Day 109 (1 Samuel 28-31, Psalm 18)

[@Nicole.T.]

Godshot in Psalm 18: the word "my" is repeated over and over in the first paragraph. My strength, my rock, my fortress, my savior, my God, my shield, my salvation. It shows how personal God is with us, that we can call Him our own.

[@diorocksmetalon5993]

Amen and alleluia!

[@CotishaMcNair]

Amen

[@michellevaught1445]

Amen! ❤

[@KC-jj3xh]

When TLC references the parable of the workers getting paid the same even those hired at the end of day. It made me think of how some of us will come to know God at the very end of our lives but will still share the same promise in the love and glory of the Lord. How good is our God that he will continue to pursue the “one” to the end. Gives me hope for those I love(those I have yet to meet) that are not in relationship with the Father, that there is such generosity waiting for them when they do.

[@nikkigamble1256]

Great insight

[@diorocksmetalon5993]

Amen! Beautiful comforting words, especially for those of us who pray for the no saved loved ones in our lives. Thank you!

[@DonZimmerman52]

“I love You, LORD” (Ps 18:1). This is the first time I can find in the Bible when the writer or speaker says “I love You, LORD.” We’ve had Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Naomi, Hannah, and Samuel praise God, extolling His holiness, strength, and justice. But where so far have we seen someone confess something so personal, intimate, and life changing? When I said “I love you” to my wife, my life was forever transformed. And God transformed David’s journey with Him; in Ps 18:33, God has made David’s feet as surefooted as a deer. My favorite sermon that my father preached was called “Made for the Mountains,” because out of our love for the LORD, He has transformed us to trust in Him as we conquer challenges in His strength.

[@dyanwehner3258]

I always look forward to your insights, thank you for sharing your wisdom!

[@jaydenkips5132]

I love your passion and grasp of the word of God. You inspire and challenge me in equal measure. God bless you, God keep you Tara.

[@brucestrange3289]

I love Tara-Leigh’s God Shot. All good things in my life are from God and I give Him all the glory and praise, for even when bad happens in my life God turns that around for good.

[@joannapilgrim]

You know, it just occurred to me that David would NOT have had to contend with the Amalekites had his forefathers obeyed God. What battles did I have to fight or will I have to fight because of my foreparents' disobedience? What disobedience of mine will my son have to deal with? Thank God for His mercy to a thousand generations of those who love Him. Oh Lord, I want to be in that number!

[@elizabethsummermeado]

This is my first time reading through the whole Bible, although been a Christian for decades. I'm so thankful for the exponential wisdom I'm receiving EVERY DAY! The Bible is the most exciting book I've ever read in my life. I'm so excited to keep going. And I'm not ashamed to admit until today I thought there was only one Saul in the Bible. I can't wait to see what other Revelations God reveals to me over the next several months!!

[@jeankaniewski3091]

I love how Tara points out that if you are already not listening to God and sinning don’t expect for a different answer. So many times we want our “own way” and keep praying that way. Instead of pray Gods will be done and search me oh Lord. His ways are always right and we need to be seeking Him alone 🙌 Just like David seeking God to retrieve his wives, families, and all that was stolen. I truely believe that if God would have said NO, that even tho it would have been horrible David would have perhaps obeyed. He always sought God first. I want to be like that. Lord help me keep my eyes on YOU ALONE.

[@diorocksmetalon5993]

Amen!

[@Spudd02]

Amen

[@valeriewhite2576]

Hello and Good morning bible readers ❤❤❤ enjoying learning about Faithfulness of God and His Goodness and that He answers prayers in His timing 💕

[@crucifiedfaith]

Praise the living GOD

[@valeriewhite2576]

Good morning bible Family still enjoying the journey ❤️🙌🏽💯 Enjoy a blessed day in His Presence ❤️ He is where the Joy is ❤️💯

[@monamorgan8614]

Good morning Tara. Thank you for walking us through the Bible❤

[@Bigtill1999]

“I love You, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my mountain where I seek refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭18‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭HCSB‬‬ He is our salvation, our strength, our deliver, our horn in battle whose war cry shakes and shutters our enemies. Glory to the Most High and let our enemies be scattered. He is our King and we are victorious in Him. Hallelujah.

[@rambitrans4734]

Psalm 18:20 is the verse that I've read when I was 26 years old. It was the first time that I felt loved by Someone, and I gave my life to Jesus.

[@hbrown5068]

God is the source of all things good. He restores us, plus more. Just as He did with Job, He restored everything plus more to David. God is our Rock and Salvation as described in Psalm 18. I am seeing it in my life. I’ve been praying for my unbelieving alcoholic husband and marriage. My husband has been working towards sobriety. This morning is the first day he has had no drink. I’ve been praying for marriage reconciliation. I see steps towards restoration. Thanks for your prayers. Thank you Jesus. You are the source of everything, my Rock and salvation who restores relationships and more. 🙏🏽🙏🏽🙏🏽 “Nothing was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything that had been taken. David brought back all. David ALSO captured all the flocks and herds, and the people drove the livestock before him, and said, “This is David’s spoil.”” ‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭30‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭ESV‬‬

[@diorocksmetalon5993]

May God continue to bless you, your husband and your family!

