Lenten Devotional, Day 37: #1. Choosing Your Next Pastor#2. Love AND Truth#3. Poem: Triolet on Psalm 31

Dear Saints,

The Scriptures for Thursday are Psalm 31, 1 Samuel 16:6–13, Philippians 1:1–11.

CHOOSING YOUR NEXT PASTOR:

“But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.”’ (1 Samuel 16:7).

Saul and Eliab, etc. had stature, prowess, and groove. These tend to BE served rather than TO serve; these tend rather to consume sheep than to protect them (2 Peter 2:3, 2 Corinthians 2:17, 1 Timothy 6:5, Matthew 7:15, Romans 16:18, 1 Thessalonians 2:5, etc.).

In picking your next pastor, elder, deacon, ministry heads—this mixes a Biblical metaphor, so Jesus excepted—pick the one who will shepherd the sheep and not suppose to own them.

Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your [strong, tall, handsome] sons here?” And he said, “There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” (1 Samuel 16:11). Pick him! Dear God, he will have growing pain but unto “wisdom and stature and favor with God and man” (Luke 1:80, 2:40, 52; 1 Samuel 2:26). Yes, he will be after God's heart (Acts 13:22) and hold you in his own (Philippians 1:7). Pick him, beloved.

ALL WE NEED IS LOVE…AND TRUTH:

“And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment.” (Philippians 1:9).

True Christianity has a head & heart—both/and not either/or.

Most people want to quote the Beatles. Yet: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6).

But the opposite is also true: “But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.” (Revelation 2:4).

Loveless and liar are both a cruel deaths.

ON PSALM 31 (triolet)

My Lord be gracious see my great distress;

Into Your hand my spirit I commit.

I've stumbled—minions close in to oppress;

Graceful composure ‘gain let me possess.

Tho truly Yours against You I've transgressed;

Again I plead that font of crimson merit.

Alone are You an all sufficient fortress;

Revive me whole in body, soul, and spirit!

Notes:

•Triolet is eight lines of iambic pentameter with line repetition and rhyme in the pattern of ABaAabAB. The capital letters indicate repetition of the whole line. I love driving, even pounding, repetition/parallelism, yet even for me the triolet can at times become too heavy; so rather than perfect repetition of lines, I simply repeated key sounds, ideas.

•Biblical allusions include: Proverbs 24:16-17, Isaiah 54:13(AMP), II Corinthians 12:9, Hebrews 4:16.

•(c)2014, 2026, tIMCOOK27/poetry27, all rights reserved.

The Only Best in/is Christ,

tIM