Sincerely His...

Insincerity. Some people seem to have built-in radar that can detect it, and others are easily duped by those who say one thing, but mean another.

I've been gullible on one or two occasions, thinking that someone who expressed their affinity, affection or good will to my face, meant what they'd spoken. Later, having discovered that their words behind my back were not so kind, I realized that they were actually insincere individuals.

Today's chapters are 1 Samuel 25 through 27. In these scriptures, Samuel has died and there is a great spiritual void in the land as a result of his passing. David is on the run from Saul who still plans to kill him, and we learn that David is as bewildered as a man can be.

It is during this time of great despair that David again has an opportunity to kill Saul, but just as before, he resists the temptation to end Saul's life. He does, however, seize Saul's spear and water jug.

Verses 17 through 21 of chapter 26 record what happened next:

Saul recognized David’s voice and called out, “Is that you, my son David?”
And David replied, “Yes, my lord the king. 18 Why are you chasing me? What have I done? What is my crime? 19 But now let my lord the king listen to his servant. If the Lord has stirred you up against me, then let him accept my offering. But if this is simply a human scheme, then may those involved be cursed by the Lord. For they have driven me from my home, so I can no longer live among the Lord’s people, and they have said, ‘Go, worship pagan gods.’ 20 Must I die on foreign soil, far from the presence of the Lord? Why has the king of Israel come out to search for a single flea? Why does he hunt me down like a partridge on the mountains?”

21 Then Saul confessed, “I have sinned. Come back home, my son, and I will no longer try to harm you, for you valued my life today. I have been a fool and very, very wrong.”

Sometimes, like Saul, we know what we SHOULD say--we are aware of the proper "spiritual response", but in truth, we are not completely sincere because we don't truly mean what we've spoken. So what are we to do when we KNOW that our own hearts are insincere? And how do we respond to the insincerity of others toward us?

Just as in every other spiritual matter of the heart, we need to go to God. He can and will change our hearts when we humbly acknowledge that we need his help. When we know that our heart doesn't match what's in our head, we need to pray to the One who performs supernatural heart transplants. By submitting to his spiritual scalpel and surrendering our will to his skill, we receive life-giving heart to head realignment.

When we are "wronged" as a result of being treated insincerely, we also must take it to God and ask that he prevent our hearts from becoming bitter, poisoned, suspicious, or angry. He can heal our wounded, mistreated, broken hearts if we allow him the opportunity.

There is no wound too deep or scar too wretched that our master healer cannot erase it. My prayer for myself and for you is that we mean what we say, and that what we say demonstrates our commitment to treat others with the measure of grace we've been so lavishly given by our sincere Savior.

Sincerely yours and sincerely His,
Your Nana