Daily Devotional for Friday, December 15

David the Submissive

“Then David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his apparel, and came into the house of the Lord, and worshipped: then he came to his own house; and when he required, they set bread before him, and he did eat,” 2 Samuel 12:20.

In failure we often discover who we truly are, even more so than in our success. At difficult times, how we respond to adversity reveals who we are. Fanny J. Crosby, who wrote almost nine thousand hymns, including Blessed Assurance and Redeemed How I Love to Proclaim It, as well as an incredible host of other literature, was blind from infancy. As an adult, she often reflected that if it were not for her blindness, she probably would not have received the education that she did, nor would she have begun writing as she did. She submitted her life, even the brokenness of her life, to God, and He used her in an amazing way.

David, too, experienced brokenness and sin. Following his great sin against God, the fruit of that sin was taken from him through the death of Bath-sheba’s and his baby. He prayed and fasted while the child still lived, but following the child’s death, David did not rant against God, nor did he turn to destructive behaviors; he turned to God and worshiped Him. David submitted himself to the judgment of God.

David was called “a man after God’s own heart.” Surely that was reflected in David’s pursuit of God as seen in the many psalms he wrote. Surely that was seen in David’s courage as he faced bears, giants and armies. But just as surely, we see that statement is true about David in how he responded in this situation to the judgment of God.

REFLECTION: We may not ever have success in this life, but because we are sinners, we certainly will face the disciplining hand of God. Be submissive to God and let discipline be turned into a victory.

Jason Rutherford