Perceive: Most scholars agree that it was about one year later that God sends Nathan the prophet to confront David the king. In a classic word picture, Nathan tells a parable of a poor man's only lamb which is taken away by a rich man for his selfish pleasure. As king, David was responsible for maintaining justice and righteousness in all Israel. After hearing the story, he burned with anger, not realizing he was angry with himself. Nathan seizes the moment and tells him, "You are the man!" and then lays out the consequences. What David did in private, God would display in public, and unfortunately, the sword of the Lord will never leave his home.
 
Practice:  The longer a man goes without realizing he has separated himself from godly fellowship through blatant sin, the more desensitized he becomes to his guilt. Until David’s confrontation by Nathan the prophet, he did not recognize his sinfulness. With this kind of wrongdoing, it is easier to see sin in others than to see it in ourselves. Unrepentant sinfulness leads to a critical spirit of others and a lack of grace. When it comes to spiritual criticism, think about who and what it is that makes you critical. It may be that in criticizing others; you are criticizing yourself!
 
Pray: Great and mighty God, help me see others as You see them and help me see myself in light of Your grace and glory.
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This devotional challenge comes from The Heart of a Lion - King David of Israel and is available on Amazon.com

Perceive: At the end of this dark chapter in David’s life, he thinks the incident and his sin has reached a conclusion, but it has not. Upon hearing of her husband’s death, the wife of Uriah mourns for her husband. In what may have been a month (Numbers 20:29; Deuteronomy 34:8), David sends for her, and she becomes his wife. Their son is born, they settle in with new lives, and the sun rises as it has in the past. Outside of a few people, no one knows the depth of David’s deceitfulness. However, the Lord knew, and Scripture ends this chapter with a clear indictment against our hero, “But the thing that David had done was evil in the sight of the Lord.”
 
Practice: This could have been the end of the story, but thankfully God is about to hold his chosen leader accountable for at least three commandments: he coveted another man’s wife, committed adultery, and conspiracy to commit murder. Sow a thought, you reap an action. Sow an action, you reap a habit. Sow a habit, and you reap a destiny! If you are an intentional follower of Christ who is playing with the sins of the flesh, you are living on borrowed time and putting yourself in great danger. God has a way of making the sins done in the darkness, be exposed to His light (Ephesians 5:11-13). It is never glamorous and seldom turns out well!
 
Pray: Thank you, Lord, for this stinging example in the life of King David. Help me to keep my thoughts and actions appropriate for a serving man of God.​

This devotional challenge comes from The Heart of a Lion - King David of Israel and is available on Amazon.com

Perceive: David is nearing the age of fifty, plus or minus a few years. The culmination of this story serves as a shining example that no one is too young or too old to fall into deep sins. After his first two attempts for a cover up fail, he conspires to commit murder under the disguise of war. Not only does he conspire to have Uriah eliminated, but he has him carry his death sentence to the front lines. It was also clear to Joab what David was asking him to do, and as his relative and leading general, he was more than willing to be an accomplice. After a fierce battle, Uriah, and many others die because of David’s sin and need to cover up his guilt. David’s response to the messenger of Uriah’s death is callous and insensitive. He shows little regard for the loss of life of this man and the troops who were under his command. It is the darkest hour of his life and ministry.
 
Practice: When you act in panic, you lose the ability to maintain sound reason and logic which leads to more sin. David thought the only way he could cover up his first sin was to commit more sins. It was not long until he no longer felt guilty for his actions. Unfortunately, feelings can be very misleading in determining right or wrong. Deliberate, repeated sinning dulls a man’s sensitivity to God’s word, God’s ways, and the needs of other people. The more you try to cover up a sin, the more insensitive you become.  Above all else guard your heart, from it flow the springs of life (Proverbs 4:23).
 
Pray: Lord, enable me to guard my heart against the world, the flesh, the devil, and most of all the deceitfulness of my own heart!
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This devotional challenge comes from The Heart of a Lion - King David of Israel and is available on Amazon.com

Perceive: Instead of seeking the Lords' face and calling on the Lord to forgive him his sins, the king develops a backup plan to cover up the incident. He sends for Uriah, her husband, and tries to manipulate him into going home and sleeping with his wife, thereby covering up what he did. Subsequently, Uriah was a godly warrior and set a better example of integrity than his king by refusing to go home! Away from soldiering, David was home and indulges his flesh (v 2), Uriah is away from soldiering and maintains his godly discipline (v 11). Seeing his first strategy fail, David attempted a new scheme and made one of his mighty men drunk, hoping the influence of wine would break down his will. But even under the intoxication of wine, Uriah was a more disciplined man than a sober David!
 
Practice: Being a man of power and influence are great opportunities if they are handled well. Unfortunately, absolute power corrupts absolutely. There comes a time in every man’s life when he must choose to live by godly principles or worldly circumstances. David chose to manipulate his circumstances to hide his sin. Uriah chose to honor God and live by principle and not on circumstance. The next time your temptation to feed the flesh appears, be sure to do the right thing. If you sin, don’t try and cover it up. Own your stuff! Otherwise, God will continue to make sure it gets worse rather than better.
 
Pray: O Lord, my God, help me to own my stuff and whenever applicable to live by Your principles and not by my circumstance.​

This devotional challenge comes from The Heart of a Lion - King David of Israel and is available on Amazon.com