Mar 9, 2026 – Disengagement
Utmost – John 6:67 – “Will ye also go away?” Jesus asked this of the twelve after some of the other disciples walked away because they couldn’t grasp what they were hearing and seeing. Chambers reminds us that “We have to maintain a venturing attitude toward Him all the time…. Many to-day are spending and being spent in work for Jesus Christ, but they do not walk with Him. The one thing God keeps us to steadily is that we may be one with Jesus Christ…. live a natural life of absolute dependence on Jesus Christ. Never try to live the life with God on any other line than God’s line, and that line is absolute devotion to Him. The certainty that I know I do not know – that is the secret of going with Jesus.”
Prevail #68 – In focusing on 2 Samuel 11:1, when David stayed behind after sending his army out, Larson adds to the point about staying focused and dependent on God as she writes, “There’s a time for engagement and a time for rest. But there’s never a time for disengagement…. Our best lessons are taught through our hardships, and we learn to depend on the Lord through the things we suffer. But because God is good, He’ll bring us through and give us rest from our trials. However, we are especially vulnerable after an intense battle or great victory. And that’s exactly when we tend to loosen our grip on what we know to be true…. No doubt, David was weary from battle. But his disengagement made him vulnerable.” The rest of that story in chapter 11 should help us realize that even a man like David is human and can make poor (even devastating) choices when he does not honor and maintain his relationship with God at all times. Larson concludes, “May you wisely discern the difference between restorative rest and undisciplined disengagement…. Don’t leave yourself exposed to the enemy’s schemes.”
JC – “Rest in my radiant Presence…. The world is a needy place; do not go there for sustenance…. Learn to depend on Me alone, and your weakness will become saturated with My Power…. Live in the Light of My Presence, and your light will shine brightly into the lives of others.”
Power – Joyce encourages us to consider the health of our bodies, in addition to the health of our spirits, as she asks, “Do you ever hear people say, ‘I’m so tired,’ or ‘I wish I had more energy?’ This is not God’s best for us. God wants us to feel good and have the passion and energy we need to enjoy our lives. Some people do suffer with conditions requiring medication or therapy due to things they could not avoid. But many times our symptoms are simply a result of not taking good care of ourselves…. Whether you need to change your eating habits, sleep more, exercise more, reduce stress, or worry less – no matter what it takes – find out why you do not feel well and do something about it. Even if you feel good, you can avoid future problems by taking good care of yourself now!”
Streams – From Sunday School Times, Cowman shares, “While enduring a severe trial, David cried, ‘Oh that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest’ (Ps. 55:6). Yet before he finished his meditation, he seems to have realized that his wish for wings was attainable, for then he said, ‘Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you’ (Ps. 55:22).” Google AI tells me that Psalm 55 was written a while after David sinned with Bathsheba (and even further stepped away from what he knew was right by having her husband murdered). He offers us such a good example of learning from our mistakes (even if we make others) as he cries out and then realizes where his answers and strength come from.
Max – Psalm 107:28-29 – “They cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.” Peace and calm IS indeed what can happen during trials and temptations, and after, if we will turn to God rather to our own solutions and desires.
I thought this was a good stopping point for today, but Simpson seems to have something to add as he focuses on 1 Thessalonians 4:1 – “How ye ought to walk and please God.” He writes, “How many dear Christians are in the place that the Lord has appointed them, and yet the devil is harassing their lives with a vague sense of not quite pleasing the Lord. Could they just settle down in the place that God has assigned them and fill it sweetly and lovingly for Him, there would be more joy in their hearts and more power in their lives.” Boy does this, and studying David’s missteps, help me better see my own striving and missteps. Perhaps it is my enemy who is whispering that I am not contributing to our income like I should be, while the Holy Spirit tries to remind me of all that God has provided for me (and our household) throughout my life so that I can serve Him in other ways.
Simpson makes such an important point for all of us to consider, “God wants us all in various places, and the secret of accomplishing the most for Him is to recognize our places from Him and our service in it as pleasing Him. In the great factory and machine there is a place for the smallest screw and rivet as well as the great driving wheel and piston…believe that He wants them there and is making the most of their lives in the little spaces that they fill for Him.” Where God has me right now in my life, allowed for us to have two of our grandchildren spend the night recently (while their parents enjoyed a night out together) and to enjoy them all the next day because the daycare closed due to unexpected maintenance issues. Offering myself to family and friends in this way is very fulfilling to me. Thank You Holy Spirit for the reminder and for the opportunities. (We all should pray, and continue to thank God, for these realizations and opportunities to serve in the ways He has for us.)
JA concludes our sharing with this reminder, “MY WAYS ARE MYSTERIOUS and unpredictable, but they are good…. Don’t get trapped in a posture of demanding to know ‘Why?’ …The right questions are: ‘How do You want me to view this situation? And ‘What do You want me to do right now?’ …Trust Me one day, one moment, at a time.”
