I am currently teaching through the book of 1 Samuel and as I was digging into the treasures it contained the Lord highlighted a particular verse. This verse caught my attention, but I wasn’t clear why as to why as I was looking for particular key words at the time. Then as I read through this particular chapter again I felt His Spirit teach me.

If you will fear the Lord and serve Him, and listen to His voice and not rebel against the command of the Lord, then both you and also the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God.

1 Samuel 12:14

At this point in time in Israel’s history they are in the midst of a major transition as a nation.  The children of Israel were led out of Egypt by Moses and carried into the promise land by Joshua and then after the death of Joshua and the elders that ruled under him, the people went through a time known as the Judges. Sadly, even though the people had been led by faithful men of God for hundreds of years, it did not take long for them to fall away from their devotion to God without them.  By the time of the birth of Samuel Israel was really in an idolatrous mess.

From what I can gather the book of Judges and Ruth coincides in time with the first twelve chapters of the book of 1 Samuel. When you read through the book of 1 Samuel with this in mind you get a much clearer picture of how far away the people and priests had strayed from their foot of the mountain devotion to the Lord their God. The covenant they had made to the Lord at Sinai and their promises for undivided devotion to Him had long since been forgotten, however they still expected Him to keep His end when they needed Him too.

We see this when in battle with the Philistines in 1 Samuel 4, the people have the  serving priests Hophni and Phineas grab the Ark of the Covenant and bring it on the battlefield expecting its presence to deliver them from their enemies. However, the god of Gods, the Lord of lords, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe and our every breath will not be used as a good luck charm. He instead allows the Ark to be captured by the enemy, Hophni and Phineas are killed, and Israel is defeated in the battle.

The Lord allows the Ark to remain in enemy hands for seven months (at the enemies expense of course, just read 1 Samuel 5-6 to see what I mean), but the Lord our God is faithful even when we are faithless (2 Timothy 2:13). The Philistines place the Ark of God on a cart pulled by some milch cows to see if these cows will be led away from their nursing calf in order to be led by God to return the Ark to Israel, and well them two momma cows carry the Ark straight back to Israel and never check up on their bellowing calves. At this point and time Israel is hit in the face with their depravity and they realize their sin against their God who loves them and is willing to return to them to keep His covenant with them. The children of Israel put away all their false gods and they turn their hearts back to God as they are led by Samuel, the prophet and judge.

However, years pass… and now Samuel is getting a little gray in his hair and they are not to happy with his two sons and so the elders come to Samuel and ask him to ask God for a king to rule them. They wanted a king like all the other nations. They wanted someone else to fight their battles for them.  Samuel is crushed and takes their request to the Lord, and the Lord tells him that they have not rejected Samuel, but they have in fact rejected God who has been their king and has been the One who has fought for them since the day He brought them out of Egypt. Nevertheless, if they wanted a king, they could have one… and all that comes with him (1 Samuel 8:10-22).

Not much has changed about the nature of people since the days of the Judges… or from the day of the fall really. We think we are in a new day with new thinking and new revelation and new wisdom and ideas… all people ever do is repeat history over and over again. It’s actually quite exhausting when you sit back and watch and see it for what it is… there is NOTHING new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). This is why the children of God should not wring our hands in worry and get distraught over politics and policy and laws, we just need to be obedient to the Lord and trust Him with the consequences of that obedience.

Let’s look at 1 Samuel 12:14 again,

If you will fear the Lord and serve Him, and listen to His voice and not rebel against the command of the Lord, then both you and also the king who reigns over you will follow the Lord your God.

Judgment begins with the household of God (1 Peter 4:17). If we, as the church, will simply be obedient to our God then He will cause the one who rules over us to be obedient as well. However, when we loose focus, He will use the heart of our earthly ruler to redirect us back to Him and His purpose for us.

The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He wishes.

Proverbs 21:1

You see we can blame Obama and we can protest Trump, but it’s not about them… it’s about us church. God commanded Noah and his sons to be fruitful and multiply and when they chose instead to build a tower and city for their own name He came down and scattered them Himself (Genesis 11). Jesus commanded the church to preach the gospel from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth, and when they wanted to stay holed up in Jerusalem, He allowed persecution to run them out to do what He had commanded them to do (Acts 8:1). When our churches become community country clubs, entertainment centers, prisons of judgment and condemnation, or places of promoted licentiousness that mock the grace of God then our Lord will do what He has to do to tear down these walls.

He summons the heavens above, And the earth, to judge His people…

Psalm 50:4

He has called us to seek and save the lost. He called us to make known the magnificent promise and to glorify the name above all names, Jesus Christ our Lord. He expects us to do it. It’s kind of hard to see the Light when it’s locked in behind closed doors. It’s kind of hard to sow seed into concrete parking lots. Scattering more salt on already salted food simply begins to make it inedible and unpalatable… and well you just can’t help but want to snarl your nose at it, and spit it out, and trample it underfoot.

Perhaps it’s time that we stop blaming our elected officials and we simply begin by choosing to submit ourselves under the authority of the King of kings and Lord of lords. Let the church be reminded that we are ambassadors for Christ in a foreign land. Israel asked for a king and the Lord gave them one… because what they really needed to know was that it didn’t matter what earthly form of government they were under. It didn’t matter whether they were led by a judge, a prophet, or a king as long as their hearts and wills were submitted to the One who ruled over the heavens and the earth.

