Nature/People Reveal Mysteries "If you love them enough"

If you've ever been tempted to use your past, your poor family life and upbringing as an excuse for why you cannot succeed in life, consider this man.  And the power of hard work, determination and the want to succeed and better yourself and others.  What an inspiration!

 Did you know George Washington Carver was born into slavery?  Although slaves were freed soon after his birth, it wasn't an instant paradise for black people in the United States as they continued to struggle for many many years in order to have equal rights with their white counterparts.  Keep this in mind as you read this excerpt from Primal.
  

George Washington Carver is considered one of the greatest scientific minds of the twentieth century, despite an uphill academic climb. He was accepted by Highland College, then rejected by Highland College when he showed up and they discovered he was an African American. He studied art and piano at Simpson College in Iowa. Then he earned his master's degree in botany from Iowa State University.  Upon graduation, Carver accepted a position at Tuskegee University, where he taught for forty-seven years.

 Around the turn of the century, the agricultural economy of the South was suffering. The boll weevil was devastating cotton crops. And the soil was depleted of nutrients because farmers planted cotton year in and year out. It was George Washington Carver who introduced the concept of crop rotation. He encouraged farmers to plant peanuts, and they did. The strategy revived the soil, but farmers were frustrated because there was no market for peanuts.  Their abundant peanut crops rotted in warehouses. When they complained to Carver, he did what he had always done. He prayed about it.

Carver routinely got up at 4:00 a.m., walked through the woods, and asked God to reveal the mysteries of nature. He interpreted Job 12:7-8 literally:

Ask the animals, and they will teach you,
or the birds of the air, and they will tell you;
or speak to the earth, and it will teach you ...

Carver literally asked God to reveal the mysteries of nature. And God did.

    I asked God, "Why did you make the universe, Lord?"
         "Ask for something more in proportion to that little mind of yours,"
     replied God.
         "Why did you make the earth, Lord?" I asked.
         "Your little mind still wants to know far too much. Ask for something
     more in proportion to that little mind of yours," replied God.
         "Why did you make man, Lord?" I asked.
         "Far too much. Far too much. Ask again," replied God.
         "Explain to me why you made plants, Lord," I asked.
         "Your little mind still wants to know far too much."
         "The peanut?" I asked meekly.
         "Yes! For your modest proportions I will grant you the mystery of the
     peanut.  Take it inside your laboratory and separate it into water, fats,
     oils, gums, resins, sugars, starches and amino acids.  Then recombine
     these under my three laws of compatibility, temperature and pressure. 
     Then you will know why I made the peanut."  (source)

On January 20, 1921, George Washington Carver testified before the House Ways and Means Committee on behalf of the United Peanut Association of America. The committee chairman, Joseph Fordney of Michigan, told him he had ten minutes.  An hour and forty minutes later, the committee told George Washington Carver he could come back anytime he wanted.  Carver mesmerized the committee by demonstrating dozens of uses for the peanut. In the end, Carver discovered more than three hundred uses for the peanut.  Or maybe more accurately, the Lord revealed more than three hundred uses.  They included everything from glue to shaving cream to soup to insecticide to cosmetics to wood stains to fertilizer to linoleum ...

"To me," said Carver, "nature in its varied forms are the little windows through which God permits me to commune with him, and to see much of his glory, by simply lifting the curtain, and looking in.  I love to think of nature as wireless telegraph stations through which God speaks to us every day, every hour, and every moment of our lives." ...

"Anything will give up its secrets if you love it enough. Not only have I found that when I talk to the little flower or to the little peanut they will give up their secrets, but I have found that when I silently commune with people they give up their secrets also -- if you love them enough." 



the above story is quoted from pgs. 127-128, Primal by Mark Batterson


"On his grave was written, He could have added fortune to fame, but caring for neither, he found happiness and honor in being helpful to the world."  (source)

"A Christian answer to the unchristian deed..."

