Scripture: 1 Samuel 1-2.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

1 Samuel 2:30-33 (NLT)

30 “Therefore, the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I promised that your branch of the tribe of Levi would always be my priests. But I will honor those who honor me, and I will despise those who think lightly of me. 31 The time is coming when I will put an end to your family, so it will no longer serve as my priests. All the members of your family will die before their time. None will reach old age. 32 You will watch with envy as I pour out prosperity on the people of Israel. But no members of your family will ever live out their days. 33 Those who survive will live in sadness and grief, and their children will die a violent death.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

There is a saying today that “everyone’s rope will come to an end”, in other words – there will come a day when all that a man is doing will be brought to light and will be abruptly stopped. Eli held a place of honor as a high priest, and his two sons held similar positions as priests. However, even in those type positions, the sons were not living Godly and holy lives. They were acting very selfishly with the sacrificial meat offered, plus they were taking advantage of the women who served at the entrance of the Tabernacle. Because of their position (as priests) they may have felt like God would overlook their sin, as most of the temple worshippers probably were unaware of their evil deeds. However, not only was God aware of their evil, but their father became aware of it also. God gave Eli an opportunity to deal with the sin of his sons by sending another man of God to warn him, and Eli truly tried to counsel with his sons. The bottom line is that God was very aware of the sin going on, even though Eli’s sons may have felt like it was no one else’s business. God will not make a mockery of His house of worship, His people, nor those that represent Him before the world. As was told to Eli, I believe that God is saying the same thing to me, and any others who have accepted and/or those who are serving the Lord. We must know that our lives are an open book before an all-knowing God. There is nothing that we do that is hidden from God. Knowing this, I must constantly ask myself “will God honor me in what I am doing, or will He despise me?” I believe that this will put a whole new perspective on what I do and what I say for my desire is to always please God and always do His will. How about those of you reading this devotional, are you being honored, or despised by God for what you are saying and doing? Is He proud of you, and being blessed by all that you do and say?

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Father, I need Your strength and power each and every day to overcome the inward desire to do all that I can for personal gain or attention. It’s not about me. Please help me to be an ambassador of Yours, doing all that You would do and saying those things that You would say to those that I come into contact with. May I never do anything that would cause You to despise me or think less of me, but may I be so attuned to Your holy will that I will do those things that please You and say those things that will serve to lift You up. Please also speak to the hearts of those that read this devotional so that they too may be honorable before You. I know that we are blessed to live in the last days, may we make everything that we do count for Your glory and honor.

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
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