PASSION WITHOUT PERMISSION

A Deep Thoughts Devotional Story
© Opeyemi Akintunde
As Inspired by the LIVING WORD

He believed he was fighting for God.
He believed heaven approved his actions.
He believed his passion made him right.

But zeal, when not guided by God, can become dangerous.

My name is Rizpah.
I am not often preached about.
I was Saul’s concubine, and I bore him two sons.
Those sons were taken from me not because they were guilty,
but because of a sin committed long before their time.

King Saul acted out of intense zeal.
He saw enemies around Israel and decided to wipe them out.
He believed he was defending God’s people.
But he ignored one thing: covenant.

The Gibeonites were strangers, yes.
But they were strangers Israel had sworn to protect.
God is not impressed by passion that breaks His word.

Years after Saul was gone, famine struck the land for three straight years.
David cried to God, and the answer was chilling:
“Saul and his house are guilty of bloodshed.”

Saul had been zealously wrong.

To restore the land, justice had to be served.
Seven sons of Saul were demanded.
Two of them were mine.

I watched them die.
And for six months, I stayed with their bodies—
chasing birds away by day,
fighting wild animals by night.

A mother’s pain, born from a king’s misguided zeal.

Can a person act for God and still be wrong?
Yes. Absolutely.

You can defend God and offend Him at the same time.
You can protect “truth” and destroy lives wrongly.

Writing petitions fueled by bitterness may be zealously wrong.
Hurting people in the name of religion may be zealously wrong.
Disowning a child instead of restoring them may be zealously wrong.
Punishing loved ones based on fear and suspicion may be zealously wrong.

Zeal is not a substitute for obedience.
Passion does not replace discernment.

Before you act, ask:
“Did God truly instruct this?”

KEY SCRIPTURE:
Romans 10:2 – “For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.”

PRAYER POINTS:

Lord, have mercy on me in any area where my zeal has gone ahead of Your will.

Father, expose every action, decision, or attitude in my life that is passionately wrong.

Holy Spirit, guide my zeal with wisdom, love, and obedience.

Dear friend, pause and reflect.
Ask the Spirit of God to search your heart.
Because sometimes, what feels right…
may be wrong after all.

God bless you.

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✍️ DEEP THOUGHTS DEVOTIONALS
Inspired by the TRUTH REVEALER
Written by Opeyemi Akintunde
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