Deuteronomy 6:4-9, “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”
When Saul had turned thirteen years old, he was already considered a “son of the law.” He had assumed all of the responsibilities of an adult male Jew. He was wearing “Teffelin,” (Phylacteries) during morning prayers. Made up of two leather cubes with long leather straps, they would contain passages from the Torah written on strips of parchment. One cube would be worn on his head; the other would be worn on his left arm, wrapped seven times around his arm, facing his heart.
Exodus 13:9 states that the observance of the “Feast of Unleavened Bread” was to be a reminder on your forehead, so that the law of the Lord might be in your mouth. Phylacteries were a simple and strict act of obedience. The left arm was chosen because it was considered weaker. God’s Word was to act as a banner over man’s weakness. While we don’t typically practice the act of wearing phylacteries, Christians ought to take very seriously the practice inwardly.
Saul would have placed these phylacteries on in complete silence. If he would have been interrupted, he would have started the whole process over again repeating all of the benedictions involved. A thirteen-year-old Hebrew boy would not have gotten out of bed without remembering to whom he belonged. As each strap was bound around his head and arm, he would have been reminded of his binding relationship to his creator. He would begin each day assuming the responsibility of being a child of God. The law of the Lord ruled his life.
When you got up this morning, was God the first thing on your heart?
When you sat with that first cup of coffee, were you formulating a plan for evangelizing those around you? As you walked out the door to begin your day, had you remembered that each breath you took, was a gift from your loving Father? We often go through life oblivious to the needs around us, and those within us. Never go where God does not. Never forget that our life as Christians are dedicated to the bringing forth of the Gospel.
We are distracted by so many things. Make sure to focus on those things which really matter. Without question, God is the single greatest purpose of man’s existence. Focus on God, and our vision will always be where it should be. Godspeed on your journey.