Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

To read 1 Samuel 23, click the link HERE.

After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the Desert of En Gedi.” So Saul took three thousand able young men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats.
He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave. The men said, “This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.
Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.” With these words David sharply rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way.
Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’? This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, ‘I will not lay my hand on my lord, because he is the Lord’s anointed.’ See, my father, look at this piece of your robe in my hand! I cut off the corner of your robe but did not kill you. See that there is nothing in my hand to indicate that I am guilty of wrongdoing or rebellion. I have not wronged you, but you are hunting me down to take my life. May the Lord judge between you and me. And may the Lord avenge the wrongs you have done to me, but my hand will not touch you. As the old saying goes, ‘From evildoers come evil deeds,’ so my hand will not touch you.
“Against whom has the king of Israel come out? Who are you pursuing? A dead dog? A flea? May the Lord be our judge and decide between us. May he consider my cause and uphold it; may he vindicate me by delivering me from your hand.”
When David finished saying this, Saul asked, “Is that your voice, David my son?” And he wept aloud. “You are more righteous than I,” he said. “You have treated me well, but I have treated you badly. You have just now told me about the good you did to me; the Lord delivered me into your hands, but you did not kill me. When a man finds his enemy, does he let him get away unharmed? May the Lord reward you well for the way you treated me today. I know that you will surely be king and that the kingdom of Israel will be established in your hands. Now swear to me by the Lord that you will not kill off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father’s family.”
So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.

• 1 Samuel 24:1-22

To read 1 Samuel 25, click the link HERE.

The Ziphites went to Saul at Gibeah and said, “Is not David hiding on the hill of Hakilah, which faces Jeshimon?”
So Saul went down to the Desert of Ziph, with his three thousand select Israelite troops, to search there for David. Saul made his camp beside the road on the hill of Hakilah facing Jeshimon, but David stayed in the wilderness. When he saw that Saul had followed him there, he sent out scouts and learned that Saul had definitely arrived.
Then David set out and went to the place where Saul had camped. He saw where Saul and Abner son of Ner, the commander of the army, had lain down. Saul was lying inside the camp, with the army encamped around him.
David then asked Ahimelek the Hittite and Abishai son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, “Who will go down into the camp with me to Saul?”
“I’ll go with you,” said Abishai.
So David and Abishai went to the army by night, and there was Saul, lying asleep inside the camp with his spear stuck in the ground near his head. Abner and the soldiers were lying around him.
Abishai said to David, “Today God has delivered your enemy into your hands. Now let me pin him to the ground with one thrust of the spear; I won’t strike him twice.”
But David said to Abishai, “Don’t destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless? As surely as the Lord lives,” he said, “the Lord himself will strike him, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish. But the Lord forbid that I should lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. Now get the spear and water jug that are near his head, and let’s go.”
So David took the spear and water jug near Saul’s head, and they left. No one saw or knew about it, nor did anyone wake up. They were all sleeping, because the Lord had put them into a deep sleep.
Then David crossed over to the other side and stood on top of the hill some distance away; there was a wide space between them. He called out to the army and to Abner son of Ner, “Aren’t you going to answer me, Abner?”
Abner replied, “Who are you who calls to the king?”
David said, “You’re a man, aren’t you? And who is like you in Israel? Why didn’t you guard your lord the king? Someone came to destroy your lord the king. What you have done is not good. As surely as the Lord lives, you and your men must die, because you did not guard your master, the Lord’s anointed. Look around you. Where are the king’s spear and water jug that were near his head?”
Saul recognized David’s voice and said, “Is that your voice, David my son?”
David replied, “Yes it is, my lord the king.” And he added, “Why is my lord pursuing his servant? What have I done, and what wrong am I guilty of? Now let my lord the king listen to his servant’s words. If the Lord has incited you against me, then may he accept an offering. If, however, people have done it, may they be cursed before the Lord! They have driven me today from my share in the Lord’s inheritance and have said, ‘Go, serve other gods.’ Now do not let my blood fall to the ground far from the presence of the Lord. The king of Israel has come out to look for a flea—as one hunts a partridge in the mountains.”
Then Saul said, “I have sinned. Come back, David my son. Because you considered my life precious today, I will not try to harm you again. Surely I have acted like a fool and have been terribly wrong.”
“Here is the king’s spear,” David answered. “Let one of your young men come over and get it. The Lord rewards everyone for their righteousness and faithfulness. The Lord delivered you into my hands today, but I would not lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. As surely as I valued your life today, so may the Lord value my life and deliver me from all trouble.”
Then Saul said to David, “May you be blessed, David my son; you will do great things and surely triumph.”
So David went on his way, and Saul returned home.

