Saul was after him again. And his men were bearing down on him.

If this wasn’t enough, David’s family decided it was a good idea to find him and stay, as well.

So David sits in harm’s way… And now so does his family!

Then comes the icing on the proverbial cake…

Let’s read today’s devotional Bible verse to see what happened next:

And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him about four hundred men.

1 Samuel 22:2 ESV

David becomes the leader of a rag-tag group of 400 filled with:

• The distressed,
• The hopelessly in debt,
• And the bitter in soul.

Not exactly the dream team when a powerful king is after you…

So what does he do?

David Runs From the Cave of Adullam, Then Says This…

First, he doesn’t wallow in self-pity. And he doesn’t lash out at the people who’ve flocked to him.

He goes to the king of a place called Mizpeh of Moab. And asks the king: “Please let my father and my mother stay with you, till I know what God will do for me” (1 Samuel 22:3).

What incredible faith in that statement.

We know David is a man with a heart of worship. But now we see that in his desperate time of need, he’s also a man of great trust in God.

He doesn’t crumple up into a ball of self-pity. Or fall headlong into a pit of despair.

David leaves the cave of Adullam with his 400 problem-plagued soldiers… With his family in imminent danger… With a bloodthirsty king at his heels…

…and in effect, says, “I know God is going to deliver me, I’m just waiting a bit learn how…”

And do you know what else?

David had just written Psalm 34, where verse 8 reads:

“Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!”

When David needed refuge most, he turned to God.

The question today is, where do you turn?

Devotion by Jordan Loftis. Jordan is the editor of Short Daily Devotions and the author of The Men With Bare Feet: Discovering Intimacy With God Through Moses, Joshua, and Jesus.

They wanted to know why Jesus and the disciples weren’t fasting like the Pharisees and the disciples of John the Baptist. Everyone had an expectation that Jesus would maintain their vision for holiness and piety.

Then he broke their expectations by living to standards of his own and his Father’s: 

He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it on an old garment. If he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good.’”

Luke 5:36–39 ESV

God was doing a new thing (new wine). And this new thing required new behaviors (new wineskins).
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Disrupting the status quo meant life as people knew it changed. People projected their version of how God’s Messiah should behave onto Jesus and his ministry.

They didn’t like how he did things.

Healing people on the Sabbath ruffled their feathers. And don’t even get them started on the prostitutes and tax collectors He hung around!

Jesus explained if he tried to work God’s plan in their ways, it would damage and tear apart the entire rescue mission. The garments would tear, the skins would burst, and no one would be saved.

Despite this truth, people still loved the old ways of doing things—and because they clung to those old ways, they reaped the old results.

We cannot afford to be those people, clinging to the past, clinging to our comfort, saying things like, “Well, we’ve always done it this way…”

Or, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it…”

New results require new behaviors. Period.
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If Jesus lived the life people expected, it would have devastated the whole world. Thankfully, he pursued his purpose undeterred. Because of this: 

• His family didn’t understand him (Mark 3:35).
• His hometown rejected him (Mark 6:3). 
• Thousands of followers left him because he said hard things (John 6:66).
• His culture’s leaders plotted to kill him and his friends (John 12:9–11).
• He was put to death on the cross (John 19:18).

Jesus was a disrupter who faithfully did and said only what the Father told him to (John 12:49).

He maintained a single purpose. His actions were relentlessly consistent. And he pushed hard; after all, he only had three years to save the world. 

By accomplishing his mission—to seek and save the lost, bear witness to the truth, and be sacrificed as our substitute—Jesus saved the world.

He fought the very forces of death and Hell on the open battlefield—and won.

Is the Holy Spirit leading you to make a change this year?

Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

Psalm 1:1–2 ESV

Have you ever spent seasons where getting into the Bible felt more like drudgery than delight?

Where you felt guilty, because you knew you should be studying God’s word every day, but you simply never felt like doing it?

If so, you’re not alone. Hundreds of our readers recently participated in a survey for us (thank you!). And about 16 percent said that their biggest struggle in their devotional life was a lack of desire to “read the Bible and pray.”

This certainly isn’t something to feel guilty about. Instead, it’s a reality a lot of us face. But what if it could be different?

Imagine this…

You wake up early in the morning and your primary desire isn’t to go back to sleep… It’s to read, meditate, and devour God’s word. It’s to pray to him and seek him.

That’s the picture the psalmist paints in today’s verse.

Though there are more, I will share one key I’ve found in unlocking this desire for myself.

It is simply having a plan for prayer and Bible reading. I know beforehand what I’m going to read, and what I’m going to pray about.

If you’re reading this, you already have a desire to know God through his Word and prayer. So what you need to do isn’t try harder… It’s simply to help that desire blossom and grow. It’s to get the roadblocks out of the way.

Bible Reading Plan

Here’s a free Bible reading plan to get you started. Knowing exactly what you’re going to do ahead of time helps you remove obstacles and provide space for God’s word.

A Plan For Prayer

Below, you’ll see what one of my actual prayer lists looked like from years ago. It’s one of the prayer patterns I often follow. I adapted it from the suggestions in the amazing book, The Battle Plan For Prayer.

My actual prayer list.

Part One:

1. Adoration: praising and adoring God (Psalm 19 is a great place to start).
2. Confession: confessing and repenting of my sins, both known and unknown (Psalm 51 is a great example).
3. Thanksgiving: thanking God for salvation, his presence, and everything he’s given!
4. Supplication: this is where I move onto my prayer list, asking God for specific things.

Part Two:

1. I pray for my family’s top three needs.
2. I give my anxiety to Jesus for the top three things I’m stressed about—asking to trust him.
3. I pray for specific miracles for big challenges.
4. I pray for God’s provision.
5. I pray for wisdom in something I believe God’s calling us to pursue.
6. I pray for other people’s needs.
7. I pray for salvation for people I know, and that God would use me to lead them to him. (This will absolutely happen if you pray for it!)
8. Finally, I intercede for our persecuted brothers and sisters according to this prayer calendar.

I hope this is helpful and encouraging to you to “delight in the law of the LORD” and “meditate” on his word day and night.

If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

John 15:18–19 ESV

There’s a church building I used to pass by on my way to work.

They put out clever sayings on their sign. You know, the kind like: “Why didn’t Noah swat those two mosquitos?”

Sometimes they’re kind of funny…

…but a few days ago, the message was anything but humorous.

This time, their sign read: “Jesus is the password for a better life.”

Now, at first blush that might not seem like a big deal. In fact, you might be thinking, “Sheesh, lighten up Jordan!”

But it bothers me so much in light of today’s Bible verse: “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you” (John 15:18a).

Does that sound like the avenue to a better life to you?

Let’s think about what the name of Jesus did for these people:

• Ask Stephen how the stones felt as they pelted his body to death.
• Ask Paul how his many beatings, whippings, and imprisonments felt.
• Ask James how Herod’s sword felt.
• Ask John what it felt like to be boiled alive.
• Ask Peter how it felt to be crucified upside down.
• Ask Andrew what it was like to be crucified on an X-shaped cross.
• Ask Polycarp how it felt to be burned and then stabbed to death.
• Ask Wycliffe, Huss, and Tyndale how it felt to be martyred.
• Ask any of the thousands of persecuted Christians in North Korea, Somalia, Afghanistan and so many more how it feels…

There is this incorrect notion today that Jesus simply died to give us easier, more fulfilled lives. Does Jesus infuse our lives with purpose? Certainly!

But did he die for our comfort? Absolutely not. And it belittles the suffering of the martyred saints for us to pretend otherwise.

We are not in the business of selling salvation. Of trying to pretty the gospel with makeup so it’s more attractive.

Jesus promised persecution and spiritual warfare for his disciples. But he also promised SO much more than a “better” life…

…he promised eternal life!

Let’s be mindful of how we speak when it comes to our savior Jesus’s life, death, and purpose on earth. Because anything less than his real mission means the gospel is sold short.

Jesus wasn't a self-help guru. He is the King of kings.
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For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Genesis 3:5 ESV

I remember as a kid the first time I realized that if only Adam and Eve hadn’t fallen for Satan’s lie that we would still live in Eden.

I imagined living in the garden surrounded by talking animals and flowers as big as my house. But I’ve as I’ve grown up, I realized: if it wasn’t Adam and Eve who sinned, it would have been someone else—maybe even me.

Satan’s lie is as compelling now as it was then.

Eve was wooed into the idea of absolute power, control and knowledge.

In fact, the lie played off of the beauty that God had already created, because the tree “was a delight to the eyes” (Genesis 3:6).

The lie that we can have ultimate control has invaded us in nearly every facet of life. We rest in our knowledge of the universe, we rely on our mastery of mechanics and engineering, we trust in biochemists and the drugs they engineer… but do we trust in God?

None of these things are bad to trust, but if we solely trust in man’s ability and accomplishments we lose sight of the very truth they show us.

Mankind can only make discoveries about what God has already created. We ourselves cannot create, only tinker. We can become so absorbed in the “delight to the eyes” that is God’s creation, that we believe the first lie ever told us, “You will be like God”.

Don’t let mankind’s great feats of engineering blind you from this basic fact: we are simply discovering the way in which God has ordered the world. Don’t let *stuff* grow larger than God.

Stay humble and vigilant so that your faith is ultimately in the God who creates rather than men who only tinker.

The LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. But the LORD said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand—”that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”

Exodus 4:1–5 ESV

God: What’s in your hand?

Moses: A staff.

God: Lay it down, I’ll make it come alive.

Moses: *Drops the staff*

It transforms into a snake—a living thing—that God asks Moses to pick back up.

Through this staff, God worked miracles in Egypt and led his people into freedom.