Over a year ago I read a book about faith by Charles Colson that I found at my local library. I found it highly interesting and thought I'd enjoy reading another book by him. Years ago I was involved in politics and have kept a bit of an interest in it though I've mostly become jaded by both political parties. However, this book God & Government seemed a good source for getting one man's thoughts on the roles of both church and state. So when I placed an Amazon.com order, I bought it. And it sat on my bookshelf ever since. I had many other books to read and seeing that 400+ page book just made me procrastinate for a while. Recently I decided I'd like to finish all the books I'd bought and never read. So I picked it up and started reading. The past two or three weeks I've been reading three texts and that is one of them. I've been posting a few thoughts to a Gmail draft of phrases and statements that I like, but when I read about the Communist regime's oppression of the Poles and one man's stance against it...well, this story just took my attention in such a huge way that I had to share it. Father Jerzy Popieluszko was only 37 when he died, but his life can still be an inspiration to those who are living oppressed and he remains a wonderful example of how we must overcome evil with good and act like Jesus. I hope you enjoy this part of his story. The first two paragraphs are some of his teachings included in the book.

"'A man who bears witness to the truth can be free even though he might be in prison ... The essential thing in the process of liberating man and the nation is to overcome fear... We fear suffering, we fear losing material good, we fear losing freedom or our work. And then we act contrary to our consciences, thus muzzling the truth. We can overcome fear only if we accept suffering in the name of a greater value. If the truth becomes for us a value worthy of suffering and risk, then we shall overcome fear -- the direct reason for our enslavement.

"'A Christian must be a sign of contradiction in the world...A Christian is one who all his life chooses between good and evil, lies and truth, love and hatred, God and Satan ... Today more than ever there is a need for our light to shine, so that through us, through our deeds, through our choices, people can see the Father who is in Heaven.'

Father Jerzy's influence did not escape the notice of the authorities. The secret police followed him everywhere. On the first anniversary of martial law, a pipe bomb sailed through the front window of his small flat, exploding in his sitting room.

Then, on October 19, 1984, while driving back to Warsaw from Bydgoszcz where he had celebrated a special mass and delivered a homily called "Overcome Evil with Good," Father Jerzy disappeared.

Thousands prayed for him in churches all over Poland. The steelworkers stopped their work in order to pray and threatened a national strike if their priest was not returned to them. The universities smoldered with unrest.

On the last Sunday of October, as fifty thousand people filled St. Stanislaw Kostka in an emotional Mass for the Homeland and listened in tears to a tape of Father Jerzy's final Sermon, Father Antoni Lewek, one of the thirty priests at the altar, received word: 'Just a moment ago it was announced on television that Father Jerzy's body has been found in the Vistula River.'

'I shall never forget what happened,' Father Lewek said later. 'In a second people went down on their knees, crying and shouting; what we had feared most, the worst, had happened . . .

'And then something very moving happened. This crying crowd managed to show that they could forgive. Three times they repeated after the priest: "And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us." It was a Christian answer to the unchristian deed of the murderers.'

On November 2, the day of Father Jerzy's funeral, people marched the streets past the secret-police headquarters bearing banners reading, 'We forgive.'

Regardless of their expertise in murdering the body, the executioners could not kill the soul. Father Jerzy had taught his people well."

Oddly enough, when I read the Wikipedia article, it stated he was being beatified by the Roman Catholic Church on June 6, 2010 which is...today.

pg. 216-217 of God & Government by Charles Colson


For more on loving your enemy, please read Achelois' wonderful post "On Hating."

More Life Stuff

It's another glorious day! Michael has homeschool field day at the park. Last year they had 150 participants! Not sure how many will turn out this year. Yesterday he and Steph went to a play at the Mebane Arts Center. Steph said he really enjoyed it and laughed a lot. She signed him up for summer gymnastics at Kidsport. Not that we are ever expecting or even desiring him to become a gymnast (ha!), but it will be fun for him to do some running and climbing and jumping and flipping with others this summer.

