Discover how the ancient wisdom of King David's mentorship to his son Solomon can transform the way we prepare future leaders. As we explore the timeless story from 1 Chronicles 22, I'm sharing insights into the power of legacy and the role of mentorship in shaping the next generation. We often underestimate the ripple effect of our influence, but today I'll show you how providing wisdom, resources, and guidance can set up those who follow for success. Whether you're a parent, teacher, or role model, this episode offers a testament to the importance of equipping emerging leaders with the virtues of understanding and obedience to enduring principles.
Reflecting on my own spiritual journey, I invite you to join me in understanding how the quiet example of those we look up to can deeply impact our faith and character. I reveal how the disciplines observed in my father and friends' lives have carved a path for my own, and how these actions speak louder than words in mentoring the youth. It's not just about the spiritual knowledge we pass on; it's the authenticity of living out our faith daily that truly cultivates growth. Together, we'll express thanks for our spiritual mentors and look ahead with hope as we continue to build a foundation of integrity and faith for the next generation, inspired by the ongoing narrative of 1 Chronicles.
Discover how the ancient wisdom of King David's mentorship to his son Solomon can transform the way we prepare future leaders. As we explore the timeless story from 1 Chronicles 22, I'm sharing insights into the power of legacy and the role of mentorship in shaping the next generation. We often underestimate the ripple effect of our influence, but today I'll show you how providing wisdom, resources, and guidance can set up those who follow for success. Whether you're a parent, teacher, or role model, this episode offers a testament to the importance of equipping emerging leaders with the virtues of understanding and obedience to enduring principles.
Reflecting on my own spiritual journey, I invite you to join me in understanding how the quiet example of those we look up to can deeply impact our faith and character. I reveal how the disciplines observed in my father and friends' lives have carved a path for my own, and how these actions speak louder than words in mentoring the youth. It's not just about the spiritual knowledge we pass on; it's the authenticity of living out our faith daily that truly cultivates growth. Together, we'll express thanks for our spiritual mentors and look ahead with hope as we continue to build a foundation of integrity and faith for the next generation, inspired by the ongoing narrative of 1 Chronicles.
Well, everybody, welcome back to the Bible Breakdown Podcast with your host, pastor Brandon, today. 1 Chronicles, chapter 22,. And today's title is Prepare the Next Generation. Prepare the Next Generation. I don't know about you, but I spend sometimes so much time just kind of putting my head down, staying in my lane, doing what I'm supposed to do, but I forget that there are people in front of me, you know, people who've gone before me that I can learn from. There's also people behind me that are coming up that I have an obligation to teach and prepare, because we only, you know, life is a relay. We live for a little while, then we pass it off to the next generation, and we're going to see that as David's beginning to do that as well, as he's beginning to see the next generation, his son Solomon, starting to rise up, and in that we're going to see maybe a glimpse into some opportunities that we have as well. We're going to get into that in just a moment. But, as always, if you like what we're doing here, make sure you like, share and subscribe to the YouTube channel and the podcast. Make sure you're leaving us comments on the YouTube videos. I love interacting with you and just seeing what some of your takeaways are, and also all gathering together at the Bible Breakdown Discussion on Facebook.
Speaker 1:
The more we dig, the more we find, and this is one of those that can be a very difficult conversation, because not everybody has people close to them in their family, not everybody has kids, not everybody has this to them in their family, not everybody has kids, not everybody has this, you know, whatever. And so it can be difficult to go. Well, pastor, what do I have to give the next generation? And the answer is more than you realize. More than you realize. And it's not just the people that you're related to, but there's people all around you that you can impact their lives. And the truth of it is is you're probably impacting more people's lives than you realize right now. You just don't always get the credit for it one way or the other. And so let's dive into God's word, let's see how David is doing this in the life of his son Solomon, and then see if there's some takeaways for all of us as well. So, if you have your Bibles open to first Chronicles, chapter 22, verse one says this. If you have your Bibles open to 1, chronicles 22, verse 1 says this.
