Wednesday, May 14, 2014

SOAP 05/14/2014; 1 Chronicles 22:18-19

Today's reading: 1 Chronicles 22, 23,24; 1 Thessalonians 3

S) "18 Is not the Lord your God with you? And has He not given you rest on every side? For He has given the inhabitants of the land into my hand, and the land is subdued before the Lord and before His people. 19 Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God; arise, therefore, and build the sanctuary of the Lord God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the holy vessels of God into the house that is to be built for the name of the Lord."

1 Chronicles 22:18-19 (NASB)

O) King David is giving instructions to the leaders of his kingdom, to help Solomon build the temple of the LORD when he ascends to the throne. First, he clears away any excuses of circumstance, by reminding the people that the LORD supercedes any obstacles. Next, he instructs them to focus on the most important element of success, seeking the LORD, because every success in life hinges on that relationship. Last, he clarifies the vision for the task, including the purpose for the task.

A) This is incredibly relevant to my life right now. Only the circumstance (the task) is different. I have a desire to counsel as a ministry and possibly a career, but I have been lazy and irresponsible. God brought my family back to WA, provided for our home, gave me work, put us into an awesome church with great opportunity to serve, set us into an amazing life group - He has indeed cleared every obstacle, proving Himself to be with me, every bit that He was with the Israelites. Now, I must be more faithful to set, by deliberate decision, my heart and soul on seeking the LORD. Last, I need to clarify my vision for this ministry. Like the temple that was built, the end goal is always to glorify the name of the LORD, but in the short-term, I need to establish what it is I intend to do, and the short-term purpose. As a whole, this outline is useful for any goal-setting.

P) Father, give me clarity. I feel a rekindled passion for ministry, and I want to get moving toward Your purposes. Help me translate my desires into actions, God. I don't want to get my emotions stoked to passions, just to have them cooled by distractions and time. I confess that I've let things become, what is essentially, idols in my heart. Things, recreation, entertainment, have taken too much of my time, too much of the time that belongs to You. I want to refocus my life toward a missional purpose. I want to be used to advance Your Kingdom in real, practical ways. I want to move from hypothetical interests to realized passions. I don't want to waste the talents I've been given. Forgive me for my complacency, laziness, arrogance, and selfishness. Let everything I have, belong to You, especially the way I use my time. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.

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