The Simple Life

Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! Remember the wondrous works that he has done, his miracles and the judgments he uttered, O offspring of Israel his servant, children of Jacob, his chosen ones! 1 Chronicles 16:8-13 (ESV)   In order to be able to give thanks to the Lord and make His deeds known among the people, you need to know who God is and what He has been doing. If you do not know what God has been doing, then, possibly, your life has been eclipsing God's work, and it is time for you to get out of the way. Those who sought God know God and love to tell of His wondrous works. As they recount His works, they garner strength and courage to continue to stand firm, so they might be part of His current and future works. It is fun

Then David summoned the priests Zadok and Abiathar, and the Levites Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab, and said to them, "You are the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites. Consecrate yourselves, you and your brothers, so that you may bring up the ark of the Lord, the God of Israel, to the place that I have prepared for it. Because you did not carry it the first time, the Lord our God broke out against us, because we did not seek him according to the rule." 1 Chronicles  15:11-13  (ESV) There is no room for stubbornness among Christians. When we make mistakes, we need to own them, make changes, and press on. Those who are defeated by their mistakes do not understand God's mercy, grace or power and, in a strange way, have allowed perfection to rule them rather than God. David's original intention was good, but his actions were evil. He eventually kept his intentions while changing his actions, and in the end, the ark was returned to where it

And they carried the ark of God on a new cart, from the house of Abinadab, and Uzzah and Ahio were driving the cart. And David and all Israel were celebrating before God with all their might, with song and lyres and harps and tambourines and cymbals and trumpets. And when they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzzah put out his hand to take hold of the ark, for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he put out his hand to the ark, and he died there before God. 1 Chronicles 13:7-10 (ESV) David had become the leader of a worthless community. God had made it clear how one was to carry the Ark, but David ignored it, and the people did not feel it important enough to challenge him on it. It was not as if the law was unclear; it was that the law was ignored for some reason. Listening to the majority voice can never determine truth, and there is no good reason to ignore God and His direct commands. Those who do so will regre

David consulted with the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, with every leader. And David said to all the assembly of Israel, "If it seems good to you and from the Lord our God, let us send abroad to our brothers who remain in all the lands of Israel, as well as to the priests and Levites in the cities that have pasturelands, that they may be gathered to us. Then let us bring again the ark of our God to us, for we did not seek it in the days of Saul." All the assembly agreed to do so, for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. 1 Chronicles 13:1-4 (ESV) It is nice that David consulted the leaders of the people and that they collectively decided that it was a good thing to bring back the ark. I am not sure one needed to take a vote on this issue, but it was nice of David to do that. Having all the assembly agree does not guarantee things will be done correctly. A majority vote can never determine right and wrong. In this case, David and the majority voice were

David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then at Bethlehem. And David said longingly, "Oh that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!" Then the three mighty men broke through the camp of the Philistines and drew water out of the well of Bethlehem that was by the gate and took it and brought it to David. But David would not drink it. He poured it out to the Lord and said, "Far be it from me before my God that I should do this. Shall I drink the lifeblood of these men? For at the risk of their lives they brought it." Therefore he would not drink it. These things did the three mighty men. 1 Chronicles  11:16-19  (ESV) It's encouraging to see people who continually think of others. David expressed a desire for water, and his mighty men, thinking of David, risked their lives to bring him that water. David thought of the men and saw the water as too precious to consume. Good leaders are not

And he built the city all around from the Millo in complete circuit, and Joab repaired the rest of the city. And David became greater and greater, for the Lord of hosts was with him. 1 Chronicles 11:8-9 (ESV) Cause and effect. David became greater and greater, for the Lord of hosts was with him. This seems simple enough. When the Lord is with you, you win. When the Lord is against you, you lose. For now, the choice is ours. Success in life does not depend on our bootstraps, heritage, ability, or luck. It is dependent upon our closeness to God. Those who choose to walk with God will reap the benefits of walking with Him, and those who choose to ignore Him will wander through life, looking for life while forever remaining lost. We so often complicate life when, in reality, it is very simple. There is a God; I'm not Him. My sin has separated me from Him, and He sent Jesus to repair the damage my sin caused. He knows everything about me, loves me, and knows the future. I would be fooli