Prophesy and Panic

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

PROPHESY AND PANIC

1 Samuel 14:8-15

8 Jonathan said, "Come, then; we will cross over toward the men and let them see us. 9 If they say to us, 'Wait there until we come to you,' we will stay where we are and not go up to them. 10 But if they say, 'Come up to us,' we will climb up, because that will be our sign that the LORD has given them into our hands." 11 So both of them showed themselves to the Philistine outpost. "Look!" said the Philistines. "The Hebrews are crawling out of the holes they were hiding in." 12 The men of the outpost shouted to Jonathan and his armor-bearer, "Come up to us and we'll teach you a lesson." So Jonathan said to his armor-bearer, "Climb up after me; the LORD has given them into the hand of Israel." 13 Jonathan climbed up, using his hands and feet, with his armor-bearer right behind him. The Philistines fell before Jonathan, and his armor-bearer followed and killed behind him. 14 In that first attack Jonathan and his armor-bearer killed some twenty men in an area of about half an acre.   15 Then panic struck the whole army — those in the camp and field, and those in the outposts and raiding parties — and the ground shook. It was a panic sent by God.  

NIV

Two nuggets of truth are within this portion of the narrative about Jonathan and his armor-bearer. First, we believe that Jonathan was empowered with the gift of prophecy, as he made those choices that the Philistines would make once they saw Jonathan and his armor-bearer. If the Philistines told them to come up to them, Jonathan knew the LORD had given them into their hands. It was, in some sense, a fleece, but it was more of a prophetic declaration given to him by the LORD. God knew what was going to happen, and that he would give the Philistines into the hands of Jonathan and his armor-bearer, and he knew the response of the Philistines once they saw Jonathan and his armor-bearer. This is why we should trust the leading of the Spirit within us, because He knows the outcome of our actions and words before we act or speak. It is when we act or speak out of our own accord is when we can get into trouble or troubled times. It is always best to consult with the Spirit, then, knowing his plan, we can move forward with confidence, and our actions or speech will be successfully received. The second nugget of truth is about the panic of the whole Philistine army. Of course, the LORD gave them into the hands of Jonathan and his armor-bearer, as with the first attack together they killed some twenty men in an area about half an acre. Interestingly, on a side note, the Hebrew word defines the area as half a yoke, with a yoke being the amount of ground a farmer with a pair of oxen can plow a field in a day. However, the truth we want to focus on is that the whole army was sent into a panic because the ground shook, and the panic was sent by God. Who may ascend the hill of God, only he who has clean hands and a pure heart. The wicked, in this case, the Philistines, cannot ascend the hill of God, but are in absolute panic at the presence of God as he shakes the ground beneath them. We see this present world in panic because of the power of God. However, their panic has driven them to deny the existence of God and readily accept false gods and the people who serve them. There are whole areas of our country that have even elected officials who serve a false god, who has no ears to hear, eyes to see, or a mouth to speak, and no power to control any part of the earth. This is a full panic mode because even if they say they refuse to accept God, they are afraid of his power and his authority over them. It is if they are saying, “let us ignore God and find a god that has no power over us, then we can make our own rules.” However, a day is coming when the world will be full of panic because of God. The day with Jesus appears in the sky, and calls the believers up to meet him, it will be the worst day of panic for the wicked, as not only will we rise up, but the ground will quake as the dead rise from the graves all over the world. We can warn them of their impending panic, but will they listen? They will panic, but we will be at peace. 

I Am with You

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

I AM WITH YOU

1 Samuel 14:1-7

14:1 One day Jonathan son of Saul said to the young man bearing his armor, "Come, let's go over to the Philistine outpost on the other side." But he did not tell his father. 2 Saul was staying on the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree in Migron. With him were about six hundred men, 3 among whom was Ahijah, who was wearing an ephod. He was a son of Ichabod's brother Ahitub son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the LORD's priest in Shiloh. No one was aware that Jonathan had left. 4 On each side of the pass that Jonathan intended to cross to reach the Philistine outpost was a cliff; one was called Bozez, and the other Seneh. 5 One cliff stood to the north toward Micmash, the other to the south toward Geba. 6 Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, "Come, let's go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised fellows. Perhaps the LORD will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few." 7 "Do all that you have in mind," his armor-bearer said. "Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul."

