HONORING THE ARK OF THE COVENANT

1 Samuel 4:3b  "Let us bring the ark of the Lord's covenant from Shiloh, so that it may go with us, and save us from the hand of our enemies."

This morning I walked a mile on the treadmill, not a lot for many, but a new beginning for me.  The treadmill allows me to read the Bible on my Kindle while I walk.  As there is no one in the exercise room but myself, this is a quiet place, a place that becomes holy as the Lord is with me.

When you are redeemed by the Lord, He sends His Holy Spirit to dwell with you.  This is the Ark of His Covenant....His Presence.  His Presence then, and each day, dwells within you.  He is always with you.  So, in effect, the Lord told me that when we go, where we go, His Presence goes with us.  This is not the first time the Lord has poured into my spirit the urgency of our honoring His Presence.  So where we go, how we act, what we take part in, we are bringing His Presence, the Ark of the Covenant of our God, our Lord, to take part in that also.  Selah.....

The Lord also illuminated the insistence of the Israelites upon their wanting a king.  The Lord did not want to do this, and Samuel pleaded with the people, but they were insistent.  Have you ever prayed and prayed for something.....not noticing that there may be a Godly reason for not receiving what you have prayed for....but insisting over and over that you must have this, and finally, the Lord gives it to you.  Not everything we receive is something the Lord knows is good for us.  But when we are so insistent on something, the Lord will, at His purpose, give it to us.  Ever wonder why what we thought was from the Lord, because we had prayed, did not work out, or eventually grieved us?  Did you blame God for this?   These things grieve our Lord also, but He will use it to show us, to teach us in love, that it is ever so important to seek His will for our lives, not our wants, but His will.  Yes, it may take longer than we would like to wait, but those that wait...."Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him."  Isaiah 30:18.   When we wait for the Lord, He will bring us to that place where we can receive His intended blessings upon our lives. 

We must honor the Presence of the Lord at all times.  We must never take our Lord for granted or boast, thinking we are better than someone else.  The Israelites brought the Ark to where their fight was thinking the Presence of the Lord would fight this battle and win it for them....they never inquired of the Lord if this was His will.  And they were defeated.  Before we step out to begin our day, we must always pray and ask the Lord for His will to be our guide, for His desire to be our desire, and His heart to be manifest in our heart, for His love to be poured out of us to others.  Honoring the very Presence will result in bringing honor to Him in all we do.  This is the only way to be victorious in our life.  Honoring the Presence of the Lord, our Holy God.

I thank You, Father, for Your words to me this morning.  I ask that all my thoughts, all my ways, all my desires be subject to Your will for my life.  You are the Lord of my life and I love You with all that is in me.

08-23-12