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Daily Devotions

Conforming to the World

By May 22, 2017No Comments

But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the LORD. And the LORD said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. 1 Samuel 8:6-7 KJV

The people of Israel requested a king to rule them just as the nations all around them had. It was God’s intention that He alone should be the King of Israel. His people were to be set apart unto Him and unlike any other nation, but they didn’t want to be different; they wanted to conform to the world around them. As the Prophet and Judge of Israel, Samuel was understandably upset, but they were not rejecting his ministry; they were rejecting God’s rule in their nation and lives. After warning them of the consequences, because of their persistence, God gave them what they wanted. This was God’s permissive will but not His perfect will for them. Although in our persistence we often get what we want, it may not be the best thing for us. Instead, we should always strive for what God wants. That way we will enjoy the perfect will of God rather than the consequences of our will.

Lord, like Israel the temptation to conform to the rest of the world seems to always be with me, but instead of being conformed to this world I want to be conformed to your will. When choices are being made in my life help me put your will above mine.