[@linacarmelasardo8458]

2024; love psalm 18; God is Our Source; He protects us; strengthens us; never fails to give. Amen♥️

[@jeffandvikipendergrass]

Psalm 18- He is our strength; worthy of praise; He hears our voice from His temple; He is our support; He shows Himself faithful to the faithful and pure to the pure; He saves the humble; He turns our darkness into light; He lives, is our Rock and our Savior; He shows us unfailing love. May God be exalted! Praise be to our Lord!

[@mariatripp]

Amen 🙏❤️

[@steveandgailpeachey6833]

The Bible Recap is a very welcome part of my day…The Word is alive!

[@brendabuenrostro8524]

I’m amazed at how Samuel could come from wherever he was and talk to Saul! And Saul could hear him and see him! 😮How could this have happened?

[@marykayk1626]

See above comments

[@michellemybelle9591]

🤯 I instantly thought WAIT! I have heard the before... the parable of the vineyard workers... I just did a study on this LAST NIGHT! God IS so AWESOME! Allowing me to get the revelation and connections! 🙌🎚

[@vasgarcia]

I find it so helpful when things we've read prior are pointed out in current readings. Things that maybe didn't stick out to me or I've forgotten them, are highlighted and I can cross reference them in my bible. For example, when Saul consults the medium, realizing that he's not only breaking the command of the Lord by doing that (Deut 18) but as the leader of the Israelites having even left her alive was also sinful (Lev 20:27). Anyway, just wanted to comment that the cross-references are very helpful for my brain. 💕

[@kamiliaball4731]

God our source - AMEN! Thank You Jesus!!! 🙌🏼

[@purposeseven_7]

*He's where the Joy is!*

[@bobbiebland6826]

Aloha and good morning BR family. Psalm 18:1-2 was 1 my favorite and my God Shot today. "I will love You, O Lord with all my strength". "The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliver. Trust, believe and keep his commandments because He is where the JOY is!!🥰💯

[@diorocksmetalon5993]

Amen Tara-Leigh Cobble!

[@karenevans6035]

1 Samuel 28-32, Psalm 18 Today we finished our 10th book of the Bible. Important to note in scripture- we see when God gives direction and someone doesn’t follow through with it then God will not give further direction until the first is obeyed. Saul doesn’t hear from God regarding a battle plan. Saul is still walking in unrepented sin. He makes a poor decision and consults a medium. Saul disguises himself and seeks answers from the enemy of God. He asks the medium to help him communicate with the dead., specifically Samuel. Important to note- it is a strict command that there be no form of communication with the dead. This is because the dead cannot return what returns is demonic spirits impersonating the dead. In this instance, God permitted Samuel to speak, delivering the news of judgment. We see that this is not a normal occurrence for this medium because she is shocked and scared when Samuel appears. She actually screams. It appears God has actually intervened here. Saul get the news that he and his sons will die tomorrow and the Philistines will defeat Israel. 1 Chronicles 10 tells us that Saul dies for this breach of faith and disobedience. Saul and his 3 sons die in battle the next day. The Philistines took the head of Saul and affixed it to the headless statue of Dagon in their temple. Meanwhile,David is not allowed to fight with Achish. Perhaps God saved David from having divided loyalties. This may have prevented him from being qualified to serve as king in the future. We see God‘s hand in this.  David and his men return to find that the town they were in was raided and burned and their wives and children were taken away. The men wanted to stone David. David turns to God for help and God answers him. God tells him to pursue the enemy and they will get everything back. After victory David demonstrates God‘s generosity. He shares the spoils of battle with the men that stay behind to guard the camp. Psalm 18-a testament of God through all of the trials. David declares that it is God who makes his way blameless. It is not himself. God is the source of all good things. God is the one who equips him, delivers him and protects him. David recognizes that this all comes from God. David strengthens himself in the Lord His God. God is the source of all the good things that we have to offer back to Him. God truly give us everything we need.

[@leviwright5522]

What an awesome GOD

[@diorocksmetalon5993]

Hey Bible Readers!

[@linacarmelasardo8458]

Hod is Our Source. Amen

[@linacarmelasardo8458]

God is where the Joy is. Amen

[@DanielRaysings]

GOD BLESS TLC

[@aprilbrumm]

Can't wait to see you in Anderson!!!

[@kristiwerling4574]

Anderson, IN?? 😁🤯

[@aprilbrumm]

@@kristiwerling4574 SC

[@kristiwerling4574]

Oh, okay! Enjoy! 😁

[@JoshuaOAdesiyan]

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭18:29‬ ‭KJV‬‬ [29] For by thee I have run through a troop; And by my God have I leaped over a wall. But seriously that song about David was truly a Grammy award winning song. It was a hit. 😅😅 #HeIsWhereTheJoyIs

[@lucysnowe31]

Another great recap! Thank you, TLC!

