Kid's Devotion - Selfishness

  Read Philipians 2:19-21. ¹⁹ I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. ²⁰ I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. ²¹ For everyone looks out for his own interests...

  According to this, what does everyone do?

  What does that mean in your own words?

   Does "everyone" include you?

   Give an illustration of when you "looked out for your own interests" recently.

   Now read Phil. 2:3-8   ³ Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. ⁴ Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
⁵ Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

⁶ Who, being in very nature^[a] God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
⁷ but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature^[b] of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
⁸ And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death —
even death on a cross!

 

 

       According to these verses, whose interests should we be looking out for (vs. 3,4)?

 

        Why?

 

        Watch the following iCarly video (if you let your kids watch this - at times it seems to be pushing the limits of innocence) PBS also has a show Word Girl episode Eileen the Birthday Girl which would illustrate the same concept if you can find it.

 

 

How did Nevel illustrate selfishness?

 

Why was he sorry for what he did?

 

Did he change?

 

Why not? Read 1John 3:14-18.   ^14-15The way we know we've been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. 

^16-17This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves. If you see some brother or sister in need and have the means to do something about it but turn a cold shoulder and do nothing, what happens to God's love? It disappears. And you made it disappear.

     Really, the only way we can truly become unselfish is if we change on the inside - Jesus makes us brand new . Otherwise we are doomed to be selfish like Nevel because that is just the way we are

  Watch this video by King and Country. According to them , what is the proof of God's love?

.

     Here are some challenges for this week

        Monday - let someone cut in front of you in line

        Tuesday - share some of your lunch with someone

        Wednesday - Congratulate someone for beating you in something

        Thursday - compliment someone on their looks, clothes, smarts, etc

        Friday - Let someone beat you at something

        Saturday - Offer to clean up a room in the house

        Sunday - invite someone over to your house that you normally wouldn't

Kids video devotion - Worship

We all worship something. Worship is our response to what we value most.

1. Look at the following videos of people "worshipping"

Who or what were these people "worshipping"?

Describe their worship.

2. Look at Nehemiah 9:5,6.  “Stand up and praise the Lord your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.”

“Blessed be your glorious name, and may it be exalted above all blessing and praise. ⁶ You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens, even the highest heavens, and all their starry host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them. You give life to everything, and the multitudes of heaven worship you.

     Watch the following TobyMac song.
     Who were we designed to worship?

   3. In the above videos, Michael Jackson died of a drug overdose and certainly wasn't worthy of worship. Justin Bieber and Miley Cyrus, etc. are showing they aren't worthy of our worship. LSU Tigers ended up losing the national championship and Matthieu (#7) got kicked off the team for drugs.

       Watch one or both of the following cartoons. They will both illustrate people who were unworthy of worship.

 Spongebob

Johnny Bravo

 At the Robert Thomas fundraiser 8/12, someone paid $139,000 to eat dinner and breakfast with Dolly Parton!!! Who or what do you worship? Who is your hero? Who would you most want to meet? What do you daydream about?

   Colossians 1:16 says "all things were created by him and for him." That "him" is Jesus! We were created to worship Him but instead we substitute unworthy things and people that will let us down.

    Make Jesus your hero!! Then tell people about your hero. Go crazy over Him!

      

Growing in Christ Bible Study Genesis to Revelation Week 23

Read 2 Chron. 1-16

1. Read 2 Chron 1:7-10.  What does Solomon ask for?

    Read 2 Chron. 1:11,12 and James 4:3. Why is God pleased with his prayer?


                                           What is a principle of prayer you can learn from this?

Watch the video. Why was the genie skeptical?

2. Read 2Corinthians 6:14. What principle does this give us as far as dating or marrying unbelievers?

This is a very famous New Testament verse but let's develop this through what we've read so far in the Old Testament.

Read Gen. 26:34,35 and 27:46. What negative fallout occurs from marrying unbelievers in this passage?

Read Gen. 34:1-4 and 21-23. What is the danger of dating an unbeliever in this passage?

Sometimes an unbeliever will pretend to be like you to marry you. How can you tell they are pretending? (see my blog on how can you tell if the guy you are dating is really a Christian)

What will happen once you get married?

Read Exodus 3:1 and 4:24-26. What negative fallout occurs from marrying unbelievers in this passage?