Michael & Will at their shared birthday party
February 2009

Will should be on his way home now. He was in Texas all week for a managers meeting of some sort. The managers are all older than Will, but had been warned that the one they talk to on the phone was a younger guy. (He turned 26 in late February.) They told him, "We'd been told you were young so we knew who you were right away." :-) I must say that my brother in law is one of the finest, most hard-working young men I have ever met. He came to America as a teenager. He had picked up some of the language from watching American TV shows and visiting his Tia Mari (Venzuelan) and Tio Wayne (he's from Ohio) in the summers. I recall Will saying the hardest word for him to say was "refrigerator" (I imagine he was rolling all those Rs.) and he'd practice saying it over and over and over. Now he says it just fine. Actually if you talked to Will, you'd be hard pressed to ever know he grew up in Venezuela and didn't speak both English and Spanish in his formative years. Yeah, he's that good. His aunt Mari, on the other hand, earned a doctor's degree here (she's a toxicologist), but retained her strong Spanish accent. Which is fine. It's actually charming and fits her well. She knows English; she just sounds South American when she speaks it.

One funny Will story ... He was chosen to attend Florida State High School and was asked by a coach if he wanted to play football which he was eager to try. However, he'd never played American football so he and his aunt went to a Barnes & Noble-type store to purchase a book on how to play football. Isn't that cute? Learning to play a sport by a book. :-) Another cute Will story from just a couple years ago .. he and Michael and I think my brother went to play golf and the guy referred to Michael as Will's little brother. Wow, this has turned out to be about Will when all I needed to say was he is coming home today! Ha!


Earlier this week I went with my dad to Sam's Club in Greensboro. I got a membership for him for Christmas so we decided to use it to purchase a few things. My most memorable purchase is the gallon of aloe vera juice. Whoowee, what a taste! It's actually a bit like drinking amaretto .. it has that flavoring and is strong-tasting to me. I am used to water so most things are strong to me in that regard. :-)

Last night we went to Dave Ramsey's town hall meeting. Our church was one of the more than 6,000 locations in the US that was hosting his live presentation. Over 1 million Americans participated and we had about 300 at our church. He is really interesting and kept my attention the whole hour and a half. My dad met us there so it was nice seeing him for the second time this week. It was called Town Hall for Hope.

His website says this:

Way to Go, America!

On April 23, over 1 million people in more than 6,000 host locations joined together to get real answers about the economy and turn back the tide of fear in their communities. But Town Hall for Hope isn’t over yet! Now it’s up to you, America, to keep the momentum going!

Follow His Dreams

Nehemiah 2: 11 I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days 12 I set out during the night with a few men. I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem. There were no mounts with me except the one I was riding on.

Nehemiah 6: 15 So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days. 16 When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God.

Today at church my preacher talked about dreaming. More specifically those dreams that God gives us when we delight in Him. You know...those big ol' dreams that seem impossible because - without God's help and enabling us - most often they are too big for us to accomplish.

I read a quote recently from John Maxwell, "If you tell someone your vision and they don't laugh, it's not big enough."

And this one from J. Hudson Taylor, "Unless there is an element of risk in your exploits for God, there is no need for faith."

So all this seems to confirm what God has been putting in my heart for some time: GO TO DAMASCUS! Ah, that seems so scary, doesn't it? Strange food, different language, culture, religion! You are talking to someone who has made it thirty-plus years without going west of Tennessee and you expect her first overseas trip to be to the Middle East? To a country President Bush included in the "Axis of Evil"? Whoa!

So, did ya laugh when you heard this "dream"? If so maybe it's truly from God. Definitely I need His help in taking this huge step! And I guess there is that "element of risk" involved, eh?

Going back to Nehemiah. You see in the first passage how he said his God put something on his heart to do? Psalm 37 tells us to delight in the Lord and He will give us the desire of our hearts. You reckon when we delight in Him, He gives us His desires which ultimately ARE THE BEST and most fulfilling. I hear Americans who seem to be searching for more in life. Shoot, I am that way sometimes. Not satisfied. Surely there is more to life than the daily grind. More entertainment, more activities and more stuff doesn't seem to fill the void for long. I like those verses from Nehemiah. My pastor told us to keep dreaming for when you stop dreaming, you die. Sure you exist physically, but inwardly ... not much there.

