the Philistines were angry with him. And the commanders of the Philistines said to him, “Send the man back, that he may return to the place to which you have assigned him. He shall not go down with us to battle, lest in the battle he become an adversary to us. For how could this fellow reconcile himself to his lord? Would it not be with the heads of the men here? 5 Is not t...

1 Samuel 28 [The reading for today is the entirety of Chapter 28. You will need to look it up for yourself or clink the link below to read this story in your browser. Don’t skip the Scripture reading! This is one of the truly weirdest stories that the Bible holds.] http://www.esvbible.org/search/1+Samuel+28/ Recently on the TLC Channel a new show debuted; Long Island Medium. We’ve all seen these people on TV before (or maybe even in person, if you are truly unfortunate). They declare that they are able to speak with those who have died and bring back messages from loved ones who have passed that supposedly bring encouragement and advice about the future for the living. On this newest show, (which I refuse to watch) this woman from Long Island gives unsolicited “readings” to strangers on the street. She says she just can’t help doing it. The dead come and speak to her and she just has to share the information. She is what the Bible would call a “necromancer.” (In the Hebrew the word...

1 Samuel 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.” 2 So David arose and went over, he and the six hundred men who were with him, to Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath. 3 And David lived with Achish at Gath, he and his men, every man with his household, and David with his two wives, Ahinoam of Jezreel, and Abigail of Carmel, Nabal’s widow. 4 And when it was told Saul that David had fled to Gath, he no longer sought him. 5 Then David said to Achish, “If I have found favor in your eyes, let a place be given me in one of the country towns, that I may dwell there. For why should your servant dwell in the royal city with you?” 6 So that day Achish gave him Ziklag. Therefore Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah to this day. 7 And the...

1 Samuel 26 [The reading for today is the entirety of Chapter 25. You will need to look it up for yourself or clink the link below to read this story in your browser.] http://www.esvbible.org/search/1+Samuel+26/ From the moment we are able to maneuver around by ourselves we begin to defy those in authority over us. Just yesterday I picked up a 3 year old by the arm and a belt loop in order to remove him from a situation because he absolutely refused my authority. For him, kicking and screaming in defiance was more interesting than following my lead. This problem goes all the way back to Adam and Eve and fall. Satan tempted the woman by saying, “Did God really say . . . ?” And with that the questioning of authority began. If ever there was an authority that deserved to be questioned, it was Saul. Clearly his ego and maniacal fear drove most of his decisions and the people and their needs was rarely a consideration. And yet, we see David time and again recognizing that Saul had the ...