Read Deut. 7:2-4, 1Kings 11:2 and 2 Kings 23:13. Why did God not want the Israelites intermarrying?

How did Solomon prove God's warning to be true?

Read 2 Chron. 8:11. What in this verse tells us Solomon knew what he was doing was wrong?

In your opinion, if being the wisest guy in the world, being a believer, knowing the commands of God, having God appear to him twice - if that couldn't keep him from marrying unbelievers or sexual sin, how can WE possibly avoid it?

Read 1 Sam. 25:3, 32-36. Describe what Abigail's life is like married to the unbeliever Nabal.

Read 2Sam 6:16, 20-22. What negative fallout occurs from marrying unbelievers in this passage?

Jehosophat was a great king of Judah. However he made the mistake of letting his kids marry unbelievers. Look at 2 Kings 8:16-18 and 25-27. What negative fallout occurs from marrying unbelievers in this passage?

Read 2Chron. 12:13,14 and 15:16. What was the fallout to the kingdom of Solomon marrying an Ammonite?
 



3. Read 2Chronicles 2:5,6 and 1Cor. 6:19. Is your Church building the "House of God"?  Explain.



      From these verses, what is a function of the building?



      Should you spend a lot of money on a church building? Why or why not?


      Read 2Chron 7:8-10. When we leave Church, how should we feel?



4. Read Deut. 17:14-20 and iKings 10:23-29 and 12:4. List the ways Solomon violated Moses' warnings.



5. Read 2 Sam 7:12-15 and Ecc. 12:9-14. Do you expect to see Solomon in Heaven? Why or why not?



6. Read 2Chron. 12:1-12 and 13:7. Give some reasons why you think Rehoboam went bad?



       How does that apply to you?



        What was the fallout from living against the law of God, even though he repented?



        How does 12:8 relate to your life?



7 Read about the 2 wars in  2Chron. 13:3-18 and 2Chron. 14:8-15. Why was Abijah victorious?



     Why was Asa victorious?


      Read 2Chron. 16: 1-6. How did Asa sin? (vs.7) Give some reasons why he might have done this after "just" defeating the Cushites with the power of God.



     If you view this battle as a test by God of Asa, which he failed, how does 16:9 explain the reason for testing?


     Read 16:9-14. What were the results of failing this test?



