Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 18 It seems like some relationships were never meant to last. Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries were married for 72 days, which is quite lengthy compared to Jason Alexander and Britney Spears. Their marriage lasted a whopping 55 hours.[1] Well, the fawning and fondness between Saul and David probably lasted somewhere in between the length of those two marriages. After the smashing success of Goliath’s fall, the travels back home were filled with parades and singing. Then, as the scripture says, “It happened.” This usually indicates a momentous turn and more often a seeming turn for…
Sunday Morning Calls to Worship
Call to Worship August 15 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 17:26-58 May 17th, 2021: Kevin did what he usually does about eight months out of the year. He watches a spherical object hurled at him from 60 feet away at 95 miles an hour several times per day. This time was different: the hurler lost control and the baseball hit Kevin Pillar in the face. As one writer noted, “Pillar fell to the ground and immediately grabbed his face. As he tried crawling, blood poured out of his nose…”[1] A usual day of staring down mostly controlled, but extremely fast pitches, as they whiz by turned…
Call to Worship August 8 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 17:1-26 Correct context of a scriptural scene creates a proper perception of the whole scenario. Some would say Goliath was one “mean hombre,” or a “brutish beast.” He was over nine feet tall, three feet taller than the average N.B.A. player.[1] He wore body armor that weighed 125 pounds or so, as much as a good sized middle school boy. The head of his spear weighed in at about 16 pounds.[2] Not to mention his bronze helmet! Can you envision the size of that thing? So you could imagine with his stature and warrior gear he imbued…
Call to Worship August 1 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 16 The pomp and circumstance of the entrance of a king languishes in our imaginations. When we hear of a king in America it is often foreign to our thinking, but not completely foreign. We know what the inauguration of a president looks like every four years- the musical entrance, lofty promising speeches, the swearing of oath to office, the fanfare parade, and night time galas. Depending on the party or candidate millions watch our national political affair publicized across the world. It truly has become an international spectacle. The president of the United States…
Call to Worship July 25 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 15:29 Mary had returned from her doctor’s appointment. While sitting at her kitchen table, she was rehearsing and thinking through all that he said to her that morning. He explained her illness in language she understood quite well. Yet, she knew he did not reveal every detail and aspect of the diagnosis because those words could not describe the full depth of the disease. The doctor’s explanation gave her enough to understand the issues and the treatment, but did not overwhelm her with words she could not truly understand. His diagnosis was somewhat shocking, yet…
Call to Worship July 18 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 15:9-23 October 3 rd , 2003 is not particularly memorable for most people. Yet it was a day Mr. Roy Horn will never forget because he was almost killed. A tiger he had trained for years attacked him and left him with life threatening injuries. He worked with large wild cats for decades and knew the danger, but had become somewhat over confident in his work. One of his professional animal handlers thought “Horn was spending too little time with the tigers before shows, eroding the bond between animal and performer. ‘Many of the handlers thought…
Order of Worship July 11 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 15:1-9 They had it coming! This was probably one of the most common thoughts of many people after the deaths of Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Mao Zedong. They were responsible for the deaths of millions of people. While most scholars are reluctant to estimate a total number of “unnatural deaths” in China under Mao…One government document…says that 80 million died unnatural deaths…In comparison, Hitler is blamed for 12 million concentration camp deaths and at least 30 million other deaths associated with World War II, while Stalin is believed responsible for between 30 million and…
Call to Worship July 4 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 14:47-52 Human perception alone always clouds the overall perspective on life and happiness. These verses summarize an earthly view of Saul’s reign with mostly positive commentary. “This catches us by surprise,” according to D.R. Davis. “We’ve just heard an extended story depicting Saul in negative tones…and now we hear such a positive assessment! Whom to believe? If we want the truth, we must believe both.”[1] Saul was used by God to conquer the enemies of the Israelites and to prove to Israel God was always the greatest King. Saul fought many of the “ites” and…
Call to Worship June 27 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 14:24-46 Decreeing faulty commands often results in sinful behavior in other areas. Israel had just been delivered by God from the Philistines, yet Saul did not stop in thanksgiving and praise. He decided to burden the consciences of the people with a command not given by the LORD. He commanded them to stamp out the enemy, but with no physical sustenance to aid them in their task. The complete defeat of the Philistines was not the problem. It was the additional command of eating no food, “until I have avenged myself on my enemies,” which…
Call to Worship June 20 2021
Expository Thoughts on 1 Samuel 14:1-23 Wallowing in sin, shame, and sadness never creates thoughtful or godly decisions. So it was with King Saul after he had unlawfully and unwisely made offering before the Lord. He was confronted with his sin by Samuel and told of the consequences of his actions. Then, after the people continued to scatter in fear, Saul wallowed in shame and sadness. He indecisively loitered under a pomegranate tree while the Philistines amassed their army throughout the region. They camped in the valley below Gibeah and on the hillsides of Michmash. Saul sat with 600 hundred…