“AND FOUND HIM SITTING UNDER AN OAK”

MEMORY VERSE: And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem. 2 Samuel 11:1

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Zephaniah

BIBLE READING: 2 Samuel 11:1-5

Imagine the Lord came to you in a dream or in a vision, and instructed you to go to a church nearby and cry against the altar because of the evil that was taken place there. He warned you not to eat or drink there. Immediately, alarm bells will begin to ring in your head. Why on earth would the good Lord warn me against eating there? "Hmm! There must be some kind of danger attached to the food they may want to serve me", you would have thought. " There is poison in the food", you would conclude. As such, whilst you are there you will stay away from food or drink. Not only that, you will keep your mouth shut about the Lord’s instruction not to eat or drink because they may grab you and force feed you.

He also warned you not to return by the way you came. Again you say to yourself, "if the Lord wants me to return by a different route then there must danger along the route". "Someone must be out there to harm me either on my way to the church or on my way back from the church". For this reason, you will keep that information to yourself and not waste time at all. The moment you leave the church, you will run back home. No matter how tired you are, even if you are pressed and you needed to use the toilet, you will not stop until you get home. This was what one would have expected from the young prophet who the Lord sent to Bethel to cry against it (1 Kings 13). On his way back the king invited him to a meal. He turned down the offer, and then went on to divulge the instruction the Lord gave to him. On his way back, he decided to rest under a tree and the enemy caught up with him and tricked him. 1 Kings 13:14 says, “And went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak: and he said unto him, Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah? And he said, I am.” The enemy fed him and he ended up as lunch for a lion. Had it been the young prophet did not wait by the tree, the enemy would not have catch up with him and he would have reached home safely. There is danger in resting before the finish line. There is danger in sitting, by a tree, when one should be walking or if possible running.

When David was meant to be at war fighting the Lord's battle, he stayed back at home and slept. 2 Samuel 11:1 says, “And it came to pass, after the year was expired, at the time when kings go forth to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried still at Jerusalem.” Before he woke up, the enemy had strategically positioned a naked woman around him. He saw her and fell into adultery. This is why it is not good to stay at home when you should be in church. The moment Jesus told Peter “That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18), one would have expected Peter to become very careful and watch his words because God has a plan for his life. Actually, it would have been wise for Peter to start praying that the Lord would keep him and the enemy would not succeed over his life. However, Peter continued as usual and before he knew it the devil started speaking through him. Jesus had to rebuke him at a point (Matthew 16:23).

COUNSEL: Friend is the Lord beginning to use you in one capacity or the other? It is not the time to go around boasting. It is a time to start serious prayer. It is one thing to start; it is another thing to finish. Are you beginning to enjoy unusual favour, it is not a time to show off at all. It is a time to start praying for wisdom to manage your relationships. Are your spiritual or physical children beginning to prosper, it is not a time to boast at all. It is a time change your prayer gear into the next level.

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