Let the Lord be judge

Oh to have a heart like David...
Let the Lord judge between you and me,
and let the Lord avenge me on you.
​But my hand shall not be against you.
​1 Samuel 24:12 NKJV

Today's Reading:  1 Samuel 23-25, Psalm 54

Although he has 600 mighty men who have joined his cause,
David continues to flee from Saul.
And what an amazing opportunity he is given...
maybe even a test from God.

David and his men are hiding out in the back of cave...
and Saul went in to attend to his needs. (v. 3)

Can you imagine...
If you were pursued by a king with 3000 men...
looking to kill you?
And God has delivers him to you, unguarded and alone...
unaware that you are hiding in his very presence.

The voices from behind tell you to have your revenge...
to kill him before he can kill you.
Would you do it?
You have the reason, the resources, the ripe opportunity.

How very tempting.
I know that I've been there.
Not with real kings and killers,
but with situations where I've been wronged.
And if the opportunity came for me to speak out,
to justify myself,
to assassinate their character
with a juicy morsel of gossip...
sadly, I have given in.
I've spoken ill of them
in the presence of others...
even encouraged by others who some to agree.

But then when the moment was over...
I felt the guilt and shame of what I'd done.
Sometimes even mid sentence God will convict the heart.
Because the truth is,
that behavior is not honoring to God.
And David chooses another way.

And David arose and secretly cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. (v. 4)
And even then, his heart was troubled.
​For David knew that it was not his place to seek revenge,
to show his power,
to take down Saul.

Even though David was the rightful heir to the throne,
he humbled himself and gave the judgment over to God.

What a difficult thing to do.
Especially when given the opportunity to have the upper hand,
David chose to give it over to God instead.

Therefore let the Lord be judge,
and judge between you and me,
and see and plead my case,
and deliver me out of your hand.”
1 Samuel 24:15

Oh, I pray that I can learn this heart attitude.
To always honor others above myself...
no matter their actions toward me.

Word of God,
train me, today...
to humble my heart and let go of my pride,
to trust Your judgment, plead my case, and deliver me from evil.

Lord,
what a stunning example of grace.

Thank You for giving us this opportunity
to see how to act, how to live, how to love...
from the life of one such as David.

Your word is so rich with lessons I need.
Thank You for showing me the right way.
Help me to remember this
at just the right moment I am in need of it.

And above all, Lord,
give me the grace to trust You more.