How Can The Ark Of The Lord Ever Come To Me?
BRD REFLECTIONS:
2 Samuel 5-6 and Psalm 68: 19-27 (NIV)
(Belinda Foo, PTM of Small Group Ministry)
READ:
I am led to focus on David’s reaction to Uzzah’s sudden death from the Holiness of God in 2 Sam 6: 6-15.
OBSERVE:
Uzzah’s act of irreverence at the threshing floor of Nacon (v7) resulted in God’s capital punishment against Uzzah. David must have experienced sheer terror and anxiety from learning of this, leading him to second-guess God’s relationship with himself (v9). This is seen by David leaving the ark behind at Obed-Edom the Gittite’s house (v10). As the ark is the material embodiment of God’s presence, David’s riddance of the ark signified his shaken belief in his relationship with God. Yet God used David’s loss to bring him back to Himself (v12).
APPLY:
How do I deal with a sudden loss? If David leaves God behind because of the resulting fear and anger, wouldn’t I do the same?
Is burning anger a part of God’s holiness? Am I being disciplined through a sudden loss – be it a demise, relationship, financially, or health wise? Have I forgotten that God is Holy and to be feared? Who is … God?
DO:
As a God who is Holy and to be feared, how do I understand that He is a God who still loves me in my bewilderment and anxiety, and so, console and grant me joy? (Ps 94:19)
This then is what I need to do: accept the inevitable through humble repentance, and like David who journeyed a second time to his haunted past, I return to my loss by accepting God’s righteous anger after some time of reflection by abiding in a God who teaches me to learn from Jesus who is gentle and humble in heart, and promises to lighten my yoke and burden (Matt 11:28-30). My return to the present includes reaching back to family or friends in a trusted community, addressing the loss in a new normal.
In my consolation and joy, I am reminded of Ps 30:5 ‘For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favour lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.
PRAY:
Holy God, when I face a loss that shakes me to my core, may I turn towards Your Light in repentance and thanksgiving. Thank you for loving me and reminding me of Your omniscience. Console me so I may become joyful in time to come, and teach me to wait on You . Surround me with Your faithful servants O Lord, that I will know your deep love for me. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.
