1 Kings 3:13-14 “I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days. And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”
As I sat outside the polling precinct this last election, I spotted him struggling to walk. Stained sweatshirt, unsteady hands resting on his walker, he carefully maneuvered his bent body toward the voting booth. I didn’t know who he would cast his vote for, but his determination to let his voice be heard moved me. When he came out of the building and began the trek across the parking lot to his car, I couldn’t help but tell him how seeing his effort warmed my heart. He smiled proudly and told me he was 94 years-old and had never missed an election. This nonagenarian exhibited unflinching faithfulness to his civic duty. One faithful step at a time.
Faithfulness matters. And God calls us to be faithful in every aspect of life.
Faithfulness manifests itself in all the little decisions we make every day. We chose to fulfill our civic, ethical and personal responsibilities by voting, paying taxes, showing up to work on time and keeping our word. But most all, we show faithfulness in our relationship with God. Oswald Chambers writes, “Nothing is so important as to keep right spiritually.”
When Solomon became king of Israel, God promised him wisdom, wealth and health. But he exhorted him to keep his commandments and walk in his ways. God certainly kept his end of the promise. Solomon’s wealth and wisdom became legendary.
But at some point, Solomon stopped taking those steps of faithfulness. Maybe all the peace and prosperity numbed him to the necessity of following God. He decided to take a foreign wife. Then another. And another 700! Before long, he was worshiping their gods, sacrificing to their idols. Consequentially, God tore the kingdom away from him and Israel was never the same. Solomon’s lack of faithfulness resulted in the demise of the whole nation. It began with one step of unfaithfulness.
Don’t discount those little decisions you make each day. I encourage you to be faithful. One step at a time….even if you need a walker!