8. Read 2 Chron.16:12,13. Is this a warning against using doctors (Christian Science and Scientology)? Why or why not?




Notes for students or teachers

  
  Solomon started out great probably for a number of reasons. He had a very Godly father who saw his last calling in life as passing on a Godly legacy to his son Solomon. He was surrounded by Godly influences, especially Nathan and Zadok. Lastly he had a mission - build the temple. Because of this he prayed unselfishly and God actually appeared to him twice. His prayer of dedication of the temple shows a love for, knowledge of, and worship to the one true God. Unfortunately the good things God gives us, if we aren't careful become idols to us and pull us away from God. Therefore his wealth became a source of pride, oppulence, and gluttony to him. His wisdom became a source of pride to him as people came from many countries to hear him pontificate. He built a magnificent palace for himself which took longer to build than the temple. His power and desirability and possibly even his thinking he was above everyone enabled him to have any woman he wanted and his appetites were insatiable and ruled over his knowledge of right and wrong. He also had peace and when the temple was finished, all that was left for him after that was boredom and satifying appetites. (see David and Bathsheeba). We need to be careful that we stay busy yet don't substitute busyness for a growing relationship with God or think we are "holy" because we are busy serving God. You can see this in Churches. Often when the building project / fund raiser is completed they fall apart because they substituted a project for a relationship with the Lord.
       Solomon's "good things" (blessings from the Lord) became his idols and they turned him away from God. If you read Ecclesiastes you see that he realized that none of these things fulfilled but left him empty. In the end he turned back to God but the damage was tremendous. His marriage to an Ammonite woman gave him Rehoboam who didn't surround himself with wise people (or a Godly mother) and because of his accustom to the rich life continued to tax the people at the same -maybe higher- rate as his father Solomon. This led to splitting the kingdom and multiple civil wars. Rehoboam did humble himself later in life and I believe was forgiven by the Lord, yet God gave him over to the oppression of the world to show him what he was missing out on by going his own way. God will forgive us when we sin but we often have to live with the reprucussions. A good illustration of this is pounding a nail in a board representing sin in our life. God will remove the "nail" but it will leave a hole in the "board". In Rehoboam's life it was substituting the richness and the glory of God in his life represented by gold shields which he could in freedom and clear conscience shine before to the rest of the world - being replaced by tarnished cheap bronze shields which he had to keep hidden either because they were embarressing or else he was afraid of enemies seeing them and further plundering him because he had lost the protection and power that comes from following God.
     Rehoboam's turning back to the Lord may have been confirmed by having a son, Abijah, that called on the Lord and was victorious, followed by a Godly grandson, Asa who followed the Lord wholeheartedly and surrounded himself with Godly people who encouraged him and challenged him in his walk. Once again, later in life when Asa maybe got lazy (35 years of peace) and possibly wanted to just put the rest of his life on cruise control, God tested his heart with a battle. (see Hezekiah in a few lessons from now). Despite experiencing a remarkable victory against a superior Cushite army (35 years ago) this time he allied himself with a godless country to fight against the northern kingdom even using the temple's (God's) wealth to buy them. God was giving him a chance to further strengthen and bless him by calling on the Lord, but instead he didn't trust the Lord and defeated them the worldly way trusting his own intellect and strength. Because of this, God rebuked him and to further illustrate how proud Asa had become, when afflicted with a disease, he was so "ticked" at God, he refused to humble himself and ask God for his help. Because of this he died. Are you trusting in God to do the miraculous in your life or are you trusting in your own abilities and cleverness? When you are confronted by sin, how do you respond - in humility like David or Rehoboam or in anger and pouting like Asa? These are tests to eliminate pride in your life. Will you pass them or fail?
     Lastly, what is Church? Actually, we are the church - the body of Christ - that meets in a building we probably mistakingly call the Church. Does God inhabit the building - no, He inhabits us. Picture it this way, we are like charcoal. We are lit and giving off heat, but as we go on our own through the week we lose our glow as we give off heat all week. So we meet back together with a bunch of other coals on Sunday and we catch fire again and leave on fire. You can see the value of leaving in groups and fellowship during the week to keep the fire from burning out. If Solomon had surrounded himself with Godly people, that he didn't feel like he was above them but a peer, would he have succumbed to the lusts of the flesh? I don't think so. I do think we have some misconceptions that stem from a faulty view of the "Church" as being a place where God dwells. "No running in God's house"! "Wear your best, we are going to God's house"! (actually I have a tux, should I wear that to Church?). It also leads to one day a week Christians who forget that they are the Church where God dwells 24/7. The building itself however, as the community sees it, should somehow demonstrate how special God is. How that plays out... you figure that out.

Growing in Christ Bible Study Genesis to Revelation Week 22

Read 2 Samuel 11 - 1 Kings 2 and 1 Chron. 11-29

  1. Read 1Chron 13:3-11. Why did God strike Uzzah dead? (1 Chron. 15:13-15)



   Does this seem unfair? Why or why not?



   Relate this to John 4:24



   Compare this to the sin of Cain (the sacrifice not the murder) and the sin of Saul offering the sacrifices himself instead of waiting for Samuel.




  2. Read 2Sam 11 & 12. List some factors that led to David's sin? (see also James 1:14,15)




   Read 2 Sam. 12:11-14 , 1Chron. 21:29,30 and Psalm 51. List some consequences of David's sin



 




    We've seen the consequences of Saul's sin and David's. Who in your opinion got the worst consequences?                               Try to explain why this might be.








  2. Read about Absalom and his rebellion in chapters 13-18. What could David have done differently throughout Absalom's life to prevent this rebellion?





   3. Hidden in the midst of these little known passages are 3 gems. Read these 2 verses and tell how they summarize the entirety of the Bible;

        2 Sam. 14:14


        2 Sam. 19:28


       2 Kings 22:19,20

    4.  David let Absalom have Jerusalem. Why do you think he did?



          Note 15:25,26    Why didn't David take the ark with him in your opinion?



         Look at Shimei in 16:5-13 and 19:16-23. Do you have any Shimeis in your life? What spiritual principles do you learn from David's dealings with him?




      5. Read 1 Chron. 21 and 27:23,24. Why was taking a census sinful?




          Read 2Sam. 24:1. Compare this to 1Chron. 21:1. How do you explain the discrepancy?



