Watch for the Red Flags

Text if you need me? Prayer or just need encouragement…

Red flags appear in our lives for a reason—yet how often do we charge past them? In this powerful conclusion to Samson's story, we witness how one of the Bible's strongest men became undone by ignoring clear warning signs in his relationship with Delilah. 

Samson's tale serves as a sobering reminder that even God-anointed strength can be compromised when we entertain toxic relationships. Despite Delilah attempting to betray him three separate times, Samson remained with her, eventually sharing the secret of his strength that would lead to his capture, blinding, and imprisonment. 

I share my own experience with a relationship where financial selfishness created a clear pattern of behavior. Despite knowing better, I gave second chances only to face the same disappointment. 

The most powerful takeaway? Satan studies your strengths just as the Philistines studied Samson's. Protect what God has given you—your talents, your peace, your purpose—by recognizing the writing on the wall when it appears. Subscribe now to continue our journey through Scripture and learn how ancient wisdom continues to guide our modern lives through the book of Judges. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, hello.
You're listening to the JesseMorgan Devotions for the
Christian Heart Podcast, episode61.
This week's devotional istitled Watch for the Red Flags
the Conclusion of Samson.
So excited, let's go.
Hi, I'm Jesse Morgan.
I used to just share home decorand renovation tips on social
media, but now I'm sharingsomething even closer to my

(00:21):
heart my journey and love forJesus Christ, my Savior.
Welcome to the Jesse MorganDevotions for the Christian Hot
Podcast.
This is a weekly devotional.
I started back in May 2024, butthe inspiration for it came
much earlier.
It was rooted in a faithjourney that began when my
daughter was born, four monthsearly in 2023.
Through that challenging time,god worked in ways that truly

(00:43):
amazed me.
On this podcast, I sharepersonal stories of faith, woven
together with scripture, toshow just how incredible God's
word can be in our everydaylives.
My hope is that through thesestories, you'll be encouraged,
uplifted and reminded of God'slove and presence, no matter
what you're going through.
So I invite you to spend lessthan 15 minutes with me each

(01:05):
week as we reflect on thesedevotionals together.
Let's all pray within.
Watch for the red flagsConclusion of the story of
Samson.
Key passages Judges 16, matthew26.
All right, all right, everyone,welcome back.
Today we are wrapping up thestory of Samson and Judges 16.

(01:29):
And what a journey.
This has been.
Right, let me tell you, samsonis one of the most complex,
self-centered, wild, difficult,barbaric men I have ever read
about in the Bible.
But the crazy part, all thosecharacteristics God still used.
He still used them.

(01:49):
God still used Samson anddespite his flaws, samson was a
blessing to his people for 20years as a judge.
And let's be real, thePhilistines were aggressive.
These are the ones that wereoppressing Israel at the time.
They weren't the kind of peoplethat you reason with Sometimes.

(02:10):
The only way to deal withpeople like that is to be just
as aggressive back.
Sometimes life puts people inyour world who are the total
opposite of you and they forceyou to step out of your comfort
zone, set boundaries, stand upfor yourself and, like Samson,
handle business.
But now let's talk about thefamous part of the story Samson

(02:32):
and Delilah.
They've made movies andeverything.
They focused on this so, somuch, and this part really blows
my mind.
So Samson meets Delilah, fallsin love with her or think it's
love, let's be real.
He's been married before.
He slept with a prostitutebefore.
So I don't know.
But it says you know he lovedher and the Philistines found

(02:53):
this out, so they went.
So basically, like what do theydo?
They go to Delilah and offerher a massive amount of money to
find out the secret of Samson'sstrength so they can use it
against him.
So here's, like the first verse,where she really tried to
inquire about his strength.
It's in Judges 16.6,.

(03:15):
It says so Delilah said toSamson tell me the secret of
your great strength and how youcan be tied up and subdued.
And here's where I need you allto lean in, because she asked
him three times what hisstrength was, three times.
And three times Samson lied toher.

(03:38):
He fibbed, he made up stories,whatever you want to call it.
But each time Delilah hadPhilistine men hidden in her
house ready to attack the momentshe got the truth and yet after
every setup, samson stayed.
Now let me say this when someonekeeps asking you indirect
questions, testing you low-key,trying to trip you up, that's a

(04:01):
sign, people.
They either want to see youfail, they don't believe you, or
they're showing their truecolors.
I've seen it in friendships andrelationships.
You tell people where you standand they keep pushing, they
keep nagging, they keep testing,they keep hinting at things
they would do to you.
You got to pay attention tothat, because usually it means

(04:24):
they probably will.
That's not love, that's notfriendship, that's a setup, and
God gave us his word to open oureyes to the liars, the cheaters
, the fake relationships.
The writing is always on thewall.
You just got to stop playingwith the situation, stop

(04:44):
tiptoeing in and out of drama,because eventually it's going to
bite you, it's going to hurtand you're going to be the one
crying to God for rescue.
Samson stayed with Delilah evenwhen the signs couldn't have
been more clear.
And I'll be honest, I've beenthere too.
Let me tell you a little story.
When I moved to New York thisis not about my husband, okay,

(05:06):
just to put that out there whenI'm, this is a different story,
different situation.
So when I first moved to NewYork, I dated this guy, nice
enough, maybe a little awkward,but I thought he was cute.
We went on dates, hung out andafter a month we were official.
But here's the thing the manwas cheap, cheap, with a capital
C.