Isn't that second passage great? Nehemiah did what God put in his heart to do and later it was accomplished TO THE GLORY OF GOD! God got the praise He deserved because even the enemy nations realized how Nehemiah's God accomplished this great work through His obedient servants.

Instead of doing something and asking God to bless it, I want those dreams from God. And HIS enabling so that when HIS work is accomplished, people can say, "To God be the glory! Great things HE has done!"


By the way, we sang "It Is Well With My Soul" in church this morning. It had come to mind this week, and I just love it. Found it so cool that Richie chose it as one of our songs to sing. Here are my favorite lines, I think.

From verse 2:

That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.


And then all of this verse:

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

Whoo hoo! Thank you, Jesus!

Relationships

1 Thessalonians 2:8
We felt so strongly about you that we were determined to share with you not only the Good News of God but also our lives. That's how dear you were to us!


I was skimming blogs yesterday when this verse came to my attention. I loved it!

:-)


I am reminded of a guest speaker who was at my church several weeks back. He said something that stuck with me: "Waste time on relationships."


Application for me: Invest in people. Get to know them. Listen to them. Try to understand them. Love them - unconditionally.


Store up heavenly treasure not all this stuff that's going to rust and burn.

"Chase the Lion"

I love this!

I read a short article in a Charles Stanley publication the other day. Author Mark Batterson wrote about the "risk of taking no risks," and stated that social psychologists have said "over the short term, we tent to regret actions -- things we did that we wish we hadn't. But over the long haul, we tend to bemoan inactions -- things we didn't do but wish we had."

Wow!

He encourages us to remember there are sins of omission and we should do some things in obedience and faith. He pointed out that Jesus didn't get in trouble with the people of His day because He did nothing. By contrast, Jesus was "too dynamic to be safe." He was gutsy!

And Mark Batterson challenged us by asking "what lion is God calling you to chase?" Hmmm.

Great timing for me and Andrew.

And then I got an e-mail from my friend Leslie who mentioned in her devotions ... well, I'll just copy it here:

My devotions are in Exodus right now, and God says in Ex. 14:14,

"The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace." And He did! Great,

miraculous victories, won by God, not man. But at the same time (and this is where

I got so excited this morning : ) in the next verse He says, "Why do you cry to Me?

Tell (them) to go forward..." God wants us to move forward in faith.

Yes, we need to walk with Him and talk with Him, but also, we need to have faith,

and MOVE FORWARD. Don't sit around waiting for a sign: when we know it's God's

will, go for it! Trust Him to work!

Another wow for me! I am often most fearful of DOING something! Ahh! It's like I want God to send me an e-mail with instructions on what to do! So Mark's article and Leslie's e-mail were a wake-up call for me.

I remember being at church one Wednesday night listening to my preacher speak on Ecclesiastes where Solomon talks about the vanity of a life lived for self. How that one day you get to the end of life and think, "What did I do that is of any value? What did I do for God?" I was so sad. I thought, "Oh my goodness, that is going to be me! I am going to have good intentions all my life, but DO absolutely nothing." Instead of being encouraged by Brian's message, I felt so much sadness.

So I need to do something and, Lord willing, I'm going act in faith and chase that lion!

(By the way, we ordered Mark's book.)

Tears

What a week! Many joyful hours, but also some sad ones. But isn't that life? Highs and lows. Sometimes I feel like I'm on an emotional rollercoaster...wheeeee! Hang on for the ride!

Just a few days ago in my post about The Attentive Life, I copied something the author wrote about tears. I only want to post a small portion of that again here because it is something that seems fitting in my life right now. And, hey, this is my blog so I can repeat myself as much as I want, right? ;-)

The old spiritual teachers used to say that it is very important to pay attention to our tears. Athanasius prized "the gift of tears" as the outward sign of God's puncturing of our heart. Deborah Smith Douglas recalls hearing a wise priest say that we should be grateful for whatever breaks our heart: "Reflecting on God's promise to write 'upon' our hearts, rather than 'within' them, he suggested that our own hearts are so hard that all God can do is write upon the surface (Jeremiah 31:33). It is only when our hearts break, that they break open: then the word of God can enter deeply, like a seed in a harrowed field."