• 1 Samuel 26:1-25

Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments

1 Samuel 23:1-5 ‘Israel’s Victory over the Philistines’: “In 1 Samuel 23:1, the people of Judah came to their popular champion, David, with concerns over the Philistine raids on the town of Keilah’s harvest. Abiathar the priest possessed the ephod of the high priest (23:6), so David inquired of the Lord, through the ancient means of the Urim and Thummim, as to whether he should lead his men in an assault on the Philistine raiders.
“Although the Lord responded in the affirmative, David’s men balked at the mission. They reasoned that as they had concerns over facing Saul’s forces, they should be that much more concerned over facing the forces of the Philistines (23:2-3). David inquired of the Lord yet again, seeking and receiving a measure of additional divine confirmation that their assault on the Philistines would be successful (23:4). David’s victory at Keilah is described in the subsequent verse (23:5).”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

1 Samuel 23:2 ‘inquired of the Lord’: “Such inquiries were made using the sacred lots, the Urim and Thummim, stored in the priestly ephod which Abiathar had brought to David (v. 6). See … Ex. 28:30.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 23:7 ‘Exalting God’: “Psalm 57 was written by David when fleeing from Saul and surrounded by his foes. In that brilliant way he had of describing things, David said that he found himself among lions, men whose teeth were spears and arrows and whose tongues were as sharp swords. He was surrounded by them and they had the authority of King Saul back of them, and David had nobody but God. So David, being taught in the ways of the Spirit, did something that we probably wouldn’t have thought of doing. David immediately put God between him and his enemies.
“David knew that he must have the victory; but he knew if he was to have anything like permanent victory he couldn’t ask God to exalt him. So he didn’t say, ‘Oh God, I am Your king, to be successor to Saul, the sinning king. Now God, I want You to come to my rescue and crush these enemies under my feet.’ He knew better than that. So, he prayed … ‘Be thou exalted, O God, above the heavens; let thy glory be above all the earth’ (Psalm 57:5)  He was saying, ‘Whatever happens to me, God, be exalted. Whatever these men with sharp teeth and claws and spears and arrows do to me; God, let Your glory be over all the earth. My heart is fixed on this, O God, and I will sing praise because I-want You to be exalted above the heavens and Your glory over all the earth.”

• A. W. Tozer, Success and the Christian

1 Samuel 23:10-13 ‘A Warning of Betrayal’: “When Saul had received intelligence that David and his men were at Keilah, he summoned an army for the purpose of trapping his rival within the confines of a walled city. David, learning of the mobilization of Saul’s forces, inquired yet again of the Lord through the Urim and Thummim as to whether he would be betrayed to Saul by the Keilahites. When he received an affirmative divine response that served to verify the duplicitous intentions of the Keilahites, David marshaled his 600 men and escaped (23:10-13).”

