What If

"Then his brothers and all his father’s household came down, took him, brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. Thus he had judged Israel twenty years." -Judges 16.31

The life of Samson was short and tragic. If you think about it, this is the story of untapped potential. Samson did great things, but most of them were the result of a desire for personal vengeance. Samson had been given great strength, and yet most of the time we find him living for his own desires. He could have destroyed the Philistines, and while he kills thousands of them in life and with his death, they survive and rise to oppress Israel again.

Samson seems to be a one man show. He kills Philistines when they kill his wife or when they capture him, but other than that he doesn't seem to be too focused on defeating them. He doesn't unite the tribes of Israel and lead them in battle against their enemy. Instead he does his own thing, and his own people even hand him over to the Philistines.

What if Samson had been focused and fully committed to God? What if Samson had not been side tracked by his desires? What if Samson had guarded his heart? What if Samson had been like other judges of Israel?

Men, will "what if" be a question you ask yourself at the end of your life? Will "what if" be a question asked at your funeral? Some of you have been blessed with so much, and yet you'll fail to live up to the potential you have. Many will fail because they never even try.

Teddy Roosevelt once said, "It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat."

Let us be men who are actually in the arena. Let us be men who dare greatly. Let us be men who strive to reach our fullest potential. Let us never wonder "what if".

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor

When We Call on God

"However, the hair of his head began to grow again after it was shaved off... Then Samson called to the Lord and said, 'O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me just this time, O God, that I may at once be avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.' Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and braced himself against them, the one with his right hand and the other with his left. And Samson said, 'Let me die with the Philistines!' And he bent with all his might so that the house fell on the lords and all the people who were in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he killed in his life." -Judges 16.22, 28-30

Samson has made his share of mistakes. He has broken his Nazirite vow on multiple occasions, slept with a prostitute, and given away the secret of his strength because a woman annoyed him enough for it. He has been captured by his enemies, been blinded by them, and put to hard labor in their prison. Now the Philistines seek to further humiliate him by having him come and entertain them as they celebrate his capture in the temple of Dagon.

Samson was born to a barren mother in order to save Israel from the Philistines. All throughout his life he has been doing that, even killing 1,000 of them at one time. His mistakes have not changed the reason of his birth and here, as he calls on God again, he is used to fulfill the purpose of his birth. God strengthens Samson one last time, and Samson destroys the pagan temple as well as the 3,000 people that are inside. He kills more with his death than he did in life.

God did not forget about Samson. When Samson lived in a way that puled him away from God, the Spirit of God was not on him to empower him to deliver Israel; but when Samson called on God, seeking to fulfill his purpose, God was with him.

Men, we have all been born for a purpose. God did not make us accidentally, you are not a mistake. But the way you choose to live will determine if you are able to fulfill your purpose. God will not force you to follow His plan, and if you choose to live contrary to His will He will let you, but His presence will not be with you. But if you call on Him, turning back to Him, then God will empower you to fulfill your purpose.

Let us be men who call on God, and not as a last resort. Let us be men who live passionately for Him.

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor

Guard Your Heart

"It came about when she pressed him daily with her words and urged him, that his soul was annoyed to death. So he told her all that was in his heart and said to her, 'A razor has never come on my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaved, then my strength will leave me and I will become weak and be like any other man.' When Delilah saw that he had told her all that was in his heart, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, 'Come up once more, for he has told me all that is in his heart.' Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hands. She made him sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his hair. Then she began to afflict him, and his strength left him. She said, 'The Philistines are upon you, Samson!' And he awoke from his sleep and said, 'I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.' But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. Then the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes; and they brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze chains, and he was a grinder in the prison." -Judges 16.16-21

Samson fell for Delilah, and made a mistake many men make. The secret to Samson's strength is known only to himself and his parents. The Philistines have been after him for years, but each time they have come close they are defeated because of his strength. But now that he has fallen for Delilah they try again, offering her thousands of pieces of silver if she can learn the secret of his strength.

Three times he lies to her, but then she begins to ask him daily, and the text says his soul was annoyed to death. Finally, he gives in. He is worn out of resisting and he tells her everything. She takes the information and uses it to destroy him. Samson failed to guard his heart, and poured it all out to a woman who betrayed him.

There is so much that can be said here, but the most crucial thing is that we need to guard our hearts. I am not a very open person. I have had some past experiences where I've opened up and shared with people only to be let down (betrayed seems like a very strong word, but at times it would be very accurate) and those experiences have led me to be the way I am. I don't let many people get close to me, and even when I do it takes a long time, and even then I'm still guarded.

This is something I am working on, vulnerability is important, essential even, but like everything, it has its context. Being pestered constantly is no reason to spill your deepest fears or secrets. Delilah was not someone Samson should have trusted his heart to. She took it and sold it to the highest bidder. His eyes were gouged out and he was chained to grindstone in a prison, becoming an object of ridicule.

Men, you must guard your hearts. That is where your strength lies, and if you carelessly give it away, it will bring about your undoing. There are people your heart is safe with. There are people that you can be completely open and honest with. There are people that you can enjoy deep intimacy with. But these will be people who have gained your trust and earned that closeness with you, not annoyed it out of you.

Let us be men who guard our hearts, but may we never be men who are so guarded that we never let anyone get close to us. Let us learn to be vulnerable with the right people.

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor