Words that Inspire

The story of Samson has always intrigued me. I have read it at different points in my life and each time I read it, I learn something new.  I was recently inspired to take another look at Samson’s story and the lessons that can be pulled from it. The story of Samson, a great judge in Israel, starts in Judges 13, with his conception and the preparations of his birth, so it is only appropriate that we start our study there.

Divine Purpose is Given before Birth

Before we actually meet Samson, we find out the purpose of his birth and just how special he was meant to be. To his parents, he was the child that they had waited so long for. To God, he was the judge and warrior his people would need at a specific time.

Each and every one of us, long before we were conceived, were assigned a purpose. We are all born with gifts and talents that are to be used for a specific purpose. There is no child, no conception that is purposeless. For some people, their talents and gifts are manifested from a tender age. The purpose for which God has called them begins to manifest from early on. These are the children you look at, and you can from their behavior and speech that they are special. Jesus was a child who was special from birth, so was Joseph and the prophet Samuel.

When does Divine Purpose Manifest?

For some people, what makes them special and their divine assignment is not brought to fruition until they are older. For example, Moses, Gideon, Daniel and King David. These are mighty men in the Bible, who lived out the purpose God had called them to. However, they did not begin to manifest their skills, gifts, talents, and purposes, till they were past infancy.

For others, they grow into adulthood, often living out the wrong purpose or the opposite of what God needs them for. However, in his mercy, God always pulls them and places them, right where he needs them. A notable example is the apostle Paul, who did everything, except believe in Jesus, until God arrested him. Others include Jacob, and the subject of our study: Samson.

Parents are responsible for laying a good foundation

I have met people who have had their destinies cut short or live so far outside their calling that it seems that they can never get back to God. A lot of people who have died, gone to prison, become greedy ruthless people or criminals, were born to fulfill good amongst God’s people, but they did not have a good foundation.

Some of these people grew up in a home without parents, tossed from stranger to stranger. Some of them were left, from a  very tender age, to the cruelty and reality of the world. They had no adult to protect and teach them right. Some who grew up with parents grew up in an environment where the adults were the ones leading them astray. Others have had parents who tried to raise a child on their own without God’s help. While others have tried the best they can and what happens, is left to God.

Just as Samson’s parents did EVERYTHING they could to lay a solid foundation and prepare properly for their son, parents are responsible for doing everything they possibly can, to lay a good foundation for their children.

Importance of laying a good foundation

For all you know, the child you are raising may be the next greatest inventor, the next politician that will bring great change, a motivational speaker that will encourage others, a doctor that will cure cancer, the accountant that will save a company, which will save lives, etc. The divine purpose of your child may not be revealed to you. It does not change the fact that the responsibility of rearing that treasure till the sue tie comes, is not yours.

We know that Samson fell victim to Delilah’s wiles, and we will explore that. However, we forget that at the end of it all, he was able to go back to the foundation his parents had laid – he found himself before God, for a brief moment, restored back to his place with God’s glory working through him. He may have gone astray, but the good foundation laid, helped him find his way back.

So, parents and those who are yet to be parents, please be firm and careful, when rearing your children. Commit them in God’s hands, teach them to rely on God, and seek his guidance, as you lay a good foundation for them.