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Providence, Self-Restraint, & Contradictions

April 19, 2024 by conrad

There was too much in today’s passage to choose a single item, so here are some quick-hit thoughts on a couple different parts of what we read.

Providence: David and his troops set out with the Philistines on their campaign into Israel, but several of the Philistine leaders do not trust David and send him home. During that campaign Saul and his son (David’s beloved friend, Jonathan) are killed. Note how God used the Philistines to help David maintain his position of innocence in the death of the king to whose throne he stands next in line? God’s providence is incredible. This is why we should praise God for closed doors… and He isn’t done!

Self-Restraint: Because David could not go on the Philistine campaign, he was forced to return home… where he found Ziklag had been raided by the Amalekites (he wouldn’t have known this until it was far too late if he HAD successfully accompanied the Philistines)! Then, with all his 600 men ready to revolt David pauses to consult the Lord. “God, should we go after these raiders?” WHAT? Gut-check time: would you do this? If your family had been abducted would you ask God how to proceed, or would you go full Liam Neeson? I’m forced to admit that I likely would not take the time to consult God here. This is an area of growth for me, at least. Possibly for you as well?

Contradictions: In 1 Samuel and 1 Chronicles we are told that Saul fell on his sword and died after being wounded by a Philistine arrow. But an Amalekite found David and told quite a different story about killing the wounded king would clearly would not survive. What are we to make of this? The Bible is clearly in historical error… better burn it and turn from our faith… right? This is one of those “contradictions” that never made any sense to me. There are two primary theories for how to reconcile these accounts. The one that was proposed by my Bible College Prof was that this Amalekite stumbled upon Saul and his armour bearer on their swords, but not quite dead and finished them off. This is plausible and you can believe this if you find it compelling. I think it needlessly complicates things. This Amalekite lived in Israel as a foreigner and knew that David was heir to the throne of Saul. So, seeing his dead body, took the crowd and armband to David and took credit for the final blow I an attempt to curry favour with David. It… uh… didn’t work.

Have a fantastic day trusting in God’s faithful guidance!

1 Samuel 30-31; 1 Chronicles 9:40-44, 10:1-14, 12:20-22; 2 Samuel 1, 4:4 | 109/365

God On My Terms

April 19, 2024 by conrad

Saul decides to forego God’s path and forges his own way. Yet, somehow, he seems surprised that when he seeks God’s guidance He is silent… so he consults a medium… effectively! (But that’s a whole thing for some other time)

I think this is a temptation common to many of us. We want God, but only if He will do what WE want and how WE want. We treat God less like the almighty author of life and more like a faithful manservant. Let’s make sure we check ourselves and make sure that we understand who God is and who we are; what His place is and what our place is. Otherwise we might become like Saul.

1 Samuel 26-29; 1 Chronicles 12:2-7,19; Psalm 56 | 108/365

God’s Timing

April 18, 2024 by conrad

David has an opportunity to kill his relentless pursuer; Saul. Egged on by his own troops, David creeps toward Saul with his sword drawn, but at the last moment, rethinks it. And after rethinking it, David decides the life — or the throne — of what he terms “God’s anointed one”. Saul is an objectively terrible leader. He leave Israel vulnerable to attack in his unwavering Ahab-like goal of killing David — his white whale. But the fact remains that God put him in place and as David so aptly puts it: ‘Perhaps the LORD will punish you, but I never will.’ David knows he was anointed to be king by Samuel. David knows Saul is not serving the Lord. David knows the power is in his hands to end this tyrannical reign and yet he chooses to defer to God.

Do we do this? Are we willing to wait for what God has for us? Are we willing to be patient? Are we willing to trust God’s plan? And are we willing to trust God’s timing? If you weren’t sure about these answers, then here is an opportunity for growth. Pray that God would give you these gifts, and that you would be able to see things as He does. This is something God showed me through 4 long, tough years. But once I finally learned to really trust his plan and timing… it was amazing! So freeing. So relaxing. So worth it.

1 Samuel 23:13-25:44; Psalm 54 | 107/365

Step Into Your Destiny

April 17, 2024 by conrad

Samuel anointed David as the new king over God’s people. Now David is hiding in a cave with his merry band of 400 rejects while the current monarch and his bloodthirsty hangers-on plot to assassinate him. And from that circumstance David pens this:

9 I will praise you, Lord, among the nations;
    I will sing of you among the peoples.
10 For great is your love, reaching to the heavens;
    your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

Psalm 57:9-10

Things are looking about as bleak as they can and yet David declares God’s faithfulness. I pray that I can have the faith to trust in God’s promises when they are looking unlikely, I would advise you to do the same. Don’t be afraid if you don’t understand how the road you’re on will lead to the place God has called you. Indeed, sometimes it is a long and winding road.

He is faithful. Let’s act like we believe that.

1 Samuel 22:1-23:12; Psalm 52, 57, 142; 1 Chronicles 12:8-18 | 106/365

Is Faith Blind?

April 16, 2024 by conrad

Psalm 34:8 commends the reader to “Taste and see that the Lord is good”. The cultural trope that faith is blind is maddening. God has provided evidence many, many times. He showed proofs to Moses, Pharaoh, and Gideon among others. Jesus offered evidence to Thomas when he doubted. And indeed history is littered with evidence for God generally and Jesus specifically. We needn’t have a “blind” faith. My faith is based not on unquestioning trust of some invisible promise! My faith is built on the incredible evidence for the Gospel of grace that Jesus died to offer to me, and to you. So I, like David, will commend any among you who is holding something back from God (whether that’s your life, your finances, your career, your time, or anything else) to give it over to Him. Trust Him. Watch Him. Taste and see that the Lord is good.

1 Samuel 20-21; Psalm 34 | 105/365

LATEST SERMON

Ruth 2:2-9a

Bold as Love

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songcraft

Verse One:
Shattered glass, broken promises
Shards of dreams we tried to force
On sleepless nights, our bed divides
What is all this fighting for?

Prechorus One:
Don’t you put this all on me
I’m not taking all the blame
It always seems to be the same
But don’t set me free

Chorus:
(instrumental)

Verse Two:
Eternity, for you and me
Forever didn’t last that long
Meaningless; a fleeting kiss
A symbol of a love that’s gone

Prechorus Two:
I can’t take this anymore
And I don’t know what we should do
But I think we could see this through
And make it like before

Bridge:
This just can’t be how it ends
Just shut it down and walk away
Don’t you tell me that’s okay
Can’t leave this hanging on regrets

Backstory

I wrote this song about my high school girlfriend. We dated for almost 4 years. She moved away, but we promised to make it work. I still remember when during one of our many phone calls, she told me it wasn’t going to work. I felt like my 19-year-old heart was ripped out. The worst part? I already had a non-refundable bus ticket to go see her. So I went. I found out during that trip that she had been seeing someone else, and that’s why she had to break it off. I felt like I had been shot, stabbed, or poisoned. I remember giving her a hug goodbye at the Greyhound station and writing the first draft of this song on the bus ride home.

Song Info

Author: Conrad MacIntyre
Feel: 90s Rock Ballad ala Matchbox 20.
Tempo: 93bpm
Key: G Major (F Major in the Bridge)
Time: 4/4

Shattered (I Love You)

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