• Tim LaHaye and Ed Hindson, Exploring Bible Prophecy

1 Samuel 23:14 ‘strongholds in the wilderness’: ”The wilderness of Judah is the barren desert area between the hill country and the Dead Sea. Many ravines and caves are found in this rugged region which David used as a place of refuge from Saul. The title of Ps. 63 may refer to this incident or to 2 Sam. 15:23–28. Wilderness of Ziph. The wilderness surrounding Ziph, 4 mi. S of Hebron. God did not deliver him. God sovereignly protected David from Saul for the fulfilling of His own divine purposes (cf. Is. 46:9–11).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 23:16, 17 ‘strengthen his hand in God’: “Jonathan encouraged David by reminding him of the Lord’s promise to him and concern for him, by emphatically assuring him that the Lord would make him the next king over Israel, as Saul well knew (see 20:30, 31).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 24:4 ‘The day of which the Lord said to you’: “David’s men perhaps believed that God had providentially placed Saul in the same cave where they were hiding so David could kill the king. However, nothing revelatory had previously been said by the Lord that indicated He wanted David to lift a hand against Saul.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 24:5 ‘David’s heart troubled him’: “David was able to cut off a piece of Saul’s robe undetected. However, touching Saul’s clothing was tantamount to touching his person, and David’s conscience troubled him on this account.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 24:11 ‘neither evil nor rebellion’: “If David were a wicked rebel against the rule of Saul, as Saul had said (22:8, 13), he would have killed Saul when given this opportunity. The corner of the robe was proof to Saul that David was not his enemy.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 24:14 ‘A Dead Dog?  A Flea?’: ”David hereby expresses his lowliness and entire committal of his cause to God, who alone is the Judge and to whom alone belongs vengeance.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 25:1 ‘The Israelites … lamented for him’: “The death of Samuel, the last of the judges, brought Israel to the end of an era. So widespread was Samuel’s influence among the people that all Israel gathered to lament his death. Wilderness of Paran. A desert area in the NE region of the Sinai peninsula.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 25:3 ‘’: “’Fool.’ An appropriate name in view of his foolish behavior (v. 25). Abigail. ‘My father is joy.’ The wife of Nabal who was intelligent and beautiful in contrast to her evil husband. the house of Caleb. Nabal was a descendant of Caleb and lived in Caleb’s tribal holdings (Josh. 14:13; 15:13), but did not possess the spiritual qualities of his illustrious forefather.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 25:4, 5 ‘sheering his sheep’: “While hiding out in the wilderness, David and his men took the job of protecting the flocks of Nabal (vv. 7, 15, 16). Upon hearing that Nabal was shearing his sheep, David sent 10 of his men to collect their rightful compensation for the good they had done (v. 8).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 25:19 ‘did not tell her husband’: “Abigail knew that Nabal would disagree with her actions, but knowing the Lord’s choice of David (v. 28), she recognized the consequences involved in Nabal’s cursing of David. By her actions, she chose to obey God rather than man (see Acts 5:29), as a wife may sometimes need to do.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 25:29 ‘bound in the bundle of the living’: “A metaphor that reflects the custom of binding valuables in a bundle to protect them from injury. The point here was that God cared for His own as a man would his valuable treasure. David, she said, enjoyed the protection of divine providence which destined him for great things. On the other hand, God would fling his enemies away like a stone in a sling-shot.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 25:30 ‘ruler over Israel’: “Abigail was certain that David would exercise effective rule over Israel after Saul’s death. In the meantime, however, she did not want him to do anything to jeopardize his future, endanger his throne, or violate God’s will by seeking personal vengeance in anger (vv. 26, 33, 34).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 25:33 ‘Our debt to others’: “Much of a person’s character comes from other people. What we are is not all of ourselves. We are deep in debt to others. Indeed, what person is there on whom a hundred fingers have not molded him and a thousand influences made his plastic character what it is? I know that the grace of God is what makes a person right before God, but I know, also, that holy associations (or ever grace comes into our heart to renew us) prevent us from indulging in sins into which, under other circumstances, we should certainly have plunged. In looking back, we might say, ‘I can see the finger of God in a great many places where I might have ruined myself­there, and there, and there-though I knew him not, his arms were underneath me. He guided me with his eyes. He led me by his right hand that I might not be utterly destroyed.’”

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

1 Samuel 26:5 ‘Saul lay’: “Saul was sleeping in an apparently invulnerable place. He had his commander beside him, inside the camp, surrounded by his entire army.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 26:6 ‘Ahimelech’: “Mentioned only here, he was one of the many mercenaries who formed a part of David’s army. Abishai the son of Zeruiah, brother of Joab. See … 2 Sam. 2:18. He joined with Ahimelech in going down with David into the camp of Saul.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 26:10 ‘As the Lord lives’: “An oath usually associated with life-or-death matters. The sovereign God would decide when, where, and how Saul would perish, not David.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 26:12 ‘spear and the jug’: “Like the corner of Saul’s robe (24:4), these were taken as proof that David had Saul’s life in his hand (cf. v. 16). a deep sleep from the LORD. As with Adam in Gen. 2:21 and Abraham in Gen. 15:12, the Lord caused Saul to be unaware of what was taking place around him.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 26:20 ‘flea … partridge’: “The flea represents something that was worthless and the partridge something that was impossible to catch. Saul was wasting his time with his pursuit of David.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

1 Samuel 26:21 ‘I have sinned’: “As in 24:17, Saul confessed his sin and wrongdoing. Although Saul may have been sincere, he could not be trusted and David wisely did not accept his invitation to return with him. I have played the fool. Saul had been foolish in his actions toward David, as had Nabal.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

My Thoughts

Twice David asks the Lord if he should attack the Philistines who were pillaging Keilah.  The method of this inquiry was probably through the Urim and Thummim that Abiathar spirited away in the ephod when he escaped the vengeance of Saul on the priests at Nob.  Unlike Saul who was impetuous and relying upon his own strength, David inquired of God first.  He had to ensure that this military move was God’s will.  David defeated the Philistines, carrying off a great number of their livestock.

