⁴ Now be careful not to drink wine or brandy or to eat anything that is ritually unclean, ⁵ because you are pregnant and will give birth to a son. Don’t allow a razor to shave his head, because the boy is going to be a nazirite for God from birth. He’ll be the one who begins Israel’s rescue from the power of the Philistines.”
Judges 13:4-5

In the Bible, when God is about to do something very important, an angel announces the coming birth of the one God will use to make this happen. Such are the stories about the births of Isaac, Samuel, and now, Samson.  In Advent and Christmas that just passed, we celebrated the angel Gabriel announcing the two greatest persons whom God was going to use for our salvation—John the Baptist and of course, Jesus.

Samson and John the Baptist, though born many, many years apart, were told to behave in a very different way. They were not to drink wine or strong drink.  Samson was also told that he must never cut his hair. All of this was to remind themselves and others that they were totally chosen to live for God alone. 

Today, take a little walk in silence, looking for some object in nature that nudges at you, reminding you that you too, have been set apart to live for God alone.

Judges 13

Examples of Bible Breaths Learn More…

Set apart to God from birth v. 5
O Lord God, You work wonders. v. 19
My life: a sign that I’m Yours
Samson, John and my Jesus.

Tap on “Study” which is connected to the passage in BibleGateway.
Scroll down to “Matthew Henry’s Commentary”
which I recommend.
Tap to read more: Matthew Henry in Wikipedia.

Tuesdays are dedicated to the Old Testament books of history
and the Hebrew “Writings.”

 

These Firestarters are for families with children. For the Firestarters in the original edition, I recommend the ebook.  You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or table! Check the menu options at the site for more information.