Tuesday, April 22, 2025

APRIL 22, 2025

 “Imagine how much a man's life would change if he trusted that he was loved by God.” 

2 SAMUEL 4-6

20When David returned home to bless his household, Michal daughter of Saul came out to meet him and said, “How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, going around half-naked in full view of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would!”
21David said to Michal, “It was before the Lord, who chose me rather than your father or anyone from his house when he appointed me ruler over the Lord’s people Israel—I will celebrate before the Lord22I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes. But by these slave girls you spoke of, I will be held in honor.”
23And Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death.(6:12-23)

LUKE 18:18-43

35As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. 37They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”
38He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
39Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
40Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, 41“What do you want me to do for you?”
“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.
42Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” 43Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.

JOURNAL 

David’s passion for God really stands out, especially when we look at how he worships. He doesn’t let traditions, customs, or what’s “proper” stop him. Instead, David worships with everything he has because his love for God is all-consuming (2 Samuel 6:14-22). It’s not just about following rules or rituals for David—it’s about a real, personal relationship with God that drives his actions. This is something we see throughout his life, not just in his worship, but also in how he deals with his enemies. Take the stories of Saul and Ish-Bosheth—David doesn’t just sit back when people harm those whom God has chosen. He takes action, showing how deeply he values God’s authority, even when it means confronting his enemies (2 Samuel 1:15-16, 4:5-12). But it’s not the actions alone that matter—what really matters is David’s heart. His decisions come from a place of deep respect and devotion to God.

At this point, David has reached a place where nothing is going to get in the way of his love for God. He doesn’t care what Michal thinks when she’s embarrassed by his behavior (2 Samuel 6:20-23). He’s not worried about looking like a “proper king” by the world’s standards. Instead, David is being authentic, just being himself, and worshiping God in the way that feels right to him. His worship is an honest outpouring of his love for God, and that’s what matters most to him.

This kind of undistracted devotion to God reminds me of the story of the blind beggar in the Gospels. Even when people told him to be quiet, he didn’t give up. He kept crying out to Jesus, and his persistence led to his healing (Mark 10:46-52). Like David, the beggar refuses to let the opinions of others keep him from pursuing what he knows he needs: God’s help. The message in both stories is clear—don’t seek to please people, because they’re not the ones who can truly redeem or provide. Seek to honor God, and trust that He will respond to your faith with redemption, healing, and provision (Jeremiah 29:13).

This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t care about others—it’s quite the opposite. When we love God deeply, that love overflows into how we treat others. The more we focus on loving God and living in a way that honors Him, the more we’ll naturally love and care for the people around us. The shift here is that instead of focusing on getting what we want, we focus on becoming the best versions of ourselves, solving problems and facing challenges in a way that reflects God’s love. And because God is love, as we grow in our love for Him, we also grow in our ability to love others in ways we never thought possible (Matthew 22:37-39, 1 John 4:19).

In the end, the deeper we get into our relationship with God, the more everything else in life—our relationships, our choices, our actions—falls into place. It’s like Jesus said, when we put God first, the rest will follow. Loving God becomes the foundation of everything else, and through that love, we find the ability to love others better than we could have on our own (Galatians 1:10).



37Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’c 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’d 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Matthew 22:37-40

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