[@toyosibiyi]

I plainly saw Saul as a proud man since all these years I've read Saul's stories. Because one has to be proud to not live a repentant life in and with God. Meanwhile David in Psalms 18? I was blown away. I do have question though, it just dawned on me that David wrote that and some other Psalms. My question is: "How did David read God's reaction when he said the foundation of the hills quaked because God was angry?", "How did he know smoke went up from God's nostrils?", "Were they his imagination of who he knew God to be?"

[@CynthiaRaeC]

Grammy award winning song… 😂😂

[@amybigelowbigelow7832]

Took me a nanosecond to figure out what she meant and when I did… I literally chuckled!😊

[@antoinettehereford8180]

Israel finds themselves up against the Philistines again, and Saul is fearful. He inquires of the Lord, but He does not answer him. What Samuel had previously told him was true. The Lord was no longer with him. Instead of repenting and acknowledging his sin, Saul seeks out a medium for guidance. He goes to the woman in a disguise and requests that she bring Samuel back from the dead. When she does this, she screams. She is horrified. Saul asks Samuel for guidance. Samuel, who sounds annoyed in his response, tells him that he and his sons are going to die. Meanwhile, David and his men follow the Philistines to battle against Israel. David has been serving Achish, who trusts him completely. The other Philistine lords, however, do not and demand that he be sent away. When David and his men return to Ziklag, they find that their homes have been raided, their city burned, and the children and wives all taken. The men are so distraught that they want to stone David. Even with his men against him, David seeks comfort in the Lord. He asks for guidance from God. He has Abiathar, the priest, bring the ephod. After he seeks God, he is encouraged that he will defeat the Amalekites. He takes 600 of his men to the battle. But, 200 of the men are exhausted and stay behind. The Lord was with David and the other 400 men. The defeat the Amalekites, take the spoils, and get everyone that was taken from them, including their wives and children. When they return, the 400 do not believe that anything should be given to the 200 that stayed behind. But David tells them everyone gets a share of the spoils. Psalm 18 is a song of praise to the Lord for being with David and for his enemies being defeated. "The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold" (Psalm 18:2). "In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears" (Psalm 18:6). God sees us, and He hears us in our distress. I am so grateful for this truth. The correlation that Tara-Leigh makes between the 200 of David's men who stayed behind from fighting the Amalekites and the parable that Jesus tells of the employer who hires workers to work his field is something that never occurred to me! Praise God for His goodness. He gives freely to whom and when He chooses! We're all unworthy, but God is so gracious to His children! He is worthy of all the praise, and He is definitely where the joy is!

[@loriheckman6880]

Reading about the Witch of Endor, I think someone on the writing crew for the old TV show Bewitched must know his Bible. The powerful witch “Endora” is a main character.

[@TheSteveBOliver]

Saul then said to his attendants, “Find me a woman who is a medium, so I may go and inquire of her.” “There is one in Endor,” they said. Then the woman asked, “Whom shall I bring up for you?” “Bring up Samuel,” he said. Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” “I am in great distress,” Saul said. “The Philistines are fighting against me, and God has departed from me. He no longer answers me, either by prophets or by dreams. So I have called on you to tell me what to do.” Samuel said, “Why do you consult me, now that the Lord has departed from you and become your enemy? The Lord has done what he predicted through me. The Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hands and given it to one of your neighbors-to David. 1 Samuel 28:7‭, ‬11‭, ‬15‭-‬17

[@jeanettekvinlaug2772]

❤

[@joannapilgrim]

I think maybe God allowed David's rejection from the fight in order to turn his attention to Ziklag at the right time. God only knows what could've happened otherwise. Maybe the wives and children would've been further relocated and even harder to recover because of distance or even death.

[@KM-lu7nh]

I'm reading a Commentary along with TBR this year. As stated about a previous Psalm, it states that Ps. 18 is "all about the Lord Jesus Christ" and "describes graphically His death, resurrection, exaltation, Second Coming and glorious kingdom." Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

[@scottbrockman5883]

My God Shot was in 1 Samuel Chapter 29- 31. The way I see it almost plays out like a movie where David was the Hero and Saul was the vilian, and Jonathan was about the closest to David being his best friend, and at the end both Saul and his sons and Jonathan die in the battle, David saved Saul's life more than once and he didn't know it. David had an opportunity to kill Saul, but he didn't. The next scene is a pretty sad day at the funeral, and David and other people are attending and saying a few words, shedding some tears, dressed in black a suit and tie. But it goes to show what Pride can do. And it ended up costing Saul his life and his kingdom because he let his Pride get to him, and he disobeyed God when he was told to kill a group of people, including the cattle. It is true, Pride cometh before the fall 🙂💒🙏👍🤟.

[@kelly-bq8cz]

I am surprised at Jonathan's death after his faithfulnness to David. Any insites?

[@diariesofagrowingcaramelqu6665]

Not the Grammy Award winning 🎉😂 10 000 song

[@judyfluck1346]

God shot was when the commander sent David back

[@MariaRamirez-zc6rx]

So Saul still got to go to Heaven even though he wasn’t a good king?🤔

[@fratboytrey8675]

💪

[@9lemonlime]

It wasn't Samuel who came up, because the dead know nothing. It was a demon masquerading as Samuel.

[@marykayk1626]

Exactly.