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That’s interesting….

I have more questions than before after reading this…

We’ve heard most of what is covered here before from David.   Why do you suppose God has ordained that it be told to us several times?

Intrigue, spy craft, deception and battle.   I laugh when people say “I can’t read the Bible because it’s so boring”….this is where the ideas for movies come from.

When you realize that someone you considered a friend, perhaps even a close friend, has been working against you behind your back it has a way of sapping your strength and destroying your confidence.  David is betrayed by his own son…and perhaps others as well.

Seriously, if this were a TV show, I would stay up late to watch part 2.   It’s that good.

Psalms continually offers up “nuggets” of wisdom and insight for us, and these passages are no exception.

Today’s reading is a story so good that it took no effort to read, you literally cannot put the book down…waiting to see what happens next.

What we see when we read often depends on what is going on in our live at the time we read.   Today is one of those days.

At first glance it’s a battle fought in places that we don’t know anything about.   But there are some “gems” to consider here.

So…yesterday I had two separate occasions to “hoard” something that I really didn’t need, but instead I gave it away…cheerfully!    Because I read yesterday how generous David was, and I want to be like that.    I wonder how my life and habits will change based on what I read today…

I knew that David was a warrior, but the brutality toward the Moabites is hard to explain.   Clearly the Lord must have been in it, and this is God’s hand directed against the Moabites…most likely for worshipping false gods.    So, it’s not David doing what he wants, it’s David doing God’s will.

The imagery in today’s reading is really powerful.  David speaks of roads, decisions, angry outbursts and forgiveness.   I don’t know if the Holy Spirit has given him imagination or boldness; but who would think to command heavenly beings to praise the Lord?

I really only notice one difference between the two chapters, and it isn’t significant.

I wonder how in the world I could comment on so much content in one blog entry?   It’s simply not possible, so instead I think I will offer a couple of reflections.

The words to some of these Psalms are very familiar, like the beginning of the Pledge of Allegiance, or “The Star Spangled Banner”, and the there are some parts that are powerful…but I remember them as well.

It was the right thing to do.  It was the right time to do it.  They were the right people, and they were going to the right place.   So why didn’t it work?

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I feel like I don’t thank or praise God enough.   It’s comforting to hear David say “who could ever praise Him enough?”    He’s right.    No matter how much we praise, of course it won’t be “enough”.   And I think God is okay with that.

A short reading today, but an enormous concept…

I generally remember David as a man hiding from Saul, gathering a few mercenaries around him…waiting for the day when God will replace Saul.   But as you read this passage you discover that’s not exactly accurate.

Yesterday’s reading was fairly dry, and I didn’t “get it” at the time.   But as I read this, it’s making more sense.

There are a few clues as to when this passage was written, just after the long confusing lists of names.   But when you understand it, the passage becomes a little easier to read.

One of life’s great mysteries: “Why do we always want what’s bad for us more than we want what’s good for us?”

The first thing that you discover about today’s reading is that there are gaps in the genealogy.   I wonder if that’s because they wanted to “forget” they were related to some of their ancestors….

What!   David had 19 sons, not counting the sons of his concubines.   Wow,….this guy.   It occurs to me that Solomon’s downfall was women.  I wonder if the “seed” of that sin was inherited from Dad, who clearly loved the ladies?

Psalm 43-  God is the one who sends out light and truth, which we receive by reading His Word and listening to the Holy Spirit.   Here’s how that impacts our devotion today:

Last night my wife and I found a very old box that had been stored in our attic for 20 years.  Guess what was in it?

Okay, I confess that when I looked at the number of Psalms for today I got a little shaky.   But actually, it’s not any more reading that 2-3 regular chapters.   And, (bonus!) I had some refreshing thoughts.   Funny how Scripture does that…

David does something very different from modern day leaders.

As I read these Psalms this morning, I think I will just jot down whatever each one means to me.   Maybe that will help me remember them at the right occasion in the future.

Today we see the stark contrast between the believer (David) and Saul, who has fallen away.

I had a moment of insight this morning.   I want to jot it down before it gets away.