Speaker 1:
Then David said this will be the location for the temple of the Lord God and the place of the altar for Israel's burnt offerings. So David gave orders to call together the foreigners living in Israel and he assigned them the task of preparing finished stone for building the temple of God, of preparing finished stone for building the temple of God. David provided large amounts of iron for the nails and what would be needed for the doors and the gates, for the clamps, and he gave more bronze than could be weighed. He also provided innumerable cedar locks from the men of Tyre and Sidon, and they had brought vast amounts of cedar to David. David said my son Solomon is still young and inexperienced and since the temple will be built for the Lord and it must be a magnificent structure, famous and glorious throughout the world, I will begin making preparations for it now. So David collected vast amounts of building materials before his death.
Speaker 1:
Then David sent for his son, solomon and instructed him to build a temple for the Lord, the God of Israel. My son, I wanted to build a temple to honor the name of the Lord, my God. But the Lord said to me you have killed many men in the battles that you have fought and since you have shed so much blood in my sight. You will not be the one to build a temple to honor my name, but you will have a son who will be a man of peace. I will give him peace with his enemies in all the surrounding lands, and his name will be Solomon, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel during his reign. He is the one who will build a temple to honor my name. He will be my son and I will be his father. I will secure the throne of his kingdom over all Israel forever. Now, my son, may the Lord be with you and give you success as you follow his directions in building the temple of the Lord, your God. And may the Lord give you wisdom and understanding that you may obey the law of the Lord, your God, as you rule over Israel. For you will be successful if you carefully obey the decrees and regulations that the Lord gave to Israel through Moses. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or lose heart.
Speaker 1:
I have worked hard to provide materials for building the temple of the Lord Nearly 4,000 tons of gold that's a lot of gold 40,000 tons of silver and so much iron and bronze that it cannot even be weighed. I have also gathered timber and stone for the walls, though you may need to add more. You have a large number of skilled stonemasons and carpenters and craftsmen of every kind. You have expert goldsmiths and silversmiths and workers of bronze and iron. Now begin the work, and may the Lord be with you. Then David ordered all the leaders of Israel to assist Solomon in this project. The Lord, your God, is with you, he declared, and has given you peace with his surrounding nations. He has handed them over to me and they are now subject to the Lord and his people.
Speaker 1:
Wow, now, I don't know if you remember, but remember when we were reading 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings, we were hearing the same story, but more from the point of view of this is where we went wrong. Everything went bad, everything went south, and this is why we're in exile. Well, now Chronicles is telling the same story, but from the point of view of this is what God was trying to do the whole time. The God who tried to do these things is still with you, and so what we see is this is God's plan was to build this place of worship so that he could be with his people forever. But here's the thing that really struck me when I read this.
Speaker 1:
When we read about the life of Solomon, it looked like he had all this stuff just lying around. I don't know if you remember this, but we were reading through before. He had all of this gold and all this silver and all this bronze and iron and stuff, and it even said that he had so much gold that silver was as nothing in his kingdom because there was so much gold. But do you ever ask yourself where'd all that come from? Where did all of the wealth that Solomon started with come from in order to build the temple? It came from his father. It came from the generation before him that given him wealth so that when the time came that he needed it, he was able to draw on it.
Speaker 1:
And what does that mean for all of us? Well, here's the thing. It would be wonderful if we could all leave our kids, all of those that come after us, a whole bunch of wealth right. Wouldn't that be great? And it's wonderful if you're able to do that, and it's wonderful to be able to save money and do all that kind of stuff. That's wonderful. But I'm talking about something that is more valuable than something you can put in your pocket. I'm talking about something that you put in your heart and that is learning how to love the Lord, learning how to turn to God in all you have.
