Today's reading: Hosea 13, 14; Psalm 100, 101, 102; Hebrews 5
S) "2 I will give heed to the blameless way.
When will You come to me?
I will walk within my house in the integrity of my heart." - Psalm 101:2 (NASB)
O) King David was such a great foreshadow of what it means to be a Christian. Since he was several hundred years before Jesus came to atone for sins once and for all, he was still living under the very difficult laws of the Old Testament. While David certainly made mistakes, what set him apart from so many other figures in the Old Testament was the condition of his heart. He is described by God as a man after God's own heart (1 Samuel 12:14) and this is really because King David was repentant. When he made mistakes, he would turn his heart, full of remorse, back to God and plead for God's mercy. This was truly a rarity in God's people for this time. This Psalm comes during one of those times. David was shown mercy and he has made a drastic commitment to "clean house" and he has determined to start with himself.
A) As the father, I set the culture in my home. If I make integrity a priority in myself, in my home, that will trickle down through Kristin and to my children. Truly, anyone visiting my home will be affected by my pursuit of righteousness, on one level or another. Like David said in v.6, I need to surround myself with like-minded people who are also striving to live a blameless life and I need to avoid people who are practicing deceit. I need to be a careful gatekeeper in my home, being careful to guard my family from wickedness. Because I'm not a politcal king, and because of forgiveness through Jesus, I don't have to banish or destroy any people (thankfully), but I do have a duty to eliminate anything that jeopardizes the standard to which God has called me and my family.
P) Father, like king Soloman, I confess that I do not have the wisdom it takes to lead your people. I have a kingdom of 4 people I'm leading and I need your wisdom to know how to lead them. I thank you for your mercy in my life, so that I can give mercy to my wife, children, and others in Jesus' name. In doing so, I pray that you give me a discernment to know what is acceptable in my home. Everything from behavior to entertainment, Holy Spirit guide me in leading my family by example and setting Your standard of living for my family. Help me to act like a merciful and loving king in my pursuit of Godly living. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.
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