This staff represented deep things about Moses. He was a shepherd.

This was his:

1. identity
2. income
3. influence

For me, I’m a writer, and I hold a pen.

This is who I am, how I make money, and how I wield influence.

I’m just learning that it’s not about me—and if I try to make it about me, it quickly runs out of ink.

But when I lay it down for God, there’s a river of ink, a fountain of never ending inspiration, wisdom beyond my abilities, and purpose I could never engineer for myself.

So, what’s in your hand?

Are you willing to lay it down so God can make it come to life, and work wonders in the world?

When we do, let’s not run from the calling, like Moses did at first. God’s plans for you are much greater than your plans for yourself—the same goes for me.

Let’s pick up the purpose he has for us.

What’s in your hand?

PS: If this impacted you, I encourage you to watch the TED talk Rick Warren gave where he shares more about this concept.

Have you ever wondered what’s actually happening there?

In today’s devotional verses, the Apostle John shows us some of what’s going on there right now:

And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to say,

“Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty,
who was and is and is to come!”

And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne, who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty-four elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, saying,

“Worthy are you, our Lord and God,
to receive glory and honor and power,
for you created all things,
and by your will they existed and were created.”

Revelation 4:8–11 ESV

God is being worshiped.

This means when we sing praises to God on Sundays… or in our homes… or even in the shower… we’re joining in the unbelievable worship happening in heaven every moment.

If you want to align your life, your Church, or your family with the heartbeat of heaven, worship Jesus.

Worshiping God is what some of the most powerful creatures in the universe were created to do. Let’s join them.

Next time you worship, imagine this scene in your mind and remember who you’re partnering with in praise.

Some of the heads of families, when they came to the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem, made freewill offerings for the house of God, to erect it on its site. According to their ability they gave to the treasury of the work 61,000 darics1 of gold, 5,000 minas of silver, and 100 priests’ garments.

Ezra 2:68-69 ESV

Jerusalem had laid in ruins for about 70 years.

The Persian King Cyrus the Great had defeated Babylon, and was sending Israelites home after being exiles for a generation.

Cyrus explicitly sent them back to rebuild the Temple (Ezra 1:2). The Babylonians had destroyed and plundered it.

Along with this sending, Cyrus also commanded the Israelites’ surrounding neighbors to chip in on the expenses (Ezra 1:4).

It’s amazing to see how God truly moves the hearts of world leaders to accomplish his will.

But today’s verses teach us even more about how God gets his work done: leaders giving first.

Even though Cyrus told neighboring cities, regions, and tribes to help fund the Temple’s reconstruction, Israel’s leaders “made freewill offerings.”

This means they gave money without being asked. Rather than showing up and expecting everyone else to pay their way, they put skin in the game.

Why Does it Matter?

Why does it matter if they gave financially or not? Because it shows us they truly believed in what they were doing.

Where we invest our money shows us what we value.
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Leaders don’t tell others what to do, they invite others to join them in what they’re doing.

What’s wonderful is that they gave “according to their ability.” It’s not about how much you give, it’s that you give as you’re able.

So ministry leaders, whether $10 or $10,000, are you investing financially in the work you’re asking others to fund?

Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.

Psalm 139:23 NIV

In Psalm 139:23, the psalmist invites God to do a full “search” of his heart. He longs for God’s searching eye to be on him.

Do we long for God to “search me and know me”? Or would we prefer to be overlooked and stay hidden?

Radical honesty to this question can change our lives.

How? By leading us to repentance!

“Search Me and Know Me” as a Prayer of Repentance

Martin Luther wrote: “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said ‘Repent,’ he intended that the entire life of believers should be repentance.”

When God searches us, finds our anxieties and sins, we have the chance to turn FROM them, and TO him.

By inviting God's gaze, we will experience his grace, because it's his kindness that leads us to repentance.
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Today’s Psalm gives us an incredible chance to pray this with our children. Because one of the best things we can teach our kids to do is repent. And if you’re like me, GOOD NEWS!!! You’ll get A LOT of opportunities to teach them.

One of the simplest ways to do this (other than modeling it to them with our lives) is in prayer (like in Psalm 139:23).

Here’s how we can get more consistent with this.

At nighttime prayer, we can help them confess sin and repent. Teach them to have soft hearts toward God by allowing our own hearts to be the softest.

So, instead of just asking for stuff (health, good dreams, etc), we can lay out our sin together before the Lord, turn, and run the other way.

Here are some questions we can ask in prayer alone, or with our kids:

• God, I invite you to see every part of me. Will you please show me where I am running away from you?
• Lord, what am I worried about (or scared of) because I’m not trusting you?
• Father, where did I choose not to follow you today?

…and then hopefully have a night free from bad dreams about hyenas from the Lion King or the lava monster from Moanna…

That’d be just swell 🙂

Pray for God to search you and know you, then repent of the sin that’s revealed. And teach your kids to do the same!