Day 305
Judges 13:5
"For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the philistines."
An angel appeared to Samson's mother before he was born and told her about his birth and his mission in life. Samson's mother was barren before she conceived him. Her pregnancy with him was a miracle. He was dedicated to God from the womb. When he grew up, God gave him supernatural ability to be a one man army for the Israelites. His story was a real life story that would seem like a fictitious movie. Single-handedly, he killed 1,000 men with the jawbone of a donkey. Yet, he was a miserable failure in his personal life and died prematurely after having lost his freedom and his eyesight at the hands of the enemies he was used to defeating.
How could a man upon whom God had His hand fail as badly as Samson did? What about his supernatural birth? What about his being sanctified in his mother's womb? What about the special anointing he had to defeat the enemies of Israel? Samson's story will help us understand divine destiny and how it affects our lives. When God calls us to do a work for Him, He will fulfill His part. He will equip us and prepare the way before us. However, He will not make sure we do everything right. We are responsible for our personal lives. No one gives birth to a divine robot. Regardless of the degree of anointing or the magnitude of the calling, we must cooperate with God for His perfect will to be done in our lives. We must pray and seek the face of God just like any other person who may not appear to have a significant call or assignment in life. As a matter of fact, people with special assignments need to be more careful and prayerful, since they are more likely to be targets of the enemy. How well they live their lives, how long they live and how their families and circumstances fare will depend on what they do with their personal relationships with God.
God could not stop Samson from suffering as he did, because Samson had a choice to walk with God and experience the benefits, or rebel and suffer the consequences. Samson's choices brought him disaster. God did not desert him. Although he was humiliated by his enemies before his death, God showed mercy on Samson when he asked for it and allowed the end of his life to be somewhat victorious.
Let us realize that the more God uses us, the more responsible we need to be in our personal lives. The hand of God upon our lives is not evidence we are living right. It is a sign that we need to humble ourselves and conscientiously endeavor to live uprightly before Him and humanity.
I will humble myself daily before the Lord, who has given me a calling and an assignment to fulfill The more God uses me, the more I will give attention to my spiritual life. My behavior in my personal life will glorify Him.