by Sandra Hansen

During a Rochester winter, sledding is a popular activity. You hop on a sled and you have to push, push, push with lots of effort, to get it going. And all of a sudden, you hit that point where the sled takes off-whoosh! The sled takes on a life of its own and you can’t get off, even if you wanted to do so, without a tumble and a fall.

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Route 365 Sandra Hansen

by Sandra Hansen

Not too many of us were declared King lately or mustered an army of 180,000 fighting men. But, some days it feels like a battle to get up and get going with life. It’s a fight to get the kids off to school, ourselves off to work, and our daily routine in process.

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Route 365 Sandra Hansen

by Gary Kneezel

The people of Israel seemed to have a reasonable request for Rehoboam – a request that might appeal to those who recall the American colonies’ revolution in 1776 against England. They felt oppressed by the heavy burden of taxation and forced labor that King Solomon had imposed on them.

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Route 365 Gary Kneezel

by Gary Kneezel

Good start. Mediocre ending. Solomon had built the temple. He had asked for and received great wisdom from God for ruling his people. His reign was characterized by peace and prosperity. Yet because he had worshiped other gods, the Lord had told Solomon in verses 9-13 that the kingdom would be torn from his son—except for one tribe.

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Route 365 Gary Kneezel

by Gary Kneezel

Kings may influence history, but God controls history. As we saw in the first part of chapter 11, Solomon’s heart had turned away from God. God promised to let Solomon continue to reign, but He would tear most of the kingdom away from Solomon’s son.

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Route 365 Gary Kneezel

by Gary Kneezel

Hey, wait a minute! Doesn’t John 3:16 say that God loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life? If God loves the world, shouldn’t I love the world? Well, yes and no.

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Route 365 Gary Kneezel

by Gary Kneezel

Power, wealth, fame, intellect. King Solomon had it all. People came to Solomon from all over the civilized world to hear his wisdom, have their questions answered and bring gifts. His kingdom was so prosperous that silver was commonplace.

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Route 365 Gary Kneezel

by Sarah Knight

My mom always used to tell me “remember to be who you are.” I have to admit that I would say, “I know, Mom, I will,” and I wouldn’t always make good on that promise in high school. I actually wasn’t even really sure what she meant by that.

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Route 365 Sarah Knight

by Sarah Knight

I have three sisters who are all basically the same size (myself included). Sometimes for Christmas my parents or other family members would get us four pieces of jewelry or four different color sweaters and just assume that we’d politely distribute them amongst ourselves in a ladylike manner.

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Route 365 Sarah Knight

by Sarah Knight

When I first read this passage, I’ll admit thinking, “Umm...this is kind of harsh.” God basically says to Solomon, stick with me and everything will be really, really good; but if you stray away, watch your back! But then I also think that if I was Solomon, I would stay on the straight and narrow because God warned me that if I didn’t, I’d become an object of mockery and ridicule among other nations.

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Route 365 Sarah Knight

by Sarah Knight

Have you ever been blown away by something God has done? To me, that would be a perfect synopsis for our reading today: Solomon was blown away by God and what He had done, giving them the ability to rebuild the temple.

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Route 365 Sarah Knight

by Sarah Knight

I got two big ideas out of the reading today. First, Solomon thanks God for “making good” on His promise to David to build the temple. Then the rest of his prayer is basically asking God to remain with Israel and guide them in the future.

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Route 365 Sarah Knight

by Rusty Knight

I feel like today’s reading is the final scene of a movie I’ve been watching over the past five days. It started with Solomon rallying the troops from near and far to gather the supplies and build the temple.

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Route 365 Rusty Knight

by Rusty Knight

From the reading today, I’m continued to be impressed by the magnificent detail and craftsmanship put into building and furnishing the temple. I can only imagine what the huge bronze basins looked like, and how impressive the furnishings were that Solomon filled the temple with.

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Route 365 Rusty Knight

written by Rusty Knight

To be completely honest, this passage is one of those passages that I’ve read before and thought, “Why is this information important to me?” Why is it important for me to know that the interior walls were lined with cedar planks and gold overlays?

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Route 365 Rusty Knight

written by Rusty Knight

In this passage, we’re told some of the initial particulars of the temple, such as the height, width and length of the sanctuary. The interesting part of this passage to me is in verse 11. God speaks to Solomon as almost a reminder to let Solomon and Israel know that even though they’re building the Lord’s temple, they still need to be obedient to God and abide by ALL his regulations.