Saul heard that David had taken the walled city of Keilah.  This would imprison David in the city and Saul could lay siege to kill David.

This illustrates how depraved Saul has become.  He was willing to starve an entire city to gain the capture and execution of someone who had never done him any harm.  This was all over jealousy.

David again inquires of God; this time the Scripture mentions the ephod.  The people of Keilah would indeed betray David after he had saved them.  Instead, David and his 600 men left Keilah and continued on the run from town to town.

Jonathan met David at Horesh.  He swore his allegiance to David.  It seems that both David and Jonathan were a bit naïve regarding the exchange of leadership.  David has been anointed and will become king, but the people will seek a descendant of Saul.  Jonathan is a strong warrior, and it makes sense for him to become the next king, yet Jonathan agreed to be David’s second in command.

Saul was in hot pursuit and closing in on David’s forces.  He was on one side of a mountain in the Desert of Maon and David was on the other side when the word came to Saul that the Philistines were attacking.  Saul broke off his pursuit to deal with the Philistine threat.  Sela Hammahlekoth means the Rock of Escape.  David went from there to the strongholds of En Gedi.

Once Saul had repelled the Philistines, he heard that David was in the Desert of En Gedi.  He pursued David.

Saul entered a cave to relieve himself.  Unknown to Saul, David and his men were hiding in the cave.  His men said that God had delivered Saul into their hands, but David only cut a corner of Saul’s robe.  Even then, David’s conscience bothered him.  Cutting the robe was like cutting the man, and Saul had been anointed by God to be king.  David and his men left the cave and David turned to say to Saul that he should quit listening to those who say that David is a threat to Saul and his kingdom.  He admitted to cutting Saul’s robe.  He could have killed Saul, but he was still loyal to the king.  He asked Saul if he (David) was a dead dog or a flea to be pursued in such a way.

David was using these terms to describe himself as something worthless in Saul’s eyes.  Odd that when Richard Dawkins was challenged by reporters about Rev. David Robertson after Rev. Robertson wrote The Dawkins Letters as a rebuttal to Dawkins’ The God Delusion.  Dawkins dismissed Rev. Robertson as being a mere flea.  Rev. Robertson said that Dawkins was a bit wrong about that.  Robertson was Scottish.  He would not be a “flea,” he would be “The Wee Flea.”  You can find what Rev. David Robertson is up to on his website, theweeflea.com.  But I wonder if Dawkins had ever read the Bible and knew King David had made the same comparison millennia ago.

With David in that area, marauders were kept at bay.  He provided protection for the local population.  Nabal, a descendant of Caleb, one of the two good spies who brought back a good report to the Israelites that the people in the Promised Land could be taken with God’s help.  But Nabal, meaning “fool”, was more of a fool than a hero like his ancestor.  David requested a meal so that his men could continue.  David knew that Nabal was in sheering season, and it was going to be a good yield, but Nabal refused.  Abigail, Nabal’s wife, heard this and prepared food for David’s men.  When David heard of Nabal’s response, he swears a curse upon him.  David went to have Nabal and his family killed, but Abigail showed up with the food.

This satisfied David and he broke off the pursuit.  Abigail convinced David to not have this lead to bloodshed.  David allowed Abigail to return to her husband in peace.  She found him drunk having a big feast due to his great fortune in sheep’s wool.  When he sobered, Abigail told him everything and how she had saved him and the family from being slaughtered.  Nabal turned as hard as stone and died ten days later.  Abigail had asked David not to forget her.  David took her as one of his wives.

Abigail had acted courageously.  She had negotiated a peace efficiently, but in the end, she was only one of David’s wives.  She and her son from David are only mentioned as a footnote after this, but there was great potential in Abigail.

The people of Gibeah told Saul where David was hiding and that was all that Saul needed to attack again, even though David had proven faithful to Saul at En Gedi.  Note that the Scripture say people of Gibeah, which was Saul’s capitol city.  Thus, Saul had unwise advisors that led him to his own destruction.

