Omer Devotional Day 24

April 23 at sundown - Day 24
Today is day 24 of counting the Omer 
Today is day 24 out of Egypt
Today is day 24 of Messiah Resurrected

The Tragedy of Absalom (2 Samuel 15:1-6)

Absalom’s Revolt
1 Now it came about after this that Absalom provided himself with a chariot, horses and 50 men as runners before him.
2 Absalom used to rise up early and stand beside the road to the city gate. Whenever anyone had a suit to come to the king for justice, then Absalom would call to him and say, “What town are you from?” Should he answer, “Your servant is from one of the tribes of Israel,”
3 Absalom would say to him, “See, your claims are good and right, but there is no one assigned to you by the king to hear you.”
4 Moreover, Absalom would say, “If only I were appointed judge in the land, then every man who has any suit or case would come to me, and I would get him justice!”
5 Also, whenever anyone approached to bow to him, he would stretch his hand, take hold of him, and kiss him.
6 So Absalom kept doing this to everyone of Israel who came to the king for judgment. Thus Absalom stole the hearts of the people of Israel.

Reflect:

Absalom had a craving for his father’s power and status. This was despite the fact that God had clearly allowed David to remain as king after he murdered Uriah the Hittite to steal his wife (2 Samuel 12) because David repented when confronted about his sin, and asked God for mercy. God forgave David because He was a man after God's own heart. When we examine the character of Absalom, we see the contrast between the father and his son. He was a vengeful, unrepentant murderer. He was deceitful and used cunning to advance his own agenda. His ego and arrogance led him to attempt to have his father killed. He even slept with his father's concubines in the sight of all Israel! He refused correction and failed to learn from David’s failings. Absalom’s story shows us that there are no shortcuts with God and there is no easy path to becoming a person of integrity. Gaining it often takes going through adversity and learning patience. When we turn our lives fully over to Yeshua, we have the assurance that He will help us become people of integrity. Then we can be free to abandon our own agendas and embrace all the good that God plans for us! He has each one of us on a path that will have its own ups and downs but will ultimately lead us into the fullness of Yeshua's call on our lives.

Prayer: Lord, help us to be free of our own agendas. Help us to empty ourselves out so you can fill us with the Holy Spirit. Lead us and guide us into truth, especially about the motivations of our hearts and the true intentions of our actions.

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At Restoration, we have made it a priority to seek God first in prayer. During this season of counting of the Omer, we have decided to do this collectively as a congregation in the days leading up to Shavuot. Together, we want to trust in His power to impact our lives, our congregation, our city, and our world. The last 10 days we will encourage a corporate time of fasting and prayer, which starts the evening of May 9 and ends the evening of May 19. The conclusion of this season of prayer will culminate in a congregational picnic on the 50th day, the day of Shavuot - Sunday, May 20 at noon.