Daily Devotional

“So, they set the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart” (2 Samuel 6:3). 

In 2014 a family in Toulouse, France, decided to fix a leak in their roof. To reach the leak, they had to break through a door in a part of their attic they had never entered. To their surprise, they found a painting behind the door. The rather disturbing artwork depicted the killing of a general. Since the painting appeared to be very old, they decided to have an expert appraise it. 

You can imagine their shock when they were told that the painting was 400 years old and worth $136 million! What made it so valuable was that it was painted by the master painter Caravaggio. Though gruesome to the average viewer, the painting reveals incredible genius to those who appreciate fine art. 

Sometimes people fail to appreciate what they have. This was the case with Abinadab. Although the greatest piece of art ever had been stored in his house, the Bible does not tell us that he received any blessing from it. Although the design of the ark of the covenant involved special craftsman skills (Exodus 36:1), it was the presence of God’s glory that went with it that would have brought the greatest benefit. Yet for Abinadab, this ark was associated with the death of his son Uzzah, the man who was killed instantly when he touched it (2 Samuel 6:7). 

The next family who stored the ark after Abinadab had a different experience. They received such a great blessing from the presence of the ark that the news reached the king (2 Samuel 6:12). Why had Abinadab’s family missed the same blessing? Perhaps he had not sufficiently appreciated the presence of God. For some, God’s presence means death, but for those who have learned to appreciate the Creator, it is a source of blessing. 

Dearest Lord, please open my eyes that I may see Your presence in my life.