You see, at this point in my reading, King David has forgotten that his strength is in the Lord, not in numbers, and he has sinned against God by ordering a census of Israel.Īs punishment, the Lord sends a plague, and when David begs mercy for the people, the Lord instructs him to build an altar on Mount Moriah at the threshing floor of a man named Araunah. All life’s noise knows it must stand in line behind God’s Word.Īnd there, fresh from the pages of antiquity, God met my sleepy spirit, speaking a new measure of perspective into my modern-day understanding. Tugging the ribbon that marks my spot in the ancient storyline I’ve been lost in for days, I pull my Bible near. Please order this day for Yourself, I pray. Upstaged, my psyche joins in, whispering notions of inadequacy into my barely begun day.ĭear God, is it supposed to be this hard? Do others feel this tension between place and purpose, too? I’m so tired, yet I know You’ve given me these callings, and Lord, more than anything, I want to be found faithful by You. Meanwhile, my closed computer taunts a deadline looms, and my brain is playing hide-and-seek with words. Grabbing my glass of decaf water, I shuffle toward the humble desk nestled in my kitchen.
All too many mornings lately seem to inherit yesterday’s tired spirit.īegging the energy to put on my big girl slippers, I make the bed, brush my teeth and wake my son as I head downstairs (while chastising my taste buds for not liking coffee).
“But the king replied to Araunah, ‘No, I insist on buying it, for I will not present burnt offerings to the L ORD my God that have cost me nothing.’ So David paid him fifty pieces of silver for the threshing floor and the oxen.” 2 Samuel 24:24 (NLT)Īs the sun whispers its rise in the window behind me, I lay in bed praying for strength to start another day.