Keeping to the Post

“And neither will I walk off and leave you. That would be a sin against God! I’m staying right here at my post praying for you and teaching you the good and right way to live.” (1 Samuel 12:23, The Message)

For many years Samuel served as both priest and judge for the nation of Israel. But as he grew older, the people grew restless. Samuel’s sons did not walk in the way of the Lord but turned aside to pursue unjust gain. The people asked Samuel for a king so that they could be like the other nations. This grieved Samuel’s heart. But the Lord spoke to Samuel, saying, “Do what they say, for they haven’t rejected you; they’ve rejected me.”

Samuel anointed Saul as their king. But he also helped them see the evil they committed. It was at this time that he made them the promise in the passage above. Even though they rejected him, he would not fail them, for that would be sinning against God. Samuel committed himself to keep to his post, praying for the people and teaching them the good and right way to live.

When people reject us there is always the temptation to cut them off. “You made your bed now sleep in it.” But that is never the heart of Jesus who remains faithful even when we are faithless. God has called each of us to the post of intercessory prayer. While we confess we have often failed at our post, we also determine that by God’s grace we will persist in it. We must not allow our hurt feelings to cause us to go AWOL! That would be sinning against God.

As we continue in our forty days of prayer, may the Lord help us to see how we are all called to be watchmen on the walls. I like Steve Hawthorne’s prayer today from Seek God for the City. “Give us strength and steady vision to stick to our post as a watching people.”

P.S. I won’t be publishing the Daily Meditation for the next two days, as I am attending a prayer summit with about forty other pastors from the Treasure Valley. Please pray for us as we seek the Lord’s heart and intercede for our communities.