The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things;

Acts 17:24

There has been much debate within our country in the last few years about whether or not racism is a real issue in 2017 or whether it is pot stirred political agenda hype. In all honesty sitting here in my southern born, light freckled skin, red-headed self… I say it is still an issue.

Many will claim they are not racist. They will talk about how they have friends, co-workers, team mates, etc of different races and make their stand, but there is always one thing that seems to change that… when their child comes home dating someone of a different race. Here is where the stammering starts and the truth of the heart is revealed.

This is a picture that I snuck last year in church as a Momma who caught her fifteen year old daughter holding hands for the first time with a boy who was not her Daddy or a boy that just happened to be standing next to her in a prayer circle. It was a moment that as a proud Momma I couldn’t help but capture. This was one of those times when I looked and thanked God and in my heart said “for this moment I prayed.”

My husband and I have been praying for our daughters and their choices in relationships since we knew they were coming into this world. We knew that a young man’s family was important and how he interacted and treated his family would be how he treated our girls when the “best behavior” of dating wore off. So when our daughter expressed interest in this young man, we started watching him.

We saw that he faithfully served in several area of our church. He attended a Bible study on his own every Sunday morning BEFORE Sunday school and in addition too. We watched how he treated his parents and his sister. We listened to how others in the church spoke of him. We paid attention to how he honored our present rules with our daughter within the area of the friend zone, rules that  were the same whether they were male friends or female friends. We actually began watching before she knew that we were, because well when you talk with your kids and study them… you can always tell when they are beginning to “favor” someone.

One night, after she had admitted her liking of this young man, we were discussing boys and futures during our bedtime devo. I asked her questions about what it was that she saw in him that caught her interest and I shared with her what I, as her mother was praying concerning her future husband. The look on her face was priceless as she realized that I was praying for specific things that she had never told me that she herself had also committed to prayer. However, here is the thing, as I shared my list of the qualities, gifts, talents, character, and spiritual maturity that I was praying for the Lord to develop in her future spouse, never once was one of those that he must be fully caucasian. Thank God! For if it was we would have missed a beautiful testimony of God’s faithfulness, provision, and specifically answered prayers.

Our daughter’s first serious relationship began at the age of fifteen after when twelve years old she realized that she did not want to join the jump from crush to crush but let’s call it love bandwagon. She chose friendship. She decided that if they could not survive in the friend zone then they were never worthy of even consideration of the next zone… and she saw no need to open the next zone until marriage could be considered the next step. She chose to share who she thought was cute and caught her eye with me and her Daddy and then when that moment passed… it simply passed. No weirdness included.

Then she met the young man she is holding hands with in the picture above.  They served together in children’s and music ministry and she finally shared with me that the way she felt about him was different and it was NOT going away. She for the first time realized what it was to really want to allow someone into the next zone. She had met someone who checked off everything she was praying for as she prayed for her future husband. She saw ’til death do us part in this young man… and yes we are also of that weird set of parents who have no problem with young marriage. We are old school and believe you can do life, learn life, and grow up in life together (and that includes college).

Had we have said NO, you can’t date him because he is from a different culture and race we would have missed:

• a young man who was eighteen years old and like our daughter had never allowed any one out of the friend zone
• a young man who said I have to talk to my parents still but I would very much like to pursue a relationship with your daughter
• a young man whose parents met with us and we discussed what we expected in the relationship, what boundaries we expected to be respected when at the others house, and then a prayer as parents over their hearts and their relationship with each other and the Lord as they both stepped into unknown territory
• dinner all together as both parents clearly expressed to the young couple that we knew what was expected from each of them
• a mother who points at her young son and tells him that it is his responsibility to honor our daughter’s commitment to have her first “real” kiss at the altar on her wedding day

This is just a few of the things we would have closed the door on had we stuck the race stipulation on our daughters.

After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands;

Revelation 7:9

My husband and I and our girls are a part of an unusual race; the race of Christ. We are a part of a chosen race…

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;

1 Peter 2:9

This is the only race and cultural expectation that we place on any one they date while under our roof. This is the one that is eternal. Our prayer is that they enter into the covenant of marriage with someone who has a family legacy of belonging to THIS race even if it is only one generation back. We just want them to partner in life with someone who is hard at work in their Father’s business (Luke 2:9, KJV). The color of their skin and the cultural background they come from is all God and His plans for a  future and a hope for them (Jeremiah 29:11).

The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation,

Act 17:24-26

Racism is alive and well in our nation… and it will remain so until the church of Jesus Christ chooses to truly see past the flesh and judge all people not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. There is one certain place where the color of one’s skin should never matter and that is the church! It shouldn’t just be the athletic arena or field but the church of our Lord and Savior! His bride is made up of every nation, tribe, and tongue and His church should boldly express and proclaim it.

My favorite time every year in our church is VBS. During VBS our church is filled with at least a 1000 kids, youth, and adults from what appears like every race and social and economic background. It is a beautiful site to behold. One day we hope too see that same beautiful site on every Sunday morning…