S181P1 – The king’s exiting prayer: acknowledged source of power
1 Chr. 29:10-11
David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly, saying, “Praise be to you, Lord, the God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.”
He carried the same overused and inaccurate designation as so many entrepreneurs before him. Yes, it was true that he had come from humble beginnings. It also was true that he had taught himself much of what he learned about the industry. He certainly took the initiative to steer his professional trajectory from early on, but he was hardly self-made. Every step of his progress required someone believing in him, prospects signing up for whatever it was he offered, banks providing the loans he desperately needed. More than that, there was a God who could have stalled his progress in an instant but who instead showed him favor. A self-made man he was not, just as no one is.
The Lord stated that David was a man after his own heart. [1 Sam. 13:14] God was looking for a man who shared his sentiment and his intentions. David fit the bill and was given great power and authority. The Lord kept him through a severe trial of persecution, and the Son of God himself was descended from David’s lineage. He was a man on whom God showered much favor, and he recognized that. David’s prayer credits the Lord for all he had. David was a king, but the Lord is the King. David was entrusted to rule over a kingdom, but the Lord’s is the kingdom. David was a big fish in a big pond in his time, but he recognized that he was just a man and not God. He understood that he served a role in God’s kingdom and plan, but it all belongs to God.
The Lord will give some of us great power and authority within the Church or perhaps in this world. He might raise us to positions of influence and prestige. His blessings know no bounds, but they are for his purposes. We cannot let these blessings go to our heads and lead us to think that we are greater than we are. David understood that his kingship was not his to possess but his to steward. Whatever God gives us, wherever He places us, He is the head and remains above any station we could occupy. He directs, we serve, and we are what we are because He ordains it. Father, give us the humility of David to recognize that You are the source and the power behind all we do and accomplish.