Perspective on When God Redeems the Choices We Make - Jeanne Takenaka

We never know how the choices we make may impact our lives. 

Have you ever read a Biblical genealogy and thought, “Wow! I saw so much of God in that list of names!”

Yeah, me neither. 

But, recently, as I began another read-through of the Bible I was stopped by a thought. In Matthew 1:6 it says, 

“David the king begot Solomon by her who had been the wife of Uriah.”

There are four women listed in Jesus’ genealogy. But one of those women in Matthew’s list is not named.

One impacting Choice

Most of us know Bathsheba’s story. How David watched her bathe as he walked on his roof one evening (see 2 Samuel 11), and he lusted for her in his heart. He summoned her to come to him, and they slept together.

If we read further into 2 Samuel, we know Bathsheba became pregnant from that one-night stand. David, rather than owning his role in her pregnancy, tried to cover it up (see 2 Samuel 12), eventually having honorable Uriah (Bathsheba’s husband) murdered.

I cannot even imagine how Bathsheba felt through all of this or what thoughts went sliding through her mind. Maybe she felt obligated to go because, after all, David was the king. Maybe she felt extreme guilt for betraying her husband.

And to discover she was pregnant, and Uriah was not at home because he was at war . . . what fear must Bathsheba have grappled with?

After David had Uriah killed, did she blame herself for his death? 

God confronted David about his sin and the way he attempted to cover it up. He told David the child would die. 

Again, how must have Bathsheba felt? We don’t know if David informed her of God’s consequence for his actions. But to lose a child you’ve carried for nine months and then nursed life into, regardless of how that child was conceived, the pain of empty arms and a broken heart would pierce a soul.

Despite the reasonings behind Bathsheba’s initial decision to answer David’s summons, that one choice set her on a trajectory toward heartbreak.

Though Bathsheba is alluded to in Jesus’ genealogy as “Uriah’s wife,” so much more lies below the surface of those eight defining words.

“her who had been the wife of Uriah.”

Our Father is just and merciful. He may not have mentioned Bathsheba by name, but He credited her role in Jesus’ lineage.

God redeemed her one choice, because our Father is a redeemer of the broken. Whatever Bathsheba’s reasoning, she chose to go to David when he invited her. We know she probably  walked through the rest of her days with a limp, with brokenness borne of regret. 

Perspective on When God Redeems the Choices We Make—God redeemed her one choice, because our Father is a redeemer of the broken #tellhisstory #ourchoices Click To Tweet

God’s role in the choices we make

But God . . . 

He’s the Mender broken hearts. He redeems hopeless situations.

Perspective on When God Redeems the Choices We Make—He’s the Mender broken hearts. He redeems hopeless situations #tellhisstory #ourchoices Click To Tweet

After God dealt with David and took his and Bathsheba’s first child, God gifted them Solomon.

We’ve all made choices that seemed minuscule in the moment but changed the course of our lives. We’ve all borne regret for decisions made and the hurt they inflicted on us and others. We’ve all tainted relationships with a single choice. 

The thing is? No choice we make is too big for God to redeem. No decision is so far past the scope of God as to be beyond His ability to touch. 

If we’re honest, we can all look back at a pivotal moment in our lives and wish we’d done something different.

God rarely alters the decisions we’ve made, but He can bring good even from bad choices we make.

Our Father works in our hearts once we own what we’ve said or done, when we ask for forgiveness. And God does surprising things when we yield all of ourselves to Him. 

Conclusion

We don’t know much about Bathsheba’s life after she became one of David’s wives.

But we see the evidence of a relationship between her and David. We glimpse the reality that she gained wisdom and imparted it to her son, Solomon. And, we read of how, near the end of David’s life, Nathan the prophet respected her enough to ask her to help David see reason about another life-changing issue (see 1 Kings 1:11).

Some choices we make impact our present and future. Some we look back on and understand how they influenced our past But, God can purify and redeem those choices in ways that draw us and others closer to Him . . . if we’ll own them and turn to Him.

What about you?  When has a seemingly small choice changed your entire life? When have you seen God redeem a past choice you made?

Next week, we’re meeting at Lisa Jordan’s place.

P.S. I’m at a writer’s conference this week (yay!), so I won’t be able to respond to comments (sadness). So, to keep things simple, I’ll be closing comments for this post. If you want to email me your thoughts, I’d love it, and I will respond after I return from my conference. Thanks for understanding!

Come share your story at the Tell His Story linkup. Connect and be encouraged by like-minded friends! #tellhisstory #linkup Click To Tweet

Most weeks, I link up with Grace and Truth, Anita Ojeda, Instaencouragements, and sometimes Let’s Have Coffee. Come join and read more encouraging posts!

Each week we gather here as storytellers, word weavers, and encouragers to make His name known. Our story is God’s story and this small corner of the blogging world, where we come together each Tuesday, needs you. This is a place where poetry, snapshots, prayers, and stories find a safe spot to nod in agreement that what we have to say matters. I am glad you are here and would love to have you join the #TellHisStory community. Add your own encouraging post through the link below. Spread some love by visiting your neighbor and leaving your own encouragement. Click here to read more about the #TellHisStory community and find a button to add to your site.

Each week we gather here as storytellers, word weavers, and encouragers to make His name known. Our story is God’s story and this small corner of the blogging world, where we come together each Tuesday, needs you. This is a place where poetry, snapshots, prayers, and stories find a safe spot to nod in agreement that what we have to say matters. I am glad you are here and would love to have you join the #TellHisStory community. Add your own encouraging post through the link below. Spread some love by visiting your neighbor and leaving your own encouragement. Click here to read more about the #TellHisStory community and find a button to add to your site.