SWHW Bible Reading Plan - Year 2 January 2021Sample

January 13

Top Takeaway from Michelle Myers:

"you shall know that I am the Lord" <-- this phrase appeared twice in today's reading: 

"Now behold, a prophet approached Ahab king of Israel and said, 'Thus says the Lord, 'Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will deliver them into your hand today, and you shall know that I am the Lord." - 1 Kings 20:14

and again:

"Then a man of God came near and spoke to the king of Israel and said, 'Thus says the Lord, 'Because the Arameans have said, 'The Lord is a god of the mountains, but He is not the god of the valleys,' therefore, I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord.'" - 1 Kings 20:28

These are two prophets before two different battles coming before the same king of Israel, Ahab. Both times, the prophet pointed out the looming danger ahead, declaring an Israel victory (when it did not make any logical sense for Ahab's army to win) with only one goal: for Ahab to come to know God.

Spoiler alert as you'll see in a few chapters: it doesn't end well for Ahab. He experiences the Lord's victories, he sees the Lord's power -- and Ahab continues to live without God anyway.

And as easy as it would be to point fingers at Ahab for his ego rendering him unable to see God's hand at work, let's realize just how easy it is for us to do the very same thing. 

God's victories still happen all around us. But do we see them? 

Do we give God the credit He deserves?

Are we truly grateful for how He works in our lives?

Do we truly recognize Him as the source of any win that comes our way?

Because if we miss His power and His presence in the victory, we miss the very purpose of them. The wins God allows us to be a part of are not meant merely for our own progress or by our own doing. [Remember Jesus' words: "Apart from Me, you can do nothing" (John 15:5).]

The wins God gives are for us (and those around us!) to see Him and to know Him. Knowing Him is the ultimate victory—the one that each of our wins (big or small!) should point to.

Otherwise, a win God gives us where we refuse to acknowledge Him reduces what He meant for victory into simply our own vanity. 

I'm cringing as I type because, wow, I'm not even sure there's accurate words to communicate just how great of a downgrade it is to move from God's victory to our vanity. 

A few questions to consider?

What evidence of God's greatness are you seeing in your life?

How is He moving in your home?

Your church?

Your work?

Your heart?

Let's see the victories He's creating around us—and rather than simply seeing a win, let's know that He is the Lord.

God, every good and perfect gift is from You. Help me to define victory as You do. Open my eyes to see Your hand at work. Don't allow me to credit myself for what You're doing or simply miss acknowledging You. It's not about me, Lord. It's about You. Take all of the glory—it's Yours. Knowing You means I already have more victory that I could ever deserve. Don't give me wins if I won't use them to know You more and help others know You more through them. I love You. Amen.