SCRIPTURE: 1 Kings 3:9-10 MSG “Here’s what I want: Give me a God-listening heart so I can lead your people well, discerning the difference between good and evil. For who on their own is capable of leading your glorious people?” God, the Master, was delighted with Solomon’s response.
THOUGHT: The old tales always tell of a genie in a bottle who asks the master of the bottle for their wishes. The genie is a slave to the owner of the bottle. But in the great reverse of the Kingdom of God, it is the Master who comes to the servant to offer a wish. Solomon could have asked for anything: power, reputation, riches, long life, to conquer nations, and so on. It is his deep trust of God that propels him to ask for that which cannot be seen, handled, or stored in bigger barns. Something which won’t bring him glory as much as the God who grants his request. Solomon asks for God’s wisdom and discernment to lead a people who are not his own. He acknowledges they are God’s people. He acknowledges his desperate need, as a human after the fall who knows both good and evil, to be able to tell the difference.
May it be our request, and may God grant it.
PRAYER: Oh God, you, the Master, have opened your throne room to your servants because of Jesus. We ask for great wisdom, discernment, and a God listening-heart. We ask to not just know good and evil – but to tell them apart for the sake of your great name and kingdom.
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