Just a thought...

I've spent quite a bit of time thinking about Saul lately. He was a man chosen by God to do great things but somewhere along the way, he got sidetracked. As I've mentioned before, Saul is never the man that he might have been. Rather than rely on God and the things he knew to be true, he chose to "help God out" along the way. As a result, the Lord rejected Saul as king and chose David instead.

Then we have Solomon, son of David. He had the benefit of growing up under David's guidance. Certainly, as David was dying, he instructed Solomon on how to live. (1 Kings 2:2-3) From all appearances, Solomon followed those instructions. For awhile. (1 Kings 3:3) By all accounts, God was pleased with Solomon. Rather than ask for great wealth or a long life, he asked that the Lord would bless him with wisdom. The Lord gave him all three. (1 Kings 3:12-15) After the temple was built, the Lord appeared to him again and promised that as long as "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, I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David." (1 Kings 9: 4-5)

Sounds like a plan, doesn't it? After all, Solomon not only had the benefit of learning from Saul and David's lives, the LORD Himself had spoken to him and made clear His expectations. And since He had gifted Solomon with wisdom, wealth and health, Solomon knew that God would fulfill His words.

And yet, somewhere along the way, Solomon chose his own path. 1 Kings 11:4 says, "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." As I read those words, I sit here and shake my head. I don't get it. How could he take such a path? God HIMSELF spoke to him. He knew the benefits of obeying the Lord's statutes. So how did he go from here to here?

Ecclesiastes 2 may offer a clue. As I read the chapter last night, one thing kept coming to my mind. I thought, I said, I tried, I wanted, I undertook, I built, I made, I bought, I owned, I amassed, I acquired, I became, I denied, I refused, my heart, I surveyed, I had toiled, I turned, I saw, I came, I thought, I said, I gain, I hated, I toiled, I must, my heart... I don't know that I've ever seen so much "I" and "my" in any of our readings. Today, 24 hours later, I'm still pondering this. Wondering how much of my "self focus" keeps me from following Him...and asking God to make this the prayer of my heart today...

Direct me in the path of your commands,
for there I find delight.

Turn my heart toward your statutes
and not toward selfish gain.

Turn my eyes away from worthless things;
preserve my life according to your word.

Psalm 119:35-37