         What effect did the near death experience have on Arunah in 1Chron. 21:20-23?


          What Biblical principle can we learn from that?


          How does David respond in verse 24?


           How does that apply to your life?




         Why was this the perfect place to build the temple?




  6. Read 1Chron. 22:5-16. How did David spend the last days of his life?




      How is this different from the way that most people spend their last days?


   Notes to Teachers/Students

      A very "unfair" occurance happens to Uzzah. Here is this well meaning worshipper who just tries to keep the ark from hitting the ground and God strikes him dead. What is that all about? The reason is seen 2 chapters later where we see the set pattern God has established for transportation - priests and poles. It was not to be transported like the Phillistines did - on a cart. It was not to be touched - the ground is less sinful than us. Lastly, coming to God the way we determine rather than the way He determines is the essense of sin and lostness. Cain brought fruit and veggies rather than the prescribed blood. Eli's sons came up with a different way to offer fellowship offereings. Saul decided to offer the sacrifice himself even though he was a Benjaminite, not a Levite. Today the stumbling block to salvation is we want to earn our way to Heaven instead of accepting God's free gift by faith. (Rom.9:30-33)
     David gets it right the second time, brings the ark home, and is at the pinnacle of success. But one time of battle he stays home while everyone else goes out fighting. He is alone, he is bored, he sees something he should have immediately turned away from and dwells on it. He inquires about her, sends for her, and sleeps with Bathsheba. It wasn't a sin to be tempted but he was foolish to put himself in a vulnerable position. We need to watch out for laziness, boredom, and being alone especially at night and keep busy doing the Lord's work. Nip temptations in your mind. Don't search for details, don't ask people what they know about such and such, just be like Joseph and flee. Also at the heart of this sin, David felt he was more important than Uriah and took his wife.
       The consequences of his sin were tremendous. There was rape, murder, insurrection, isolation that occured within his family. His infant with Bathsheba died. His son slept with David's concubines. But worse than that was he lost his intimate fellowship with God and the clear conscience that went with that. When Absolom came against him, David left Jerusalem rather than expose the people to the collateral damage of his sin and I'm not convinced he had peace that he would defeat Absolom as punishment for his sin. When Shemei unjustly cursed him, David wasn't convinced the cursing wasn't true or undeserved because of his sin. The joy of living with a clear conscience before the Lord seemed totally non existant after this sin. Like Esau selling his birthright for a pot of stew, a rash decision to satisfy his appetites ruined his whole future. May we be able to step back and count the cost before satisfying the flesh.
       Satan wants to tempt David to sin and God gives him permission. David takes a census of the fighting men to see how powerful he is and is immediately grieved when he hears the 7 figure number. He realizes numbering them is a sin because he is taking pride in his strength rather than God's. (see the lesson of Gideon). God gives him a choice of punishments and he chooses punishment by the hand of God because God is merciful. Indeed God is and stops short of the deserved punishment due to his mercy at the house of Arunah. The judgement of God for sin and the mercy of God meet and at that place the temple was built. What a beautiful picture. We are due judgement and death for our sin but God shows His mercy at the cross. We meet at a church where fellow believers meet together to celebrate God's mercy thru his son Jesus and we worship Him there offering everything we have because like Arunah, when you realize that God rescued us from death, "our" possesions and lives are seen in a brand new light.
        As David was nearing death, he spent his last years preparing his child for serving God and rather than spending all "his" possessions on himself, he was using them to further God's glory. What a difference from our mentality - lets retire, get a house on the beach and sip Margaritas while we enjoy the fruiy of our labor. May that never be!!

Is Jesus God

      I have heard it said from skeptics and door to door cults on multiple occasions that Jesus isn't God nor did he claim to be. There is no trinity they say and at best, Jesus is A god. As I've been reading through the Bible over the years I have been compiling a group of verses or thoughts that contradict the skeptics arguments and either strongly infer or flat out say that Jesus is God. Here is what I have so far.

      We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true—even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.  1 John 5:20

    No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only,   who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.  John 1:18

     Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.” ¹⁸ For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.  John 5:17,18

     The Jews insisted, “We have a law, and according to that law he must die, because he claimed to be the Son of God.” John 19:7

     “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” ⁵⁹ At this, they picked up stones to stone him...  John 8:58

Compare the above verse to the below one.