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Route 365 Rusty Knight

written by Rusty Knight

I was a soccer guy growing up and I still love to play when I get the chance. An aspect of team sports that I love is that it takes a team of guys, each with different skill sets and abilities, coming together to build a great team.

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Route 365 Rusty Knight

If you’re like me, when you come across passages like this you either skim them or skip them altogether! The names are hard to pronounce and oftentimes we’re left wondering “Why is this here?” I wish I could answer that question for you, but quite honestly I can only give you a partial answer.

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Route 365 Bruce Talbert

written by Bruce Talbert

According to experts, the past two years have brought about the most challenging economic times since the Great Depression. Several factors have played into this situation, ranging from bad housing loans, financial derivatives, and even to some extent a general lack of financial discipline.

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Route 365 Bruce Talbert

written by Bruce Talbert

I remember as a child hearing fiery preachers talk about the end times, saying there would be an “information explosion” that would occur as part of ushering in the last days. Sometimes stories were given about new findings in science or technology that bolstered their point about the nearness of the end times.

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Route 365 Bruce Talbert

written by Bruce Talbert

Today's reading is about an event that has stood out in my mind since hearing it as a very young boy, the time when God appears to Solomon in a dream and offers him anything he desires.

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Route 365 Bruce Talbert

written by Bruce Talbert

Wow! My reaction from reading this text is triggered by Solomon’s solution to the problem presented before him: “Bring me a sword…cut the living child in two.” This is not some half-hearted statement you and I tend to make several times a day; this is coming from a guy who had people to do exactly what he said without hesitation.

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Route 365 Bruce Talbert

written by Jerry Runser

Today's reading is about an event that has stood out in my mind since hearing it as a very young boy, the time when God appears to Solomon in a dream and offers him anything he desires. In humility and unselfishness, he asks for a "discerning heart" to govern "God's great people".

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Route 365 Jerry Runser

written by Jerry Runser

In today's reading, Solomon deals with Shimei. As a result of bitter curses that Shimei called down on David, David's deathbed instruction to Solomon was to deal with him in wisdom but to "bring his gray head down to the grave in blood". Solomon gave Shimei a chance, but ordered him to stay in Jerusalem or he would die. Shimei agrees ("What you say is good!") Shimei disobeyed, and paid the consequence.

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Route 365 Jerry Runser

written by Jerry Runser

In today's reading, Solomon starts taking charge as the new king. Adonijah continues his political maneuvering, and in Solomon's mind it is time to do away with the older brother who would always be a threat to his reign. Solomon also has Joab put to death because of his treachery in David's rule and his support of Adonijah's schemes.

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Route 365 Jerry Runser

written by Jerry Runser

In today's reading, we hear what David told Solomon at the end of David's life, the beginning of Solomon's reign. I think we can assume that David was very wise by this time: He was a "man after God's own heart"; He reigned over God's people for 40 years; He made mistakes but learned from them; We see many insights and much wisdom in the psalms he wrote. The words to his son at this point must have been his most sage advice.

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Route 365 Jerry Runser

written by Jerry Runser

In reflecting on today's passage, I can't help but think about “politics.” There are several meanings of the word "politics," but I am referring to the first definition that came up in my Google search, which is: "social relations to gain authority or power".

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Route 365 Jerry Runser

written by Cheryl Gunderman

Today’s our last run together; let’s see what God has to show us today.

Isn’t that just the way life is? You get the formula down for success; you learn the “trick” and think the rewards are just around the corner and what happens? Someone steps in and try’s to take it all away. Sound familiar?

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Route 365 Cheryl Gunderman

written by Cheryl Gunderman

So where are we going today? What will we discover along the way?

How would you like a recipe for a great life or a formula for wealth and fame? Wouldn’t that be great? If we could just bottle it and sell it we could all be rich! 

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Route 365 Cheryl Gunderman

written by Cheryl Gunderman

Thanks for joining me on this journey. One way I connect best with God and his Word is while running or exercising. So, come with me now and see where God leads us.

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Route 365 Cheryl Gunderman

written by Cheryl Gunderman

Thanks for joining me on this journey. One way I connect best with God and his Word is while running or exercising. So, come with me now and see where God leads us today.

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Route 365 Cheryl Gunderman