Speaker 1:
Prepare the next generation. Do you notice what David told him? David said I want you to turn your heart to God. I want you to follow him with everything you have. I'm going to give you all the tools that you need so that you can build a place so you can worship God. The purpose of all this wealth wasn't so that Solomon could be fat and happy. The purpose of all the wealth was so that he would have the ability to worship God. So what does that mean for us, for everybody around us, especially the people coming after us? What are we doing to build into the next generation the tools they need so they can worship God? What are we doing Now? That doesn't mean that we, you know, get it right all the time. We may go through seasons when things aren't getting right.
Speaker 1:
If you notice, it took David a long time to get all this ready, so that when it was time for Solomon to take the reins, he was able to, but he did start somewhere. And so the first thing we can do is we start with ourselves. How can we position ourself to be a living example? Not just to, if you have kids, to your children behind you, but to the people around you, to the people you have influence in their life and you don't even know your coworkers, your friends' kids, just people you're never going to meet? How are you positioning your life so that you are investing what it is to know God into the next generation? Now, there's many ways to do that. Number one is to be that living example yourself. When is the last time you talked to your kids about God? When is the last time you talked to other kids about God? When is the last time you talk to other people about God? And I don't necessarily mean sharing the gospel, even though, of course, that's paramount but just how you're processing reading your Bible every day, how you're processing pain you're going through in the light of God's goodness.
Speaker 1:
What are you doing to show them, as a living example, what it is to serve and know God? What are the values that you are instilling? Maybe this daily podcast? Are you encouraging those around you to listen to it? Maybe not? Maybe not this podcast, or maybe something else? Are you encouraging them?
Speaker 1:
Because here's the thing that I've learned is, when I started going through a hard time early in my life, I didn't know what to do, but I had watched my father. I had watched him pray, I watched him read his Bible, I had watched friends of mine pray. I watched friends of mine read their Bible, and even though I didn't remember exactly how they prayed and I didn't remember exactly how they read their Bible, I knew that reading their Bible and praying was not just something they talked about, not something they thought was a good idea. It was something they did for themselves. And so I started to realize, if I want to get to know God, I'm going to need to do what they do, and so many times things are more caught than taught. So what are you doing to inspire the next generation and prepare them so that they can know God themselves?
Speaker 1:
So what's your next step today? Maybe it's to first develop a daily discipline of where you're listening to God's word, like this podcast, and you're praying and talking to God yourself. Then, once you get that step going, maybe the next step is to become more open about talking to those around you, especially those who are younger than you, what it's like to serve God on a daily basis, never from a position of authority, but from a position of vulnerability. This is where I get it right. This is where I sometimes struggle. You should come read the Bible with me, not because you're better than them, but because you are so much better than you would be without God. And you're not a salesman, you're a satisfied customer. And as we begin to do that and develop these values in ourself and then share these values with others, we may be surprised to see what God may invest in others, and we may not ever know what good it does. But then, one day that next generation is going to turn around and go, I want to do something good it does. But then, one day that next generation is going to turn around and go, I want to do something good for God, and they're going to see a wealth of information that we slowly had the honor of investing into their life, and so when it's time for them to take their turn as leading that generation, they're going to have a wealth of things to start from, and it's going to be because you prepare the next generation through your faithfulness and now they're able to shine.
Speaker 1:
Let's pray together. God, thank you so much that there were people in our lives, whether we remember them or not, that spoke into our lives. Things we watched, things we saw, things that we experienced, that planted those seeds of faithfulness that are now growing in our life. I pray you will give us the wisdom so that we can plant those seeds into the lives of others, because, god, we have a short amount of time that we get to live on this earth, so while we are here, let us use it for your glory. We thank you for all things. In Jesus name, we pray Amen and amen. Well, god's word says in first Chronicles, 29, 17,. I know, my God, that you examine our hearts and rejoice when you find integrity there. God sees you, god knows you, god is for you and God loves you. I love you. I'll see you tomorrow for 1 Chronicles, chapter 23.