The Gathering Place Where Family Matters

“And David said, ‘Is there yet any left that is of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?’” (2 Samuel 9:1).

Talk about grace! King David is now establishing his kingdom. Typically in the Old Testament era when a new king was establishing his kingdom, one of his first major concerns would be to eliminate any in the household of his enemy. Saul, who ruled his kingdom before David, certainly had to be labeled an enemy of King David. Saul wickedly hunted David night and day trying to kill him. So we would expect that David would be asking, “Is there any left of the household of Saul that I may kill him?” What wonderful grace extended when David said, “Is there yet any left of the house of Saul that I may show him kindness?” David was a man after God’s own heart. Now he wants to extend kindness to someone left in the household of Saul. This kindness was extended for the sake of David’s very dear friend, Jonathan. The King showed kindness to someone who did not deserve it because of his love for Jonathan! Be sure to read tomorrow as we have the New Testament equivalent of this beautiful scene!

For today: To whom will you show kindness? Find someone who least deserves it!

“There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many? And Jesus said, make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in that place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand” (John 6: 9-10).

The Lord Jesus teaches the people that His power is limitless. Also He demonstrates to His own disciples the wonderful principle that He is trustworthy to care for the needs of their personal lives and service. Thousands upon thousands of people were present listening to the words of the Lord Jesus. It was time for supper when the Lord Jesus spoke to Philip and asked him, “Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat?” This question must have seemed overwhelming to Philip. It was Andrew who spotted a little boy with a tiny lunch. However, there is almost a note of desperation when Andrew said “But what are they among so many?” This would be a mighty teaching moment for the crowd as well as the disciples. Here is the lesson. Nothing is too hard for the Lord. He can provide the deepest need, no matter how impossible it appears. This wonderful teaching does not permit God’s people to ever become idle or lazy. But on the other hand, as we are about our daily routines and responsibilities, look to the Lord as the Source of providing your need. He who fed the thousands with a tiny lunch can certainly take care of you and your needs today.

For today: As a believer it is thrilling to remember that the One who broke the bread and the fish holds me in those same hands.

“Correct thy son, and he shall give thee rest; yea, he shall give delight light unto thy soul” (Proverbs 29:17).

Jim and Shirley were absolutely distraught as they approached the pastor’s office. “I’m not sure I want to go through with this. How are we going to explain to our pastor that we cannot control our seven-year-old son? I am so embarrassed and feel like such a failure.” Jim said to his wife. “Honey, I know this is going to be hard, but we need help!” she said to her husband. As this dear couple invested several counseling appointments with their pastor, they readily admitted that they simply were not disciplining their son. Imagine that! Their seven-year-old son seemed to be in charge of the house. He never had been disciplined. The wise and gentle pastor graciously confronted Jim and Shirley with the truth that they needed to “correct” their seven-year-old son. They needed to be the parent and take charge of their home and son. Robert was going to be in for a life-changing period of time. Though it was not going to be easy and certainly it was not going to be pleasant, Jim and Shirley learned the wonderful truth that because they loved their son and because they loved the Lord, they were going to need to begin consistent discipline.

For today: We need to pray for young parents today. Oh how they need to learn to consistently discipline their children.

“Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God (Ephesians 2:19).

A number of years ago I had the privilege of traveling to Mali. The people treated me with a great deal of respect, courtesy, and friendliness. In every sense of the word they welcomed me to their country. In spite of trying to make me feel welcome and at home with them, it really was apparent to me that I was a stranger and a foreigner. One of the afternoons, the missionary and I traveled from the bush into one of the little villages. He told me it had been a long time since any of the villagers had seen a white man in their town. Leaving New York State in January, needless to say, my skin was very white. No suntans in January in New York State! The whiteness of my skin and the customs and culture of my home area were very interesting to them. Do you know why? It was because a stranger and a foreigner stood in their community. The missionary told me it would appear that every single person stopped working and every boy and girl was fascinated with this stranger. Did you know dear friends that we Christians are strangers and foreigners here on this planet? This world is not our home. Our home is in Heaven. Equally grand is the Biblical truth that once we were cut off from God and we were strangers and foreigners to Him. But now, through Christ, we are His family!

For today: Rejoice that you are no longer a stranger or foreigner to God.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Heavenly places in Christ” (Ephesians 1:3).

Janice was having a miserable day. It seemed like one of those days when, if something could possibly go wrong, it did! Traffic was so heavy that she was three minutes late to work. Her toothache was back, and she was not happy with her hair that day. As she sat at her desk to take her first phone call, her favorite necklace broke, and several pieces of her jewelry rolled all over the carpet. Of course her first telephone call was from a dissatisfied customer who complained about the product. It seemed like everything was going wrong! She just simply felt miserable. As she reached into her purse to get a cough drop, there was her small New Testament. Taking just a second from her work, she opened her New Testament, and what she spotted was the verse that you read today from Ephesians 1:3. Yes, God indeed had blessed her with all spiritual blessings in Heavenly places. She saw the tiny note she had written in the margin many years before that read, “Doesn’t take away the hard times, just makes them bearable.” How is your day going today? In spite of hard days here on earth, we who belong to the Lord have Heavenly blessings!

For today: We believers have a tremendous privilege of being in Christ. What a grand place to be!