August is in full bloom as usual.  Anyone who enjoys the heat should be delighted by the weather lately.  Football practice gets underway in the morning across Texas.  Baseball season my just be reaching the exciting point but football is about to be in full swing.  Summer could let up any day now if it was up to me but it's not.  Going out to mow or exercise is a trial almost by fire.  We finished about eight weeks in 1 Samuel today.  Now our attention will turn to the story of the new king.  Saul will always be regarded as the first king of Israel in history but he is a long way from the best one.  How can a person who is blessed beyond measure by God crash and burn so badly?  My hope was to learn those lessons over the last few weeks but my fear is some missed out on the truth. 

Our study today covered 1 Samuel 13-15 in trying to uncover what mistakes Saul made so we avoid them.  God made Saul the king with every blessing at his disposal.  The one condition was that God would not stop being the ultimate king.  Saul never gets a handle on that one.  Things get so bad that Saul refers to God as "your God" to Samuel.  A relationship he could not accept becomes the core of his failure.  There are plenty of occasions for Saul to repent or get his act together but he never figures that out.  God is indeed blunt with this king but it never sinks into his heart.  The answer is beyond obvious to the reader but not to Saul.

Perhaps this first ruler just had it too easy?  He lives with gift and talents beyond the norm.  It was all just too easy for him.  Times of crisis reveal our nature.  Saul would cause his own crises by taking matters into his hands.  What may be worse is that when confronted by his sin how he blamed everyone else for the problem.  Being honest about failure was difficult when you can handle things so easily on your own.  That may be the greatest temptation of all.  We want to do our religious thing while asking God to bless it.  Little room is left for God to guide or direct our paths. 

I couldn't help but notice how Saul often turned to the religious in times of trouble.  He could put a biblical spin on failure.  He would often tell Samuel that his intent was to offer a sacrifice to God with whatever was involved in his sin. He is confronted in 1 Samuel 15 with his most tragic decision.  His disobedience hits home to cost him a throne and a legacy.  He states his intention to build another altar for God to sacrifice from his failure.  He is so much like us today.  We don't mind doing religious stuff for God as long as we don't have to lay our life on the altar.  We still try to keep what we end up losing.  Saul begins this journey with so much promise to have it lost by not looking past himself.  Perhaps we will someday learn how not to do this so often.

Bro. Trey