    God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”  Ex.3:14


      I and the Father are one.”  Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, ³² but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”  “We are not stoning you for any of these,” replied the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”  John 10:30-33

     Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised!  Rom. 9:5

       For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form   Col. 2:9

       He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. ¹⁶ For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.  Col. 1:15,16

Compare the above verse to the below one. You will see Jesus the creator is God

       For this is what the Lord says—
he who created the heavens,
he is God;
he who fashioned and made the earth,
he founded it;
he did not create it to be empty,
but formed it to be inhabited —
he says:
“I am the Lord,
and there is no other  Isa. 45:18

     Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.”
³ At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”  Matt. 9:2,3

    So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”  Mark 2:28

    Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” John 20:28 

      Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing:“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!” Rev. 5:18

 (Jesus never turned down worship. In fact Jehovah Witnesses say to worship Jesus is a sin against Jehovah)

    Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.   Be shepherds of the church of God,  which he bought with his own blood.  Acts 20:28

      Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished, and I tried to force them to blaspheme. In my obsession against them, I even went to foreign cities to persecute them.  Acts 26:11

  (The early church was arrested and martyred for saying "Jesus is God")

    For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor,   Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of  Peace.  Isa. 9:6

    But about the Son he says,

“Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever,
and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom  Heb. 1:8

  “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”

   ¹⁷ When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last.  I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades  Rev 1:8,17,18

Compare the above verses to the below

   Who has done this and carried it through,
calling forth the generations from the beginning?
I, the Lord—with the first of them
and with the last —I am he. ”

“This is what the Lord says—
Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty:
I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.  Isa. 41:4 & 44:6

      The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch,
a King who will reign wisely
and do what is just and right in the land.
⁶ In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called:
    Jehovah Tsikednu. Jer. 23:6

     while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ  Titus 2:13

I will continue to add verses as I find them but here are some thoughts from the gospels. Not only did he welcome people bowing down and worshipping Him and claim to forgive sins but ...

    To hate him was to hate God   John 15:23

    To welcome Him was to welcome God    Luke 9:48

    To reject Him was to reject God  Luke 10:16

    To know Him was to know God  John 8:19

    To believe in Him was to believe in God  John 12:44

    To accept Him was to accept God   John 13:20

    To see Him was to see God    John 14:9

    To hear Him was to hear God  John 12:50

    To honor Him was to honor God   John 5:23

   

Kid's Video Devotion - Judging Others

1. Watch the above Doug video
2. Doug trivia - What is Bebe's last name?
3. How did Doug judge Bebe wrongly?
4. How did Bebe's mom judge Doug wrongly?
5. How did Doug judge Roger wrongly?
6. Read 2 Sam. 10.  http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20sam%2010&version=NLT  .
  How did the Ammonites judge David wrongly? What was the result?
7. Have you ever judged someone wrongly? Recount the episode.
8. Discuss 1Cor. 4:5  http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1 Corinthians+4:5&version=MSG


Note  to parents/teachers.

In this episode, there is a lot of judging going on. To a certain degree we are told to judge in the Bible. Kids especially need to look at other kids behaviors and decide how close of a friend they should be to someone if they are behaving poorly. That is a form of judging called discerning. However, in this passage, peoples motives were being judged for their behavior. 1Cor.4:5 says only God knows motives. Doug judges Bebe Bluff on the basis of her rich mom while Bebe was really a very kind and humble person in this episode. Her mom thinks Doug made her look bad so she would lose and this was totally wrong. Doug thought Roger would make fun of him, while Roger also was trying out. David was being kind to the Ammonites and they thought he was spying them out which ended in their destruction. Be very careful when you say, "(S)he is only doing this because..." God is the only one that knows motives because He knows the heart. Therefore, always think the best of people. If their motives are wrong, they will be exposed.

Growing in Christ Bible Study Genesis to Revelation Week 21

Read 1Samuel 17- 2Samuel 10

  Here are some video clips that remind me of some of the stories. See if you can guess which ones I'm thinking of and summarize the account in 100 words or less.

1

2

3

4

5

6

1.  David was considered to be a man after God's own heart. (1Sam 13:14). Obviously, we would all liked to be described in this way (or woman). Look at the following verses/accounts, and describe qualities found in a person after God's heart.

