Apr 17

 “…right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father did.” 2 Kings 18:3

At twenty-five years of age, Hezekiah began his reign as king of Judah, and ruled for almost three decades. With so many kings who did ‘evil in the sight of the LORD’, it is refreshing to read the report of this king’s life. His zeal for God and desire for righteousness, his severity in removing the places of idolatry and standing strong against heathen practices, along with a notable trust in God, is praised as ‘right in the sight of the LORD’. He is aligned with the manner, upright walk and faithfulness for which, David his forefather, is set up as a standard by the Lord. Along with Hezekiah, only two other kings of Judah, Asa and Josiah are given such praise, and interestingly all three, were sons of wicked fathers! The pattern of godly and wicked kings often succeeding each other, shows us that we are each responsible as individuals before God, for our actions and the quality of our walk with Him. Clearly even the ‘best’ men of God have faults. Walking ‘perfectly’ in the sight of God doesn’t mean holding absolute, flawless perfection, but rather that in obedience and righteousness we strive towards the holy and high calling, because our Father is Holy! This motivation of heart, and diligence of spirit, is what God notes and rewards. The lack of this desire to ‘do right’, and the want of a heart given to consistent purity and uprightness, marks us as having failed to ‘walk right in the sight of God’. It should be our life’s greatest ambition to fulfil the will and purpose for which God made us, saved us and empowered us! Though perhaps flawed through our mortal, human imperfection, let us yet with all heart and soul, strive to bring glory and honour to our King and Master, in a way that will evoke a report that we walked ‘right in the sight of the LORD’! 

http://www.pentecostalfamilychurch.com.au/devotion

Feb 28

“And let us bring again the ark of our God to us…” 1 Chronicles 13:3

No sooner was David made king over Israel, that he renewed the nation’s consciousness for the presence of God. Revival comes to God’s people, when we determine to return to a close relationship with God, and enquire from Him how to direct our lives! Israel had not sought God’s directives during the reign of Saul. They had contented themselves to worship elsewhere, or not to worship at all. They had all but forgotten the importance and place of the ark of God. This remarkable piece of furniture, which had travelled with Israel through the wilderness journey to the Promised Land, had been the earthly ‘seat’ of the presence and glory of God and the centre of worship for the Israelites. Without a temple for it to be housed in, it had become neglected and with that neglect, had come also the negligence and failure of enquiring at the face of the Lord. David fully intended to change all of that! His zeal and enthusiasm to restore the ark to its rightful place, as the soul and centre of Israelite worship, was contagious, appreciated and agreed to by the people over whom he now reigned. The whole instance speaks to us of the importance of keeping God in the centre of our lives and focus. How easy it is to get so busy with life, work, family and a host of other mind occupying things, and pay little attention, or forget altogether, the One to whom we owe all else we have! How typically human is the trait of feeling capable to captain our own lives, and fail to ask God and enquire from Him what He wants us to do and how He wants us to do it. This shifting of the patterns established by God, from spirituality to carnality, sets us back in our relationship with the Lord, and costs us and our families very dearly! Like David, we must be champions for the consciousness and worship of Yahwah. Like him, we must always work to restore and maintain Jesus as the centre and focus of our lives; as the priority and prime purpose of our existence.

http://www.pentecostalfamilychurch.com.au/devotion