Category: CONNECT THE TESTAMENTS

  • SHOWING KINDNESS TO A STRANGER

    Connect The Testaments2 Samuel 9:1–10:19; 1 Peter 5:1–14; Psalm 138:1–8 When I was a teenager, I became serious about showing unsolicited kindness while working through a 30-day intensive devotional. The devotional required me to record an act of kindness each day. My efforts included things as mundane as taking out the trash before being asked…

  • TRUTH AND HONESTY CAN BE PAINFUL

    Connect The Testaments2 Samuel 7:1–8:18; 1 Peter 4:12–19; Psalm 137:1–9 A commitment to honesty and truth often puts us in unexpected spiritual situations—something David experiences in 2 Sam 7. David thinks he will build God a great house—a temple—but instead God plans to build a house for him—a legacy. Because David seeks God, God does…

  • SERVING THE GLORY OF GOD

    Connect The Testaments2 Samuel 5:1–6:23; 1 Peter 4:1–11; Psalm 136:1–26 When we avoid community, we may develop an inflated opinion of our own character. It’s easy to think we’re kind people when we’re not held accountable to others. It’s easy to think we’re always right when no one disagrees with us. Conversely, it’s in our…

  • VENGEANCE VERSUS BLESSING

    Connect The Testaments2 Samuel 3:1–4:12; 1 Peter 3:8–22; Psalm 135:1–21 Comparing the passages of 2 Sam 3:1–4:12 and 1 Pet 3:8–22 teaches us that all Scripture can be used for instruction: Some passages provide wisdom on how to become more like Christ, while others are best regarded as “things not to do.” Peter’s first letter…

  • WHEN KINGS MOURN

    Connect The Testaments2 Samuel 1:1–2:32; 1 Peter 3:1–7; Psalm 133:1–134:3 No one can tell you how to mourn. You have to mourn as you see fit, making sure you don’t introduce sin into the grieving process. Several people who were dear to my heart have died. Each time, I processed it differently—immersing myself in work,…

  • EMOTION VERSUS LOGIC

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 30:1–31:13; 1 Peter 2:18–25; Psalm 131:1–132:18 Reacting is easy. What’s difficult is overcoming emotions in a time of adversity. Although emotions are not bad, they can lead us astray. At the same time, when we stray too far in the other direction and rely entirely on reason, we risk using logic…

  • JACK-IN-THE-BOX PRIDE

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 28:1–29:11; 1 Peter 2:13–17; Psalm 130:1–131:3 It’s dangerous to become too confident in the maturity of our own faith. Our pride is like the spring of a jack-in-the-box: Just when we think it’s broken or that we’ve gotten the lid on tight, it springs back to life. It rears its ugly…

  • REFRAME IT

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 26:1–27:12; 1 Peter 2:1–12; Psalm 128:1–129:8 “ ‘Too often they have attacked me from my youth.’ Let Israel say, ‘Too often they have attacked me from my youth, yet they have not prevailed against me’ ” (Psa 129:1–2). As these verses show, sometimes problems can be solved by simply reframing the issue at…

  • SURPRISE REDEMPTION

    1 Samuel 24:1–25:44; 1 Peter 1:20–25; Psalm 125:1–127:5 We often fail to be amazed at redemption. Perhaps we’re only dimly aware of our own failings—or (worse) we are blind to how amazing it is that God has shown us grace at all. In Psalm 126 the psalmist describes the joy that should come as a…

  • UNITY IN ADVERSITY

    Connect The Testaments1 Samuel 22:1–23:29; 1 Peter 1:13–19; Psalm 123:1–124:8 Distress can unite people. In difficult moments, in shared pain, we discover our true friends. When David fled from King Saul, his divided family was suddenly supportive of him, as was every man in the region who was distressed or indebted (1 Sam 22:1–2; compare…