Two Wrongs Don’t Make a Right
Have you ever witnessed a situation where someone took matters into their own hands to make something “good” happen? Probably. Many times we feel we need to help make God’s will come about, even at the expense of others.
In 1 Samuel, David is anointed King of Israel, but it isn’t until 2 Samuel that we see this come about. King Saul and three of his sons were killed in battle. Saul’s military commander was later assassinated. Shortly afterwards Saul’s remaining son was assassinated. David had waited patiently for his reign, and he did not rejoice at the news of any of these deaths. In fact he executed the assassins.
Even though those murders brought about God’s ultimate will, were the murderers acting within God’s will? It makes me wonder how David would have become King and how much longer it might have taken if eager people hadn’t “helped” things along. It also makes me wonder where I and others would be today if we or well-meaning others hadn’t taken matters into their own hands.
While I have pretty well learned not to try to speed up God’s timing, I still struggle with where my part ends and God’s takes up. How do you decide? What have you learned, so far?
from my notebook 