Main Verse: Judges 13

Good morning!

An angel was sent to Mahanah Dan to proclaim the birth of a boy child who would Judge Israel. This boy was to be raised under the Nazrite vow.  Accordingly, he was never to drink wine or cut his hair which his parents followed to the letter. Because Manoah wasn’t present when the Angel first appeared, he wisely asked the Lord to confirm the instructions given to his wife. So the Angel returned and repeated the instructions. We are not told what Samson was like in his youth, what choices he made, his attitudes, etc. When Samson saw a Philistine woman, he told his parents about the woman and he wanted to marry her.  As a parent I can understand what might have gone through his parent’s minds and how their dreams were crushed by his choices it must have been like watching their world fall apart. How could the Lord allow this man to do what he was doing by marrying a Philistine woman? There could be nothing good that could come from it or so I would think anyway. Yet it was Samson’s choices that caused unrest between Israel and the Philistines and pushed the Israelites out of their comfort zones so that they would realize the predicament they were in.

When I first read Samson’s story, I thought, “Why would God possibly use a clown like Samson; I mean, look what he did with God’s blessings!” However, Samson’s story is not that much different from yours and mine.  When I first came to the Lord and was reborn,  I had great expectations for what He was going to do in my life. In my youth, I saw life through rose-colored glasses and for the most part, listened to my parents. Then, as I grew up, my worldview changed, and new doors opened for me – Like reading the truth from the Word of God (John 8:31-32). Unfortunately, some of those doors led me down roads that I’d rather not go down, and paid dearly for them. Yet no matter what choices I made, the Lord used the outcome for His glory when I committed them to Him and repented. It would be nice if I always made the right choice but it’s not a reality in this world. It would be nice if the Lord gave me a 30-second look into the future and see what the outcome of my choices would be. Do I wish that God could make failures and misgivings go away? No because they serve a purpose just like Samson’s foolish marriage and that is to humble me and to give me hope and a future (Deuteronomy 8:1-2, Jeremiah 29:11); if I learn from them, good for me when I didn’t the Lord put me into a worse position (John 5:14). My encouragement for you today is that you would commit your choices to the Lord, learn from your mistakes, and not be afraid to move forward. After all, “The only real mistake is the one from which we learn nothing” (Henry Ford).

I.H.S.

MK

Father,

Making good choices is important but, sometimes, it’s easier said than done. When Jesus came to the earth, he left behind his royal clothing to be born as a human being along with all of the frailties of mankind to save a clown like myself. When I fall short and become judgmental, you humble me and then you confront me to hopefully change the direction I am going (); when this happens, please forgive me! I will be judged in History’s courtroom just Samson but in Your Kingdom, Father, may I be forgiven and accepted into Your Holy presence. I pray for my family, my city, my state, and the Republic of the USA. May the words on this page encourage people in their walk with the Lord.

In Jesus’ Name