NIV

There is no doubt in Jonathan's heart about the mighty hand of God. We wonder why he is not included among the men of faith in Hebrews. Although his armor bearer who we are not given his name, also has a story we can glean some truth from. First, as we look at this statement of Jonathan’s full faith in the LORD, we have another great lesson to apply to our lives. Although Jonathan did say that perhaps the LORD will act on their behalf, he also made that statement of faith, “Nothing can hinder the LORD from saving, whether by many or by few”. There is nothing that can hinder the Lord from saving anyone from the hand of the enemy. However, there is one person who can hinder the lord, and that person is us. We have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us who is the power of God who acts on our behalf. But we can quench the Spirit, to keep him at bay, so to speak. Yet, at the same time, if nothing can hinder the Lord from saving us, then are weak efforts to quench the Spirit are nothing compared to the mighty power of God. However, God does not force himself upon us, as he has given us, what we call, free will. He desires that we choose him, to believe him as we believe in him, and to trust him as we understand Jonathan did. Nothing can hinder the Lord, period. Nothing can hinder him from accomplishing his will in heaven and on earth. We pray for the exact thing when we pray as Jesus gave us that example. We do wonder if we truly believe with all our hearts the power of God and, with our unbelief, no matter how small it might be, limit all his power in our lives. We also see the faith of the armor bearer when he said to Jonathan, “Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul”.  Although this is a statement of the man who carried Jonathan’s armor, God is our armor bearing, as he has given us his armor, and we should be able to hear the Lord tell us, “Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul”. The Lord is with us, and he tells us to “Go ahead”, to move forward, to do what we have in our mind to do, as he directs our footsteps. Certainly, we cannot act according to our will, but in compliance with his will. Jonathan put the choice of his action in the hands of the LORD when he told his armor-bearer their actions depended on what the Philistines said to them. He was trusting the outcome of his actions to the LORD. This is the clue to a life of faith, putting our actions in the hands of the Lord, letting him direct our footsteps, and following the light he shines on the way we should go. Let us not hinder the Lord from doing all that he desires to do for us, in us and through us, for the Lord tells us, “I am with you”. 

The Battle

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

THE BATTLE

1 Samuel 13:15-23

15 Then Samuel left Gilgal and went up to Gibeah in Benjamin, and Saul counted the men who were with him. They numbered about six hundred. 16 Saul and his son Jonathan and the men with them were staying in Gibeah in Benjamin, while the Philistines camped at Micmash. 17 Raiding parties went out from the Philistine camp in three detachments. One turned toward Ophrah in the vicinity of Shual, 18 another toward Beth Horon, and the third toward the borderland overlooking the Valley of Zeboim facing the desert. 19 Not a blacksmith could be found in the whole land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, "Otherwise the Hebrews will make swords or spears!" 20 So all Israel went down to the Philistines to have their plowshares, mattocks, axes and sickles sharpened. 21 The price was two thirds of a shekel for sharpening plowshares and mattocks, and a third of a shekel for sharpening forks and axes and for repointing goads. 22 So on the day of the battle not a soldier with Saul and Jonathan had a sword or spear in his hand; only Saul and his son Jonathan had them. 23 Now a detachment of Philistines had gone out to the pass at Micmash.

NIV

Did the Philistines kill or capture all the blacksmiths in all of Israel? It seems odd that there would not be one blacksmith in all of Israel. But if the Philistines did eliminate all the blacksmiths, why did they sharpen the plowshares, forks, and axes for the men of Israel? It is a strange situation, and we wonder why it is important that we are told that only Saul and Jonathan had swords. How was Israel to defend itself against an army which all the men with swords with sharpened farm tools? We know what will happen in the next chapters, but what we gain from this for now is that it does not matter how few weapons Israel had because they were God’s people, and if they bow to him, he will win the battle for them. Maybe that would be the lesson that we need to consider. Because we are the people of God due to accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior we should know the Lord will fight our battles for us. It is not that we must face an advancing army invading our country, but we do have an enemy of our souls. He is always on the attack, attempting to defeat us and destroy our faith. When we consider that frontal attack on Job he never gave up his faith in God. However, it was God who allowed Satan to attack just to prove the faith of Job would not waver. When we face various attacks we cannot waver in our faith. It might be possible some of the schemes of the devil are not frontal attacks on our physical person, but he could cause just the opposite by giving us good things making us think we have everything we could ever want and thus not look to the provisions of the Lord. It is possible that if we become confident in our skills, talents, educational level, and subsequent ability to generate wealth, we may lose sight of needing or looking to God for all we are and all we need. Israel had nothing to be confident in as they had an army without swords to defend themselves, but they had the LORD, and he was enough. No scheme can overpower us, for we are dressed in the armor of God, and we have a sword. We can take our stand because we have the Lord who fights for us. We will see one man, Jonathon with one sword do damage to the Philistines because the LORD was with him. Let us never lose sight of our need of the Lord in our lives, so we are always prepared for the battle. 

