“The temple I am going to build will be great, because our God is greater than all other gods. 6 But who is able to build a temple for Him, since the heavens, even the highest heavens, cannot contain Him? Who then am I to build a temple for Him, except as a place to burn sacrifices before Him?  2 Chronicles 2:5-6

On a trip to an amusement park, a young girl set off with great determination to ride the largest roller coaster. She had been dreaming of the day she would be ‘tall enough’ to ride, and so she set off, confident that she could conquer it. She returned some time later looking quite disappointed, and explained her fears got the better of her when she saw the giant of a roller coaster that had appeared to be “much smaller on paper.” Standing at 230 feet tall and stretching over 5300 feet in length, Behemoth was by far the biggest thing she had ever come across, and conquering it no longer seemed like such a good idea.  In our own Christian walk, we have likely taken on things that we felt we could handle, because we honestly felt we could deal with them.  When confronted with the reality of the height and breadth and depth of what we have to deal with, it is only then that we realize our mistake in tackling something that is outside our sphere of control.  The good thing is, it doesn’t matter what situations confront us, we don’t have to face them on our own because our God is bigger than all of those, on paper or otherwise!

In 2 Chronicles, Solomon spoke of the temple he would build.  He realized he could never build a temple big enough to hold our big and powerful God, the God who is “greater than all gods.” Solomon was fully aware that there is no building that can contain the might and wonder of our God, but we can rejoice because this powerful God lives within us.  Having God dwelling with us does not make our lives smooth-sailing. Problems will still come … sometimes they appear on paper in the form of bills to be paid, doctors reports, letters of regrets and exam results. Sometimes we face them in real time in the form of broken relationships, damaged reputations and unwelcome forks in the road. We often don’t know how to deal with what’s facing us, but even so, the God we serve is great and big and powerful! As terrible and frightening as our circumstances may appear, our God is greater still!  

When we think of giants, we often think of Goliath. The Message version describes him as almost ten feet tall, wearing armour that weighed 126 pounds! Goliath terrorized the Israelites, but as big as Goliath was, he too needed protection. Not only did he have on armour, he had a shield bearer! David did not run and hide. He did not need armor or an armour bearer. His strategy was to trust God to deliver Goliath into their hands. To the Israelites and the Philistines, Goliath may have been the biggest person they ever saw, but he was no match for David’s God. Goliath was big, but God is bigger still!

The little girl could not ride Behemoth because it was too big for her to take on, so she walked away. Solomon could not build a temple big enough to contain the God we serve, so he built a temple to offer sacrifices. David could not handle Goliath on his own, so he trusted the God he served to help him take down what could be described as the biggest problem He had ever faced so far (1 Samuel 17).  What’s your move?

Inventory/Introspection: Have I consistently engaged in activities that limit the greatness of God in my life?  Have I walked away from a Behemoth that should have been defeated like Goliath?

Personal Application:  I will make note of the ‘big’ issues that confront me, and I will hand them over to the One who is bigger and greater than anything I can ever come across on paper, in reality or otherwise.  God is not limited by my actions, but my inactions could limit what He wants to do in my life.

Father, there are no words to express my gratitude that the great God who created the universe, the God who cannot be contained by the highest heavens, the God who is everywhere at once – lives inside of me! In my weakness, You are my Strength. In times of trouble, You are my Shelter. In the midst of war, You are my Shield and Banner.

Life can be pretty much like a roller coaster, but You are ever with me  – on every peak and in every valley! I have no reason to fear what comes at me, because You are with me, You are in me and I am Yours!  Sometimes I allow the flesh to speak first, instead of allowing Your spirit to lead. There are days I throw my hands up in the air because I don’t think I can handle what is ahead of me as I don’t always look at life from Your perspective. Please forgive me. 

Solomon realized that he could not build a temple to contain You, but he could build one to offer sacrifices to You. In 1 Cor. 6:19-20 Paul asks. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own; you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor God with your body.” We cannot build temples to contain You either, but we are thankful You choose to live inside us. We choose to be living sacrifices to the glory of Your name.

We will trust You to give us wisdom to handle the Goliaths and Behemoths that we will come across.

May those around us see You in us as we walk through the challenges of our daily lives.

Amen.

Blessings,
ann

Toni R
(c)

Except where indicated, Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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