Moving forward

Scripture:
2 Samuel 12:22-23: "He said, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept, for I said, ‘Who knows whether theLord will be gracious to me, that the child may live?’  But now he is dead. Why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me."

Observation:
David messes up in chapter 11. He takes another man's (Uriah's) wife, sleeps with her and has a child.  At the beginning of chapter 12 David is rebuked by the prophet Nathan for the evil that he has done and in v15 David's bastard child becomes sick.  David stays by his side, praying, and fasting. The boy dies in the end, and David acts as though nothing has happened*. He returns to the rest of his life and he is then questioned by his servants and verses 22 and 23 comprise his reply.

Application:
Honestly, I didn't have a big reason why I picked this verse.  Nothing particular stood out to me. Sure there were more awesome fight scenes and the redemption God gives David after he sins is amazing, but there wasn't anything that really jumped. Instead I have this verse which, for some reason or another, I took a screen shot of. I think the reason is that David shows strength in moving forward.  He wept as much as any man could have at all he lost. He prayed. He fasted. But when God finally took away his son for good, David didn't wallow in the past. He moved forward. It is shown that David regains his favour with God and understands the punishment.  Even with the understanding that it was a punishment for a sin, I wouldn't be so easy to move past something. And as positive I am most of the time, I do focus on the negatives. Here I see David picking himself up off the ground, brushing himself off and moving on towards God's will. I love this attitude. Life isn't going to be easy. I'm not going to evade bad times, but I can move on in the knowledge that God does right, and His plan continues.

Prayer:
Dear Jesus,
I thank you for all the good AND bad things that have happened. And even if I don't really act grateful, I pray that it becomes a character you instil in me. I want to fully understand that you send me lessons, and that my appropriate response is not to let sadness, fear, or frustration linger but to move on; move towards your light. In your name I pray,
Amen.



*Note: He did not ever BRAG about the fasting that he had done. This was natural. This was their norm.