Foolish or Follow

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

FOOLISH OR FOLLOW

1 Samuel 13:1-14

13:1 Saul was [thirty] years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel [forty-] two years. 2 Saul chose three thousand men from Israel; two thousand were with him at Micmash and in the hill country of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gibeah in Benjamin. The rest of the men he sent back to their homes. 3 Jonathan attacked the Philistine outpost at Geba, and the Philistines heard about it. Then Saul had the trumpet blown throughout the land and said, "Let the Hebrews hear!" 4 So all Israel heard the news: "Saul has attacked the Philistine outpost, and now Israel has become a stench to the Philistines." And the people were summoned to join Saul at Gilgal. 5 The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with three thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Micmash, east of Beth Aven. 6 When the men of Israel saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard pressed, they hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in pits and cisterns. 7 Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking with fear. 8 He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul's men began to scatter. 9 So he said, "Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings." And Saul offered up the burnt offering. 10 Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him. 11 "What have you done?" asked Samuel. Saul replied, "When I saw that the men were scattering, and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Micmash, 12 I thought, 'Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the LORD's favor.' So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering." 13 "You acted foolishly," Samuel said. "You have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. 14 But now your kingdom will not endure; the LORD has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him leader of his people, because you have not kept the LORD's command."

NIV

First, it is interesting the insert of (thirty) and (forty) as the Hebrew does not have the words for those two numbers in this verse. However, our story is about Saul who Samuel told him that he acted foolishly. In those days, there were three distinct positions, prophet, priest, and king, each with their appointed roles in Israel. Saul took on all three roles in that one act of offering a sacrifice to seek the LORD’s favor. Saul was chosen by God, through the prophet Samuel to be the king, but he was not neither a priest or a prophet and thus he acted outside the command of the LORD, and instead of gaining the LORD’s favor, he lost the favor of God and his reign over Israel would not last, as the LORD sought out a man after his own heart. We know this to be David. Luke records this event for us in the Acts of the Apostles, where the Lord testified about David, “I have found David, son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, he will do everything I want him to”. Two lessons for us stand out in these verses of Samuel. First, we should not attempt to do that which we are not called to do. We cannot afford to act foolishly as Saul was charged with by Samuel. We need to be about doing that which we have been called and empowered to do. If we apply this to those in the ministry, we know that God gave the church four, maybe five gifts, as he gave some to be Apostles, some to be prophets, some to be Evangelists, and some to be Pastors and teachers. In Greek, the word Kai is used between Pastors and teachers, which is used to connect two words. Thus, we believe the Pastor and teacher are one gift. The point being is that if one is called to be an evangelist, that person should not try to be an Apostle, prophet, or pastor all wrapped up as one. This would apply to each of the gifts to the church, and with the other gifts given to all within the church, each should be faithful to that which they have been gifted and empowered. It would be foolish to think we can be used in all the gifts at the same time, as Saul thought he was compelled to do. Secondly, this testimony about David being a man after God’s one heart has the merit of pondering or considering why God would say that David would do all that he wants him to do. David was not a perfect man by any means, as we know the story of Bathsheba. This would mean that God did not expect David to be perfect to be a man after his own heart, but that David would do whatever God instructed him to do, or whatever God wanted David to do. This could apply to any of us if we are faithful in doing what God has called us to do. However, here is where the rub comes in, as we need to be aware of what God wants us to do. Of course, as a believer, we would think that would include all the commands of the Lord. Every verse in the New Testament could be considered how the Lord expects us to live; however, Jesus made it clear that loving God with our whole being and loving others as we love ourselves, wraps up all the law and the prophets. Therefore, if we keep those two, everything else will follow, yet even if we cannot comply perfectly, it does not mean we are not a person after God’s own heart. Still, we should want to do whatever the Lord wants us to do. The desire of our hearts should be to do whatever the Lord desires us to do. Because Jesus said that if anyone would come after him, we must deny ourselves and take up our cross and follow him. That is where we put the old self on the cross to die, or even after the old self is dead, we still must be able to deny ourselves if we want to follow Jesus. This is one of the more difficult things to do because we have desires and wants in this life that we chase after for ourselves. How do we deny that part of us? How do we seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and still want things we want? That is the question. 