There are three place names that are in the same general area.  Geba, Gibeon, and Gibeah.  All three place names mean hill in Hebrew.  Some of these names seem to be used interchangeably, but some scholars contend that these place names are three separate places, while others think that Gibeah and Gibeon were the same city.  Yet, it was the Gibeonites who tricked Joshua into sparing their city.  They became slaves as a result.  King Saul, in 1 Samuel 21, killed some of the Gibeonites which led to famine as the punishment of violating the treaty with the Gibeonites, trickery or not.  But then Saul was from Gibeah, and people of Gibeah were acting as spies, telling him where David was, fueling his mania.  Whether these three towns were the same place or not, these “hills” in Israel play an odd place in this story.

Saul went to the Desert of Ziph and this time he camped with his army all around him, some 3,000 elite troops.

David asked for a volunteer and Joab’s brother Abishai went into the camp and saw Saul asleep with a spear next to his head along with a water jug.  The spear had been thrust into the ground.  One lift, adjusting a few inches, and one thrust was all it would take.  Abishai makes the same claim to David that David’s men made in the cave.  Saul had been delivered by God into David’s hands.  David refused to let Abishai take the spear and kill Saul.  Instead, they took the spear and water jug.

David went to a nearby hill and called to Abner, the commander of the army, not to King Saul.  He chided Abner for not protecting his king.  Then Saul awakened and asked if that was David calling to them from the hill.  Saul said things to indicate he repented of his hatred of David.  He called his actions foolish.

But David did not fall for the bait.  He told Saul to send a soldier to come get the king’s spear.  Saul even admitted that David would live and do great things.  David escaped and Saul went home.

Some Serendipitous Reflections

1 Samuel 23:1-6 David saves Keilah 1. When faced with a similar call to arms, or to serve, do you respond more like David’s men, or like David? Why?
“2. When God says ‘Go’, how long do you wait before actually going?
1 Samuel 23:7-29 Saul Pursues David 1. What distinguishes those who are ‘driven’ as is Saul? Take a good look at the ‘Saul’ within you. In which areas of your life are you prone to explosive anger, to paralyzing self-pity, to compulsive behavior?
“2. Who has helped you ‘find strength in the Lord’? How so?
“3. Pick one tough situation facing you right now: How is God in control of that? If you are ‘on the run’ in any way, how does God fit into your flight pattern? Who can encourage you now?
“4. Pick another tough situation in which you are more prone to act like Ziphites and ‘sell out’ or give up: How will you resist that temptation?
1 Samuel 24 1. When have you let your friends talk you into taking revenge against someone? How did you feel afterwards?
“2. What is your attitude towards authority figures? Which of the following do you see as ‘God’s anointed’ or as man’s anointed: Parents? Spouse? Clergy? Employer? Police? Corrupt politicians? Explain your designation.
“3. Is there an authority figure in your life whom you have a difficult time submitting to? How would David act in your position?
“4.-Are you as content as David seems to be to simply let God effect his will, his way, in his time? Or are you likely to ‘help God out’ in some way? Give an example from last week.
“5. How can you tell if someone is sincere in wanting to ‘turn over a new leaf’?
“6. By your own standards, how would you do on that sincerity test?
1 Samuel 25 1. If you were recently widowed, like Abigail, how would you respond to a sudden proposal like David’s: (a) ‘No’, pretending to grieve a dead husband you couldn’t stand to live with? (b) ‘Yes’, jumping at this new lease on life? (c) ‘It all depends on’ ____?
“2. How faithful are you in leaving revenge to God? When did you most recently give someone ‘what was coming to him’? When did you most recently return good for evil?
“3. How do you react when you don’t get what is ‘rightfully’ yours? What can you learn from David’s choices and their consequences?
“4. If you were in Abigail’s sandals, what would you have done?
“5. When those in authority over you make bad decisions, should you: Take matters into your own hands? Pray? Try to dissuade the person from error? What about those under your authority?
“6. Who is your ‘Abigail’-one who has kept you from sin by appealing to your conscience? Do you seek this ministry from fellow believers? How so? How often?
1 Samuel 26 1. In what area of your life do you need to be comforted with this reminder, ‘The Lord rewards righteousness and faithfulness’? Where is your faithfulness being tested? What reward are you anticipating?
“2. Failing to see God act on your behalf, are you tempted to take matters into your own hands? ln what area?
“3. Describe one of your ‘desert experiences’ from the past. Are you in one now? What do you hope to learn from this one?”

• Lyman Coleman, et al, The NIV Serendipity Bible for Study Groups

There are two sets of questions for 1 Samuel 23 as noted.  There is one set of questions each for 1 Samuel 24-26.

Substitute whatever group for any reference to a small group or ask who could come to your aid.

If you like these Thursday morning Bible studies, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Thursday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.