Scripture: (1 Chr 17:16-27 NKJV) Then King David went in and sat before the LORD; and he said: "Who am I, O LORD God? And what is my house, that You have brought me this far? {17} "And yet this was a small thing in Your sight, O God; and You have also spoken of Your servant's house for a great while to come, and have regarded me according to the rank of a man of high degree, O LORD God. {18} "What more can David say to You for the honor of Your servant? For You know Your servant. {19} "O LORD, for Your servant's sake, and according to Your own heart, You have done all this greatness, in making known all these great things. {20} "O LORD, there is none like You, nor is there any God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears. {21} "And who is like Your people Israel, the one nation on the earth whom God went to redeem for Himself as a people; to make for Yourself a name by great and awesome deeds, by driving out nations from before Your people whom You redeemed from Egypt? {22} "For You have made Your people Israel Your very own people forever; and You, LORD, have become their God. {23} "And now, O LORD, the word which You have spoken concerning Your servant and concerning his house, let it be established forever, and do as You have said. {24} "So let it be established, that Your name may be magnified forever, saying, 'The LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, is Israel's God.' And let the house of Your servant David be established before You. {25} "For You, O my God, have revealed to Your servant that You will build him a house. Therefore Your servant has found it in his heart to pray before You. {26} "And now, LORD, You are God, and have promised this goodness to Your servant. {27} "Now You have been pleased to bless the house of Your servant, that it may continue before You forever; for You have blessed it, O LORD, and it shall be blessed forever."
Observation: David wanted to build God’s temple and told so to Nathan the prophet who encouraged him to do so. That night God told Nathan to tell David not to build Him the temple he intended to. David’s response is our Scripture for today, in the form of a prayer of praise.
Application: I think David’s response was exemplary. He could have become angry or bitter that God wouldn’t want him to build the temple for His honor and glory. He could have argued with God that he had won so many battles for God and for Israel so he should be allowed to build this great monument to God. He could have become bitter and resentful, he could have rebelled, he could have become a stumbling block to the building of the temple, he could have acted like a bad looser or a politician after being voted out of office, or he could have reacted in many other negative ways.
What I love about this story, and why God said of David he was a man after His own heart (1 Sam. 13:14), is David’s positive, indeed joyful, reaction, which is our text for today. The way I feel is that if we truly believe in God’s will for our lives, and that His will is always best, then if we don’t get what we thought we might, what is offered to us, or even what we hoped we would, instead of becoming bitter or resentful we should praise God and thank Him. Don’t be sour grapes because the job you wanted was given to somebody else, because someone made a higher bid on a house you had made an offer to buy, because somebody else is now dating the person you were hoping to date, or because the person you were dating left you to marry somebody else. Praise God it worked out that way! That means that what God has in store for you is better than what you wanted or though you might get. It may not appear to be so at first, but it is God’s best for you, without a doubt.
A Prayer You May Say: Father, today we echo David’s words of praise for Your will in our lives.
Used by permission of Adventist Family Ministries, North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists.