Trust and Obey

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

TRUST AND OBEY

1 Samuel 12:6-25

6 Then Samuel said to the people, "It is the LORD who appointed Moses and Aaron and brought your forefathers up out of Egypt. 7 Now then, stand here, because I am going to confront you with evidence before the LORD as to all the righteous acts performed by the LORD for you and your fathers. 8 "After Jacob entered Egypt, they cried to the LORD for help, and the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your forefathers out of Egypt and settled them in this place. 9 "But they forgot the LORD their God; so he sold them into the hand of Sisera, the commander of the army of Hazor, and into the hands of the Philistines and the king of Moab, who fought against them. 10 They cried out to the LORD and said, 'We have sinned; we have forsaken the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.' 11 Then the LORD sent Jerub-Baal, Barak, Jephthah and Samuel, and he delivered you from the hands of your enemies on every side, so that you lived securely. 12 "But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, 'No, we want a king to rule over us'-even though the LORD your God was your king. 13 Now here is the king you have chosen, the one you asked for; see, the LORD has set a king over you. 14 If you fear the LORD and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the LORD your God — good! 15 But if you do not obey the LORD, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your fathers. 16 "Now then, stand still and see this great thing the LORD is about to do before your eyes! 17 Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call upon the LORD to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil thing you did in the eyes of the LORD when you asked for a king." 18 Then Samuel called upon the LORD, and that same day the LORD sent thunder and rain. So all the people stood in awe of the LORD and of Samuel. 19 The people all said to Samuel, "Pray to the LORD your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king." 20 "Do not be afraid," Samuel replied. "You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. 21 Do not turn away after useless idols. They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. 22 For the sake of his great name the LORD will not reject his people, because the LORD was pleased to make you his own. 23 As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you. And I will teach you the way that is good and right. 24 But be sure to fear the LORD and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you. 25 Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will be swept away."

NIV

This is a lot to take into consideration, but we just cannot break this warning of Samuel to the people who wanted a king so they could be like all the other nations. Samuel told them the history of how the LORD kept saving them whenever they found themselves in trouble and cried out to the LORD for help. Over and over again, their forefathers kept forsaking the LORD, and then trouble would come upon them; they would turn to the LORD, and He would deliver them. They were not always faithful to the LORD, but he is always faithful. Of course, the fact that the Lord is always faithful is a good lesson to keep in our hearts, yet Samuel also warns them about looking to useless idols, but instead to serve the Lord with all their heart. This is another great lesson we should keep deep within our souls. We have pondered on this command of Jesus about loving the Lord with all our mind, soul, spirit, and strength. We have considered whether we could somehow or sometimes have a divided heart. We confess that we love the Lord with our whole heart, yet do we glance, even stare at the things or the philosophies of this world. Do we truly trust the Lord to provide all our needs, and at the same time, look for financial security from the world’s system? The word of God has given us too many examples, parables, or stories to demonstrate what happened to men who served money more than the Lord. Israel, wanted to be like everyone else by having a king even though Samuel warned them about how much the king would take from them, while the Lord was always giving to them. When Samuel told them he would ask the LORD for a storm and it happened, they were in awe of the LORD and Samuel. How can we not be in awe of our God, for he has done so much for us throughout the years? We have received one blessing after another, yet we are not worthy of the faithfulness he has demonstrated to us. When we read about how the children of Israel turned to other gods over and over again, yet the Lord delivered them so they could live securely. He is the only security we will ever need. However, do we look to him for eternal security, but look to the world for our temporary security? When we look at the warning of Samuel about serving the Lord faithfully with our whole heart, but if we persist in doing evil, which means trusting in the world’s way, or looking to useless idols, we may well be swept away. No, there is no other way. When we walk with the Lord, in the light of his word, what a glory he sheds on our way; while we do his good will, he abides with us still, and with all who will trust and obey. Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey. 

Serve the Lord

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

SERVE THE LORD

1 Samuel 12:1-5

12:1 Samuel said to all Israel, "I have listened to everything you said to me and have set a king over you. 2 Now you have a king as your leader. As for me, I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader from my youth until this day. 3 Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the LORD and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these, I will make it right." 4 "You have not cheated or oppressed us," they replied. "You have not taken anything from anyone's hand." 5 Samuel said to them, "The LORD is witness against you, and also his anointed is witness this day, that you have not found anything in my hand." "He is witness," they said.

