1 Samuel
God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. This is a direct quote from James 4:6. James isn’t saying success is bad. What he is saying is whether we succeed or fail, the status of our heart is the driving factor. Our heart matters. The conflict
God respects the status of our heart much more than our heritage or pedigree. If He is the one with the power, He doesn’t require us to have great status or power of our own. All He needs from us is a willingness to follow. Samuel lays until morning.
1 Samuel
God is patient and willing to judge us on the scope of our life, not each individual misstep. Each of us knows what it feels like to make a mistake, and each of us knows what it feels like to correct the mistake. None of us are perfect, but that’
1 Samuel
God calls us to be different. If we are His people, then we are called to show God to the world. Yet, if we act no differently than how the world expects people to act, how will the world see Him? Samuel slept apart from Eli. Eli slept in the
1 Samuel
God expects those who follow Him will embrace His ways and His characteristics. He is generous. He is loving. He is kind. He is also a disciplinarian. He holds His people accountable. We are human and far from perfect. Yet, if we claim to follow Him, others should see Him
1 Samuel
God will hold us accountable for our choices and actions. This thought terrified me as a child. I know I’m not perfect. Even as a five-year-old, I knew my sins. I knew my rebellion. I knew I was largely powerless against it, but I still knew it.
1 Samuel
God can use the variety of people around us to mold us into the person He needs us to be. We start life by imitating parents. We then imitate other adult figures in our life. Soon we imitate friends, celebrities, athletes, and now social media icons. We are shaped by
1 Samuel
When we try to tell God how things should work, we kick the door to sin wide open. It isn’t so much a power struggle as a condition of the heart. Following God isn’t about power, it is about humility. It is about learning to cast aside oneself
1 Samuel
God is amazing and worthy of our focus. I’ve often spoken about how nothing is impossible for Him. But He is also amazing because He is immutable. The same character traits true in Abraham’s day are true with Hannah and are still true now. Hannah’s prayer is
1 Samuel
God can do anything; our task is trusting His ability to do what He says. If God can make the mountains, can He not move them? If God can create human beings, can He not move them as well? The day after Hannah’s prayer, Elkanah, his two wives, and
1 Samuel
When God calls us, He wants our heart to be involved. While doing something good for the wrong reasons is still doing something good, it is not something deserving of reward or acclamation. Passionless action is nothing more than compliance. God doesn’t our compliance. He wants us to walk
1 Samuel
God loves when we come to Him with an open heart, willing to serve. He can do much through willing people. We can do much if we follow Him. One day, after Elkanah served at the altar and brought home his share of the sacrifice, Hannah got up after dinner