Dean Allen's Daily Devotional

-May 6, 2023-

Good morning, happy Saturday,

“For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as the heart of his father David.”

(1 Kings 11:4).

After such a great start, in his old age, Solomon’s turned his heart after other gods. His life was shipwrecked by sin, idolatry, and disobedience. God had warned him and his father David warned him what would happen if he and the nation turned from the Lord and followed idols. Sure enough it happened. Solomon became double-minded and ceased tried following the true God and worshipping idols. It never worked then and it never works now. We have different kinds of idols today, but just as deadly.

Solomon’s downfall is described in 1 Kings chapter 11. It didn’t just happen to him suddenly, but over time. It really started when he married the daughter of the king of Egypt. God forbade the Israelites from marrying foreign women. Solomon not only married her but he also married many other foreign women from among the heathen nations. He clung to them in love. It says in 1 Kings 11:3, “And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart.”

The end of Solomon’s life was terrible and because of sin and disobedience, God brought adversaries against him from the Edomites and Syrians. There was was no longer rest and peace in Israel. Solomon’s spiritual life affected him, his family, and the whole nation.

None of us as believers are exempt from temptation and sin. We must be on guard 24-7 and stay close to the Lord, obey Him fully, and keep short accounts with the Lord by repenting and confessing our sins. Jesus told Peter and the other disciples, “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41). Paul wrote of this same thing in 1 Corinthians 10:12-13, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”

It all started with a little compromise and can lead to outright and outward sin. For Solomon it was his wives that took away his heart. This is why Christians should never marry an unsaved person. But there are also other things, even good or harmless things that can take away our hearts from following the Lord. It may be making money, sports, entertainment, TV or movies, or any number of things that affect our walk with Lord and going to church, reading our Bibles or praying. Sin can also close our mouths from witnessing to the unsaved.

May the Lord help us to stay close to Him and be on guard. The devil is out to trip us up and bring us down. He is a master at it. Have a blessed day seeking and honoring the Lord. We don’t want to fall and God doesn’t want us to fall. Stay safe and healthy.

Looking to Jesus and heeding the warning signs,

Dean

-May 5, 2023-

Good morning, happy Friday,

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” (Proverbs 14:12).

“Then Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 8:12; John 14:6).

Man is born in sin and conceived in iniquity. We are all dead in our sins, separated from a holy God, with no hope in this world. Adam and Eve chose their own way, Eve listened to the devil in the form of a serpent. Genesis 3:6 says, “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.”

The sin nature was passed onto us, and we continued sinning and doing the wrong thing, and going the wrong way ever since. So many are still following their own way. Jesus is the way, the only way to God. God has given each person a free will to choose Him or continue in their own way on the wrong path. Living in death and darkness is no way to live. It leads to death and destruction.

When we choose to reject Christ we are choosing our own way over God’s way. The devil is a liar, a thief, a conman. His mission is two-fold: convince people they are right and good, and they don’t need Jesus, and they can make on their own to heaven by good works, moral living, philanthropy, honesty, and other man-made way. Solomon tells us, “There is a way that seems right to a man…” Man’s way seems legit, rational, reasonable, and right to him. He could never be more wrong. In fact, “but its end is the way of death.” Hell is full of people who made the wrong choice and have regretted it and will regret it for all eternity.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). He is not just a way, He is the way, the only way. Man is on the broad road that leads to destruction; God’s way is the way of life eternal and abundant; man’s way is right to him; God’s way is right in His eyes and is good and glorious; man’s way is sinful and leads to eternal death and judgment; God’s way is in truth and righteousness. All we must do is come to Christ, confess we are sinners, believe that He died for us, in our place on the cross, and receive Him as our personal Savior.

Have you chosen Christ? Why not accept Him today? He is the light of the world, the lighthouse in dark and foggy world of sin. Have a blessed day choosing the right way. Stay safe and healthy.

Following the right way, following Jesus,

Dean

-May 4, 2023-

“If you love Me, keep My commandments.”

(John 14:15).

As believers we love the Lord for who He is and what He has done for us. He is our Savior, our Lord, and our Friend. We can never love Him as much as He loves us. In our text, we notice that the way to show our love for the Lord Jesus is to obey His commandments.

The word commandments is usually associated with the Law, but Jesus spoke of commandments under grace. Under the law people were commanded to obey, but had no power to do so. Now we as believers obey the Lord out of love. Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” It can be translated, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”

When love for Christ is our motive, it is easy to obey Him. Peter wrote, “Whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory” (1 Peter 1:8). Paul said, “For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). Love and obedience are inseparable.