NIV

Samuel already warned them what a king would take from their hand. A king would take their sons to serve with his chariots and to farm his land. He would take their daughters and make them perfumers, cooks, and bakers. The king would take the best of their fields and vineyards and a tenth of their grain plus their maid and men servants. He will also take the best of their cattle and donkeys. But Samuel did not take one single thing from their hand, but they still wanted a king. Samuel served the LORD and did right by the people, and it was the LORD who testified for him and was a witness to his taking nothing from them. Here is where we can break into this story. It is sad to see some of these charlatans who fleece the people of their money, promising that God will bless them and make them wealthy, but all the time taking the people’s money to live more than abundantly, becoming wealthy from the hand of men. It is also sad to see both men and women see full-time ministry as a job and want enough compensation to live a very comfortable life. The idea here is to serve the Lord, answering his call upon their lives. If the people of a local church desire to pay their pastor a certain amount, that is entirely up to the people. A shepherd or pastor is not like what Samuel said a king would, taking all the best from the people for his own benefit. Although God gave them their king, he also made it clear they were not rejecting Samuel, but they were rejecting the LORD. It would appear that when people, believers, are deceived by these false preachers or teachers with their silver tongues and fancy promises, the people may be serving a false god of wealth and thus rejecting the Lord. Let us never allow our hearts to turn from you, oh Lord. Let our hearts remain steadfast and true to our Lord and Savior, Jesus. Yes, we need to gather together and we need someone to serve, first, the Lord, and second, the people. Jesus showed those whom he called to serve the people as pastors the way of service. He said that he did not come to be served, but to serve. Let us serve each other in that same sense. 

The Calling

 DEVOTION

1^ST SAMUEL

The Calling

1 Samuel 11:9-15

9 They told the messengers who had come, "Say to the men of Jabesh Gilead, 'By the time the sun is hot tomorrow, you will be delivered.'" When the messengers went and reported this to the men of Jabesh, they were elated. 10 They said to the Ammonites, "Tomorrow we will surrender to you, and you can do to us whatever seems good to you." 11 The next day Saul separated his men into three divisions; during the last watch of the night they broke into the camp of the Ammonites and slaughtered them until the heat of the day. Those who survived were scattered, so that no two of them were left together. 12 The people then said to Samuel, "Who was it that asked, 'Shall Saul reign over us?' Bring these men to us and we will put them to death." 13 But Saul said, "No one shall be put to death today, for this day the LORD has rescued Israel." 14 Then Samuel said to the people, "Come, let us go to Gilgal and there reaffirm the kingship." 15 So all the people went to Gilgal and confirmed Saul as king in the presence of the LORD. There they sacrificed fellowship offerings before the LORD, and Saul and all the Israelites held a great celebration.

NIV

Saul acts like a king for the first time, and the people of Israel respond to his leadership. We do wonder why, after he was anointed king by Samuel and all Israel said, “Long live the king”, that he was out in his field behind his oxen when he heard the news about the Ammonites laying siege on the men of Jabesh Gilead. We saw this in the preceding verses, but now he has called Israel to fight, and he has three hundred and thirty thousand fighting men to deliver the men of Jabesh Gilead and destroy the army of the Ammonites. This is exactly what happened as Israel slaughtered them and they scattered so that no two of the Ammonites were together. Now, the men of Israel and the men of Judah went to Gilgal and reaffirmed Saul’s kingship. What do we learn from this narrative? Again, we do not know why Saul was working in his field, as he had been anointed as king over Israel, but now he has taken hold of his calling, his anointing, and led Israel in a great victory, showing his kingship. Although Samuel was the one who did the physical anointing of Saul, he was picked by the LORD. Of course, the LORD was not pleased with the people because they rejected him as their King, leading Israel through prophets, such as Samuel, and they wanted an earthly king so they could be like all the other nations. Nevertheless, we would do well to harken to the call of God upon our lives, doing whatever he has planned or purposed for us. Although following Jesus is indeed his purpose for all of us who have accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Within that general purpose for believers of following Jesus, we should search our hearts as to what that means and what that looks like in our lives. We wonder if we follow close enough or if we chase after our own ambitions while we simply think we are Christians, do a few religious things, like attending church, and even serving in some way, or doing some works. But is that truly following Jesus? Maybe that is the way life is, and that’s alright, as long as we confess with our mouth, “Jesus is Lord”, and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead, we are saved. Yet, at the same time, we know that we each have been called to one task, Noah was called to the singular task of building the ark, while Moses was called to the one task of delivering Israel from the Egyptians and Samuel was called to the singular task of being a judge over Israel. Now we see that Saul is called to the position of king. Therefore, we believe each of us has been called, or assigned by God, to this one individual task in life. Yes, as Christians, or rather as believers, we have all been called to follow Jesus and live by his teaching. However, just as we have been given the example of the body of Christ is made up of parts, as our human body, with some being the eyes, others the hand, and so on, we each have an individual part in the kingdom. We cannot do everything, or desire to be or do what someone else is or does, as we have our very own calling from God to be who we are and do what he has called us to be and do. If we haven’t figured out what our task is, then we need to ask him, and he will give us a clear understanding of our calling. Let us serve where he decides. Let us simply follow his calling on our lives, being and doing our purpose in the kingdom.