According to Jesus, the greatest commandment is for us to love God with all of our heart. Not a portion. Not a section. Not in a calculated or marginalized way. But, rather, to love God with our WHOLE heart.
In 1 Samuel 13:14, we find a king who is no longer honoring this commandment. He has drifted. The response from God is swift, and it is delivered by a man named Samuel, a righteous judge in the land, "But now, your kingdom shall not continue, Saul, (because) the Lord, has instead sought for himself a man after his own heart... because you Saul have not done what the Lord commanded."
Here's the recap. One king is being taken out of his position. Another king is being put into position simply because of what was going on in these two hearts. One man, Saul, has drifted from God in his heart. The other man, David, desires one thing above all else, the heart of God.
The Bible makes it clear that Saul was tall and handsome. The Bible also says that David was handsome.
The Bible relays to us that Saul was a man who could prophesy and sing songs unto the Lord. Likewise, Scripture teaches us that David could also decree things on behalf of God and sing songs of worship.
Samuel's writings further relay that Saul was a skilled warrior; he could defeat thousands of soldiers in battle. And Samuel also lets us know that David was an exceptional warrior who could also take-down thousands of enemies in battle.
Do you notice any similarities? With these comparisons in mind, it becomes insightful to consider that the only thing David had that Saul didn't have was a right spirit.
Never underestimate where a clean heart and a right spirit can take you!
Like most of us, David did have a moment in his life where he failed significantly. His moral miscoming happened after he had ascended to Saul's former position, the throne of Israel. But in his prayer following the failure, you can sense David was aware that it was a right spirit that had been most valuable to him in his life. He knew his heart had drifted from God, and he wanted to make sure that things were reconciled as soon as possible. Hear his prayer, perhaps, even borrow it, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me."
Maybe you've made a mistake. You've made a failure. You realize that at some point in your life, God was elevating you, God was blessing you, and then a mistake has caused you a lot of problems. The mistake caused you grief. Now, it's weighing on your mind. It's giving you sleepless nights. But the Lord wants to remind you, He is one prayer away if you will mean it with ALL of your heart. He will give you a clean heart and renew a right spirit.
On Sunday, I shared more on this subject in my message, "King of Hearts". You can check it out here at this link.