1 Kings 3:5-9 At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?” 6 And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. 7 Now, O LORD my God, You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. 8 And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted. 9 Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?”
Deut. 28:6-7 “Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out. 7 “The LORD will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.
In the Book of Kings, when King Solomon began his reign, God asked him, “What shall I give you?” He replied, “I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in” (1 Kings 3:7). Such a phrase seems curious, yet it holds deep significance. It is echoed throughout Scripture, revealing a principle that intimacy with God leads to victory!
When Moses pleaded for a leader to replace him, he asked the Lord for a leader who could lead the Israelites “to go out and come in” so they wouldn’t be like sheep without a shepherd (Numbers 27:17). Joshua was chosen. He was one of the two spies, Caleb being the other, who said, “Adonai is with us”- do not fear the giants of the land! (Numbers 14:7-9)
After Joshua was appointed leader, he spoke to Caleb, who, at eighty-five, boldly claimed his strength for battle was as strong as ever, “both for going out and for coming in.” (Joshua 14:11)
Again, this expression surfaces regarding David in 1 Samuel 18. Here, amidst the praises of the people who acclaimed, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands” (1 Samuel 18:7), we see that Israel loved David because “he went out and came in before them.” (1 Samuel 18:13)
What can we learn from these faithful servants? They all shared a profound intimacy with God. Moses spoke to God face-to-face as one speaks to a friend (Exodus 33:11), Joshua was one with whom the Spirit rested (Numbers 27:18), Caleb followed God wholly with all his heart (Joshua 14:9), and David was known as a man after God’s own heart. (Acts 13:22; 1 Samuel 13:14)
Each of these faithful leaders understood the critical importance of entering God’s presence and drawing on His strength and power before stepping out to battle. They faced formidable adversities—enemies, even giants and armies—yet they were victorious.
So cultivate that type of intimacy in your daily walk with the Lord. Begin each day by entering into His presence through worship and prayer before you step out into the world. By doing this, when you go out, you go out with the confidence that the Lord “will cause your enemies who rise against you to be defeated before your face; they shall come out against you one way and flee before you seven ways.” (Deut 28:6-7)
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]As some of you may know, a bomb exploded in a bus within blocks of our Jerusalem apartment when we first moved to Israel. That morning, my wife and I, along with our newborn baby, were heading to the city center to run a few errands when suddenly we heard the explosion. Within minutes, the sirens were screaming from every part of the city as officials quickly made their way to the scene. Later that month, the bus I was supposed to be on drove away as I watched it carry away the 50 or so people who would be critically injured and the 8 who would be dead seconds later, when that bus exploded before my very eyes. So, to put it mildly, we have seen firsthand how terrorism works and how it affects people.
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