   1Sam 17:36,37 and 45-47


   1Sam. 18:17,18,23


   1Sam. 21:5


   1 Sam 23:1-5, 11-13 & 25:14-16


   1 Sam. 24:5-7 & 26:9-11


   1Sam. 30:3,7,8


   1Sam 30:18-29


   2Sam 1:23,24


   2Sam 5:10-12


   2Sam 6:13,14,21,22


   2Sam 7:18-26


   2Sam 8:11


   2 Sam 9:1,11


  1 Chron. 14:12



2. Look at 1Sam 14:6 and 1Sam 17:37. Then look at 18:1. Why do you think David and Jonathan became so close?


   Now look at 20:31. Was Saul correct?

    Look at 20:13-17. Did Jonathan know that?              Did he care?                     Why not?



    Look at 23:16. What does this say about friendship?


   Putting all this together, describe what you should be looking for in a true friend.



 3. Read 1Sam 25. Abigail spares David from commiting the biggest mistake/sin of his life up until this point. What sin was that?


     What drove David to almost doing this? (consider many factors)



      Obviously, picking spouses was much different in those days but what can girls learn from this account about picking a husband?



      Notice her plea to David. What principles can you learn about how to negotiate and diffuse a bad situation?



     Read Rom. 12:19. How does the account of Nabal testify to this?




Notes to students/teachers

     The video clips remind me of David pretending to be in Michal's bed by placing an idol in there, David trying to wear Saul's armor, David and Jonathan planning out a code (that they never really needed), a band of misfits joining David, Saul consulting a witch, and Joab hugging Abner and stabbing him.
     David, in these chapters is amazing. Unfortunately we are about to hit chapter 11, where although he still remains loved by God and has an incredible relationship and faith in Him, his life starts unravelling. How great to live a life in love with God, worshipping Him daily, submitted in humility before Him and thus realizing our equality with mankind and loving them as ourselves. The blessings and benefits are profound. David realized that God is above all other Gods and simply represented Him in battles, yet always consulted Him first, even in the no-brainers like "should I rescue my family"? Because of going to the Lord in prayer God, not David or his men, got the glory for victories. The plunder was not his but the Lords thus he could give it away and not hoard and be greedy. He listened to rebuke (even from a woman which was big in that day) and allowed God to put Saul to death and Nabal rather than make thing happen thru his own scheming. Even while on the run he was helping people. They were like a gang of Christians. Not the Hell's Angels but the Heaven's Angels. They were risking their lives delivering people (who would in a heartbeat turn him over to Saul) from Phillistines and helping people take care of their flocks keeping wild animals and predators away and getting nothing but scorn in return. No wonder David snapped against Nabal. God had promised him to be king and it seemed to be taking forever. He was running for his life thru no fault of his own, so poor he had to beg, hiding his family from Saul for fear of retribution, no home, a band of misfits, going around doing good and getting insulted in return. This was the last straw! "Who's David?"" I'll show him who David is..." We all need to be careful because in a moment of weakness we can retaliate and our pride rear it's ugly head and ruin our testimony and bring consequences on ourselves that will affect us our whole lives.
       Abigail was in an unfortunate position - unequally yoked with an unbeliever. Marriages back then were often arranged so she probably had no say but today women do have a say and they still marry unbelieving fools. Do you want to be in that situation some day? Look for a man after God's own heart even if he is broke and scorned. If he loves Jesus you will have a great future. Notice how she diffuses the situation. She brings a gift, tells him how great he is, appeals to his sense of right and wrong, says the party he is at odds against is wrong, and mentions the Lord 7 times. She says he is so far above this party it's not even worth fighting. David leaves relieved he didn't sin by doing this, letting God take revenge (which He did quickly) and gaining a wife.
     Lastly, look at what true friendship should look like. Find someone who loves the Lord like you do and bond with them. Serve the Lord with them and fight God's fights with them. Look for someone who won't use you to get ahead and dump you when the chips are down or hang you out to dry. Jonathan was willing to give his life and heir to the throne to David. And when David was at his lowest, Jonathan came and helped him find strength in the Lord. What kind of friends do you have. Nowadays we don't deliberately seek out quality friends we tend to gravitate toward acceptance. Look for these qualities in a person and actively seek friendship with them.