Raise ’em Up “Baby Dedication”
Message Summary: Our life is the sum of our commitments. Whatever you commit to is going to reflect what your life looks like.
David had been prophesied over that he would be king. He had had some success. King Saul did not like David, because people praised him. Saul went to hunt down David. David and a few of his men had to go on the run. David and his men go up into a cave to hide from Saul’s army. King Saul goes in and takes a nap in the cave. David’s men say that he can kill Saul and will be fine. They said that God said he could do it. David had made a commitment to follow God and do it the right way.
You need a good support team.
David’s men were telling him things that were wrong, but his commitment to God was stronger. We must surround ourselves with a good support team. If we want a better marriage, we should surround ourselves with people who we know have a solid marriage, etc.
The long-term results are more important than short term relief.
David could have taken Saul’s life and gotten a bit of relief. David’s decision to keep his commitment changed the history of Israel. Saul and his sons die together in battle, and David becomes king. If he had taken Saul’s life, there may have been more of a divide into his eventual reign as king.
You have an opportunity every day to keep the long-term results in mind when the weeknights are difficult. How can we take a breath and not look for temporary relief? The goal is not to get kids in bed on time, but to create a home full of love.
We need to do 1% more
What does it look like for you to be 1% better in your commitment to your family? This will help us build toward our long-term results that we want. We must stay present in the day and keep our commitments. If you commit, don’t quit.
- What are long-term results that you would like to see in your family?
- What is the temporary relief that gets in the way of you progressing toward those long-term results?
- How can we, as a support team, better help each other to grow in our commitments to our families?
- What would 1% better look like for you?
1 Samuel 24:4-10 – The men said, “This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.
Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.” With these words David sharply rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way. Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’? This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, ‘I will not lay my hand on my lord, because he is the Lord’s anointed.’”