“Because you did not carry it at the first, the LORD our God made an outburst on us, for we did not seek Him according to the ordinance.” ‬ ‭(15:13‬)

Who hasn’t been here? After failing painfully, we do a little Biblical research to find out how to actually approach something. David was upset about Uzza, but in the end he knew why it happened.

The ark came with elaborate instructions and the LORD took it very seriously. While not every nuance of life has the same extensive Biblical instructions, most major things can fall under a guiding principle:

• Humility before our Creator
• Generosity with what we’ve got
• Kindness toward everyone great and small
• Trust in the LORD
• Humility with others
• Care for the vulnerable
• Prioritizing the interests of others
• Being the kind of gracious we would love
• Humility always
• Listening before talking
• Good stewardship of land
• Taking a sabbath
• Practicing good hygiene
• Humane treatment of animals
• Loving unconditionally

The list goes on and on. Scripture is useful for all facets of life. Do we approach it for guidance? Thinking back to James 1, we shouldn’t read the Bible to feel good about ourselves, it should inform our decision making.

David had access to the Torah, as the king of Israel, yet he hadn’t consulted it the first time he tried moving the ark. We can see from these chapters that he’s an excitable guy (dancing til his clothes fall off?) so it makes sense that he would excitedly move the ark without first thinking it all the way through.

What sets David apart from other kings who made mistakes, is his humility to admit when he’s wrong and set things right. This is why I listed humility three times. It cannot be underestimated. Perhaps the single most important thing we can learn from Scripture is how to walk humbly before our God.

Have you recently hit some hard times in life? Are you ready to humble yourself and consult the Word of God about what He has to say about the way to do something? I increasingly believe it’s not what we do in life that matters as much as how we do it.

-Bethany