Ahhh, I do feel as if God is puncturing my heart, but I have a hard time being grateful for tears. I always seem to cry too easily, but is desiring a harder, not-as-easily-concerned heart better? Hmmm.

Helpful verses this week encouraged me to keep things in proper perspective.

Proverbs 3
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;


II Peter 3
9The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.


Mark 16
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?”
14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.



In closing, I want to offer this prayer of thanks to God ...

Thank You for breaking my heart so that You can pour Your love into me. Please use me so You can love others through me. I want to be a willing vessel even if that means more puncturing and more tears. It will be worth it in the end. Thank You for the hope I find in You!


Psalm 126
5 Those who sow in tears
Shall reap in joy.
6 He who continually goes forth weeping,
Bearing seed for sowing,
Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,
Bringing his sheaves with him.

Even when I walk through the valley....You are with me! :-D

My cousin Beth & the beautiful valley
July 2008

My aunt sent this to me in a recent e-mail. I thought it was such a lovely thought that I wanted to post it here "for keeps."

As we were driving home from Venice last weekend, we came through the most beautiful part of the Alps, which is where Austria and Italy meet. When we were up high, we would come out of a tunnel and suddenly come up on the most beautiful scenery we had ever seen, the lush, green valleys, dotted with little villages. I asked Doug how come we call our trials in this life "valleys" because it seemed to me that valleys are a very beautiful and peaceful place. We pondered this for some time, but never quite came up with an answer.

Then last Sunday, as we listened to Pastor John Hagee on the satellite TV here, he explained it for us in a beautiful way. He brought out that the Shepherd takes His sheep to the valley when they need extra nourishment, because the grass there is sweeter and more lush. Also, He takes them there when He feels they need some special attention, and that it is in the valley that the sheep grow stronger and actually get more attached to the Shepherd, because of the special one-on-one time they have with Him. So, the valley is really not a bad place to be after all. It just means that He wants to teach us some things, so please pray that we are good students and learn all that he has for us. One more thing about the valley is that the only way out is UP! Praise the Lord! I have ceased trying to understand this entire situation and have given it over to God completely. The only thing I know for sure is that He has never let us down before, so I have no reason to expect Him to do it now. I will occupy til He comes, whether that is in Germany or in South Carolina.

Psalm 23

A Psalm of David.

1 The LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the LORD
Forever.

God has promised to never leave or forsake us. Even in the bad times, He is here.
Hallelujah, what a Savior!

2 more books -- Being Arab & Bible Commentary

Being Arab was written by the late Samir Kassir, a Lebanese journalist who was killed by a car bomb in 2005. This short book (92 pages) was translated from French and it deals with "the current political and intellectual stagnation of the Arab world." As the cover sums it up: "Being Arab is a clarion call, urging Arabs to embrace their own history, to reject Western double standards and Islamism alike, and to take the future of the region into their own hands." It was interesting reading the thoughts of a leftist, secular Arab as he spoke of his world. I found this in my local public library.


The Bible Exposition Commentary, Volume I is a commentary by Dr. Warren Wiersbe on Matthew through Galatians. I started this 728-paged volume on November 20, 2007 and finally finished July 26, 2008 (TODAY!!!). I did not read diligently during all those months or I would have finished much quicker. There were so many wonderful explanations and reminders of truths. I made note of some of my favorites on a sheet of paper I kept nearby. Just today I finished reading of the power of the cross. In the time of Jesus' death, the cross was not a beautiful piece of jewelry that people wore around their necks or on lapel pins. Rather it represented the most shameful death and was not talked about in polite company. The Judaizers tried to keep things legalistic according to Moses' law (salvation by works) in order to avoid the shame of the cross. However, it is through the work Christ did on the cross that we have liberty from the law and our sins and self! No wonder today Christians call it a wonderful cross! By Christ's work there, we are saved and have peace with God! Another great teaching from today was instead of asking "who is my neighbor?" ask "to whom can I be a neighbor?" For Christians ... "As we abound in love for one another, we overflow in love for all men (I Thes. 3:12). This is how it was meant to be" (page 734).



