All or nothing

The Covenant Box of the LORD stayed in Kiriath Jearim a long time, some twenty years. During this time all the Israelites cried to the LORD for help. Samuel said to the people of Israel, ‘If you are going to turn to the LORD with all your hearts, you must get rid of all the foreign gods and the images of the goddess Astarte. Dedicate yourselves completely to the LORD and worship only him, and he will rescue you from the power of the Philistines.’ (verses 2-4)

Read 1 Samuel 7:2–17

It is all or nothing with our God. We either turn ourselves over to him fully in faith or we are just kidding ourselves, and him too. Samuel challenges God’s people to give all and to worship only the Lord or to give nothing of themselves and worship any other god. There is no in-between.

Samuel knows that a god is whatever a person looks to for all good things and runs to for help in trouble. So, anything we set our heart on and rely on is our god. We are called to trust our God with sincerity in our heart and to hold on to him alone.

Let’s come to the Lord today in trust and hear him say, ‘Whatever good things you need, look for them in me. If you are in trouble or distress, come and hold on to me. I am the one who will give to you without sparing and help you out of every trouble.’

Heavenly Father, I thank and praise you for your constant care, protection and forgiveness. Give me faith to trust you for everything. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

by Adrian Kitson, in ‘Renewed Hope for each Day’ (LCA, Openbook, 2000)

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