Pastor Bob DuPar
May 23, 2008

Journal Entry


Scripture

2 Samuel 2:12-3:39; John 13:1-30; Psalm 119:1-16; Proverbs 15:29-30.

Observation

Wow! I guess I had forgotten how many wives David had. I counted 7 just in today’s OT reading alone. And, what a sad story as Michal is taken away from her husband Paltiel – he follows her, weeping all the way. That is a picture of love and devotion! Something tells me she was his only wife, and he loved her dearly.

I love John 13 – what a story of love and servanthood. John says in verse 1 “having loved His own who were in the world, He (Jesus) now showed them the full extent of His love.” And then, like the amazing teacher He was, Jesus asks His disciples in verse 12, “Do you understand what I have done for you?” Jesus tells His disciples that they are to follow His model. Jesus told His disciples that God’s blessing was something which would be experienced, not by those who merely heard His teaching, but by those who applied it by putting it into action.

Psalm 119:9-11 is beautiful:

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to Your word. I seek You with all my heart; do not let me stray from Your commands. I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.”

This is Hebrew parallelism where a thought is stated and then restated a little differently. Understanding this, it seems as though one way in which we “seek God with all our heart” is by “hiding His word in our heart.”

Application
How often I stop at merely hearing God’s word, reflecting upon it, admiring it at a distance, but not putting it into practice in my life. The blessing comes in “doing” what God says, not in simply reading, listening and taking notes on what He has said. Perhaps this is because it is in the “doing” that God shapes us and transforms us to be more like Him.

Prayer

“God, may I not stop short of the transformation You desire. Help me on my follow-through. I don’t want to merely be a hearer. I want to be a doer as well. I want to experience the full extent of Your blessing in my life.”