***And you shall know the truth. And the truth will set you free!!!***

HONEST TO GOD

A Devotion by Vince Lichlyter based on the Jonah33 song
Track #6: "SEARCH ME, KNOW ME"
From the album The Strangest Day
Most people know the Bible story of David and Goliath: a shepherd boy with a slingshot and some smooth stones who takes down a nine-feet tall Philistine killing machine. And then David grows up to be king and lives happily ever after. And--oh yeah--along the way, he writes some pretty Psalms.

But this is only half the truth. The other half is the trauma and turmoil that fills David’s whole life. The prophet Samuel anoints him king while he’s still an awkward adolescent. The reigning king, Saul, is so jealous of David’s growing popularity after he kills Goliath that he tries to kill David even as David becomes best friends with Saul’s son (and heir to the throne), Jonathan. David has to flee and eventually takes refuge among the same Philistines he had defeated earlier. Eventually, David takes the throne after Jonathan and his brothers die in battle along with Saul.

To make matters worse, King David—who already has a castle full of concubines—sees a young woman bathing as he looks down from the heights of his palace. He lusts after her, has sex with her, gets her pregnant, and then arranges for her husband to be killed in battle so that he won’t be disgraced. And even though he has committed adultery, theft, murder, coveting, and who-knows-what-else in just this one episode, David is a man loved by God. This irresistible love breaks David’s heart and calls him to confession, repentance, and a rededication of his life to the Lord. This was a common cycle for David, and I must confess that it is a common cycle for me as well.

I’m not proud of the sin in my own life. But I am amazed that no matter the mess I’m in, God’s grace reaches deeper. No matter how far I stray, God’s love reaches farther. God is never shocked or surprised by what brings me to my knees. In fact, He uses all these circumstances to draw me closer to Him.

I can relate to a guy like David, and the lyrics he wrote might as well have come right out of my own spiritual journal. Hear his words of confession and submission:

Today’s prayer:
Oh Lord, you have searched me and you know me.You know when I sit and when I rise;You perceive my thoughts from afar...Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?If I go up to the heavens, you are there, If I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn,If I settle on the far side of the sea,Even there your hand will guide me, Your right hand will hold me fast....Search me, O God, and know my heart; Test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting. —Psalm 139:1-4, 7-10, 22-24 (NIV)

Labels: Inspirations Thoughts

My History,My Past, My life!!!

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HONEST TO GOD