A 6-Day Plan on Faith, Hope & LoveНамуна

Love God First

When Solomon had finished the temple of the Lord and the royal palace, and had succeeded in carrying out all he had in mind to do in the temple of the Lord and in his own palace, the Lord appeared to him at night and said:

“I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a temple for sacrifices.

“When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place. I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.

“As for you, if you walk before me faithfully as David your father did, and do all I command, and observe my decrees and laws, I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father when I said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to rule over Israel.’

“But if you turn away and forsake the decrees and commands I have given you and go off to serve other gods and worship them, then I will uproot Israel from my land, which I have given them, and will reject this temple I have consecrated for my Name. I will make it a byword and an object of ridicule among all peoples. This temple will become a heap of rubble. All who pass by will be appalled and say, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this land and to this temple?’ People will answer, ‘Because they have forsaken the Lord, the God of their ancestors, who brought them out of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, worshiping and serving them — that is why he brought all this disaster on them.’ ”

- 2 Chronicles 7:11 - 22

Love God First

Solomon finished the task of his life, completing the temple of the Lord, and now he had the privilege of once again hearing directly from God himself! What love God sent Solomon’s way, in the form of relationship.

God’s words to Solomon are ones we can digest as well. Like the Israelites, when life is difficult (or good), we can pray to the God who loves us.

Our kindhearted God promises to hear us and forgive our sins. He will be attentive to the prayers offered up in the temple, and now, because of Jesus Christ, we are the temple of God. He reminds Solomon that his eyes and his “heart will always be there.” That same promise is for us. He will always see us and be attentive toward our needs. He will always be with us.

God’s words to Solomon also come with a warning we should be careful to heed. Consequences follow when we fail to love him as we should. We lose the intimacy of a close relationship our heart often craves.

The good news is that God’s steadfast love always awaits us as we come back to him. He loves to restore our relationship, clean and new.

A Prayer for Today

Lord, thank you for reminding me of your love for me each day. Thank you that you see me, and you will be with me. I choose to love you first, above all distractions in life. Amen.

A Journaling Prompt

In your own words, what does it mean to be the temple of God? When did you first realize that you carry in you the very presence of God? How does this truth bring comfort?