I Corinthians 1:18-31

18For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written:
"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."^[a]

20Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, 23but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

26Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, 29so that no one may boast before him. 30It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. 31Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."^[b]

How to Deal with Enemies

This was from my pastor's message on Wednesday night. How difficult is this?


Lessons from the Life of David

How to Deal with Enemies

I Samuel 16:13-15 speaks of the Spirit of the Lord being with David and an evil spirit tormenting Saul. Those two spirits are enemies of one another, and they influence the ones who have them in their lives. Therefore God's Spirit was influencing David while the evil spirit of Saul sought to destroy David.

Jesus speaks of how people will hate those who know the Lord because they do not know the One Who sent Jesus.

In John 15, Jesus says:

18"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No servant is greater than his master.'^[b] If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. 21They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me."

How does Satan work through people in our lives?

1. Unjust treatment -- I Samuel 18:13 - because of jealousy, Saul demoted David; unjust treatment can happen at work, home, church, anywhere

2. Deception -- I Samuel 18:20,21 - this speaks of times you practice supposed kindness in order to destroy someone; hypocrisy; acting nice to someone's face while plotting to destroy them

3. Unjust accusation -- I Samuel 20:30,31 - Saul sought to destroy David's reputation and divide friends

Lying and murdering comes from Satan. Jesus said in John 8,

44You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

We learned that David was demoted unjustly, but he didn't choose to seek revenge or talk bad about his treatment. Look at what David did instead:

14 And David behaved wisely in all his ways, and the LORD was with him. (I Samuel 18:14)

How did David respond to his enemy?

1. He honored unjust authority -- David trusted God to take care of the situation

Romans 12 says,

19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,”^[a] says the Lord. 20 Therefore

“ If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
If he is thirsty, give him a drink;
For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”^[b]

2. He served his enemy -- I Samuel 19:9 - David played the harp for Saul to soothe him when the evil spirit troubled Saul

Matthew 5:44 But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,^[h]

3. He refused to defend himself -- He never said, "Let me tell my side!" Instead He allowed God to take care of him. Like Jesus (Isaiah 53:7), David trust his life to the One who judges righteously.

7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He opened not His mouth;
He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.

4. He refused to retaliate -- I Samuel 24:1-5 - David could have killed Saul easily a couple times, but he refused to lift his hand against the Lord's anointed. Instead he used these testings from God to build character. Character comes from trials so instead of seeking an easy life, learn to "count it all joy" when you go through these troubles.

James 1 reminds us:

2Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

5. He humbled himself before his enemy -- I Samuel 24:8-10 -- Remember "a soft answer turns away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger" (Proverbs 15:1).

6. He waited for God's justice in promotion -- II Samuel 2:4 -- The Bible reminds us to "wait on the Lord." Allow Him to handle our enemies as we seek to please Him with our lives.

I Samuel 18:14 says, "and the Lord was with him." -- David chose to honor God, and God protected him, promoted him and prospered him.


Verse 16 tells us, "all Israel and Judah loved David."


Proverbs 16:7 says, When a man’s ways please the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

and

Psalm 75 reminds us,

6 For exaltation comes neither from the east
Nor from the west nor from the south.
7 But God is the Judge:
He puts down one,
And exalts another.

Think of Joseph. How is brothers sought to get rid of him by selling him into slavery in Egypt. But God allowed Joseph to find favor with the jailer and eventually the Pharaoh. What men meant for evil, God meant for good. Trust Him to work all things out for your good.

Proverbs 3:5,6

5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct^[a] your paths.

Romans 8:

28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.