I've been reading through 1 King lately. In the beginning of King Solomon's reign, the Lord was pleased with him and He even allowed Solomon to build the Lord's temple. The Lord then promise to establish his kingdom with one condition:
1 King 9:4 "As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws, 5 I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father when I said, 'You shall never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.'
However, as we learned from the next chapters Solomon didn't keep the Lord's command:
1 Kings 11
1 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women ... Solomon held fast to them in love. 3 He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray. 4 As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been.
The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. 10 Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD's command. 11 So the LORD said to Solomon, "Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates
Reading this has served as a big reminder for me to guard my heart against things that may turn me away from the Lord. I can name a few: other people's approval, TV, internet, business, and many others. There's one that God specifically want me to address and I'm gonna share about this conviction on the next post. In the mean time would you please pray and take time to ask the Lord if there's anything that stand between your relationship with Him.
"Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life."
Proverbs 4:23
Proverbs 4:23