Let us then show our love to Christ by obeying Him, and obey Him because we love Him. We are His bride and He is our heavenly Bridegroom. Have as blessed day. Stay safe and healthy.

Loving the Lord Jesus by obeying Him,

Dean

-May 3, 2023-

Good morning, happy Wednesday,

“At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, ‘Ask! What shall I give you.’ ‘Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Your’s?’”

(1 Kings 3:5, 9).

Dreams are very common. It seems nearly everyone dreams when sleeping, but few remember them, and even if they do, the dream is not a reality. The difference with Solomon is that God spoke to him in a dream, and then He fulfilled it. God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?” What a question! What an opportunity! What would Solomon ask for? It was like God signed a blank check, made out to Solomon so that he could fill in the amount.

If it happened to you tonight, what would you ask for? Would it be riches, possessions, homes, cars, strength, power, or great health? Solomon asked for something greater than all of them put together: wisdom to govern the people of Israel. He was humble and made his request, “Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Your’s?” The word translated here as understanding literally means hearing. He asked for a hearing heart.

God was pleased with his desire and answered his request immediately. And not only gave wisdom, making him the wisest man ever, but also added riches and honor as a bonus. God knows our needs and gives us what we need not always what we ask for. Often, He gives us something even better. We ask for the good, God gives us the best. When we pray we should always ask in faith and if it His will.

In Ephesians 3:20, Paul wrote, “Now to Him who able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us.” God is able and more able, willingly and more than willing to answer our prayers. There is beautiful song entitled, “He is Able,” that says, “He is able, more than able, to accomplish what concerns me today. He able, more than able, to handle anything that comes my way. He is able, more than able, to do much more than I could ever dream. He is able, more than able, to make me what He wants me to be.”

May God give us wisdom to meet the challenges and difficulties of life. Let us pray and ask much from the Lord who can give us over and above what we ask for or need. All glory to the Lord. Have a blessed day. Stay safe and healthy.

Asking great things for great needs to a great God,

Dean 🙏🙏🙏

-May 2, 2023-

Good morning, happy Tuesday,

“Now the days of David drew near that he should die, and he charged Solomon his son, saying: ‘I go the way of all the earth; be strong, therefore, and prove yourself a man. And keep the charge of the Lord God: to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that do and wherever you turn.”

(1 Kings 2:1-3).

Not only did David give his last words to his people Israel, but he gave instructions to his beloved son Solomon. David taught Solomon all through his life, but with death just ahead, he gave him great advice to follow that all of us can benefit from. A father is a leader, guide, teacher, and encourager. It is a huge responsibility.

David wanted to leave Solomon with words that would set him and keep on the the right path to success and prosperity in his life and in his rule. The word charged can be translated commanded. It goes beyond a suggestion or an advisement, it was a strong, mandatory directive from the Lord. He tells him first to, “be strong and prove yourself a man.” He made no mention of being a warrior as he was, but to be a godly man, a family man. This mattered most. How we live in our homes with our spouses and children is where our true legacy is established and left.

If Solomon followed his dad’s instructions, the promise was, “that you may prosper in all that you do, and wherever you turn.” Blessing always follows obedience to the Lord. Solomon found this out. In his younger days he obeyed and honored the Lord. God gave him peace, rest, wisdom, and prosperity in abundance. But later in life, his wives took away his heart from following the Lord and he worshipped idols and dishonored the Lord. He came to be called a king with a divided heart which led to a divided kingdom under his son Rehoboam.

God told Eli the priest in his day, “…I said, indeed your house and the house of your father would walk before Me forever. But now the Lord says: Far be it from Me; for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed” (1 Samuel 2:30). Unless we honor God and put Him first in our lives, we will fall flat.

The three words from David to Solomon were clear: walk, keep, and prosper; to walk in the ways of the Lord, that is, to do His will; to keep the law, which is obedience to God’s Word; and to prosper in all that we do and wherever we turn. It is a simple recipe to follow with these three important ingredients. The question for us is: are we following our own recipe or God’s? Walk, keep, prosper. Solomon advised his sons and us in Proverbs 2:20, “So that you may walk in the way of goodness, and keep to the path of righteousness.”

Have a blessed day following the Lord and honoring Him in all we do and say. Stay safe and healthy.

Walking, keeping, and prospering in the Lord,

Dean