(05:27):
We go out, split the bill,lunch Split, dinner Split, ice
cream Split, buying some Advilat CVS Split.
Everything was split.
We always had to split the bill.
He'd order food when I comeover, still asked me to pay half

(05:49):
.
I cook at my place, buy thegroceries, the drinks, the
snacks, and he'd show upempty-handed.
So eventually I called him out.
His response Well, you invitedme over, I'm your guest.
But when I was at his place,suddenly I wasn't his guest, I
was his business partnersplitting the check.
So make that make sense.

(06:10):
He promised to do better, butinstead he stopped inviting me
over completely and it just gotweird and things fizzled out and
I ended it Fast forward.
A couple of months later weended on you know pretty good
terms.
So he wanted to hang out againand y'all the red flags were
still there.
But I said, yes, he finallyoffers to take me somewhere the

(06:34):
Brooklyn Museum.
I was excited, new to New Yorkstill, and always wanted to
explore more in the differentbureaus.
We met up, got on the train,everything's cool.
Then he starts joking.
Wouldn't it be crazy if Iforgot my wallet?
I laughed it off, but somethingin me was like hmm, we get to
the museum standing in line.

(06:54):
He jokes again.
Hope you're ready to pay foreverything.
Ha ha, might've left my wallet,y'all we get to the front.
He really forgot his wallet.
So I paid tickets, lunch, thewhole thing, told me.
He paid me back Two weeks go bynothing.

(07:16):
I walked up to him at work.
I was like, hey, I need my $35.
He looked at me like I wascrazy.
You really want me to pay youback?
Yes, after a whole scene atwork I mean I wasn't screaming
but I, you know, was a littlestern I finally got my money
back.
But here's the lesson Shame onme for even putting myself back

(07:37):
in that situation.
The man showed me exactly whohe was the first time Cheap,
selfish, red flags everywhere,but I still entertained it.
And isn't that just like Samson?
Delilah had Philistine men inthe house and he stayed.
And he finally told her hisstrength came from his hair and
while he slept she had cut itoff.

(07:58):
When you see the writing on thewall, believe it.
And in the end Samson paid theprice.
All believe it.
And in the end Samson paid theprice.
It says in Judges 16, 20 through21,.
Then she called Samson.
Then she called Samson thePhilistines are upon you.
He woke up from his sleep andthought I'll go out as before
and shake myself free, but hedid not know that the Lord had

(08:19):
left him.
Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took
him down to Gaza, binding himwith bronze shackles.
They set him to grinding grainin the prison.
So basically, his eyes weregouged out, which that's painful
.
He was humiliated, weak,betrayed by the woman he loved.

(08:42):
But even after all that guys,in his final moment he said to
God, when he was standingbetween those pillars and the
Philistines were cheering andmaking fun of him I'm
paraphrasing this he said, lord,give me my strength.
Back once more In Judges 16,28,.
And God did.
Samson destroyed and killedmore Philistines in his death

(09:05):
than he ever did alive.
But such a tragic ending forsomeone with so much potential,
so much strength, but fell toweakness due to being in the
wrong relationship.
Let me tell you, don't let arelationship, a friendship, a
situationship, whatever it is,don't let it make you weak.
If they're pulling you awayfrom God, draining your peace,

(09:28):
your resources and testing yourworth, that's not strength,
that's sabotage.
Okay, and y'all, even Jesus,had fake friends, had people
that were waiting to get him athis weak moment.
I was listening to Joel Osteenthe other day, one of his

(09:48):
podcasts while I was drivingwith my daughter in the car and
he said something that just gaveme chills.
I almost had to pull over.
It was about Jesus before Jesuswas crucified, and how he was
betrayed by Judas with a kiss akiss.
It says Matthew 26, 48 through50, it says Now the betrayer had
arranged a signal with them.

(10:10):
The one I kiss is the man.
Arrest him, going at once toJesus.
Judas said Greetings, rabbi,and kissed him.
Jesus replied Do what you camefor friend.
Then the men stepped.
Verse 50 gives me chills Dowhat you came for friend.

(10:31):
Let that sink in.
A friend betrayed him.
And if that can happen to Jesus, you best believe that can
happen to you and you bestbelieve that fake friends, fake
relationships they exist in thisworld.
But here's the hope God usesthose betrayals, those painful,

(10:54):
humiliating moments.
They wake you up, they teachyou, they grow you.
And when the red flags show up,don't ignore them, like I did
with Mr Brooklyn Museum or likeSamson did with Delilah.
Pray for discernment, pray forstrength.
Protect the gift God gave youyour talent, your peace, your

(11:14):
purpose and know this Satanstudies you too.
He'll learn your passions, yourfears, your strengths and try
to use them against you.
But God gave you your strengthfor a reason.
He gave you your gift, whetherit's your voice, your mind, your
love for others, yourcreativity.
It's yours from him.
Use it wisely, protect it.

(11:37):
Don't share it with everybody,because some people might take
advantage of it.
Don't let the wrong peoplesteal it.
Amen.
Let's pray, father.
God, thank you for thisreminder that our strength comes
from you.
Help us to see the red flagswhen they show up and give us
the courage to walk away fromanything or anyone that's not

(11:58):
meant for us.
Protect our gifts, our peaceand our purpose.
And when we feel weak, lord,remind us you are the source of
our strength.
Father, we love you and wepraise you in Jesus name, amen.
That wraps up Samson guys Judgeswill continue next week.
God bless, well, that wraps upthis week's episode.

(12:21):
I hope these devotions help youdraw closer to God each day.
If this episode encouraged you,please share it with someone
who might need the same messageand don't forget to subscribe so
you never miss a weekly episode.
Also, if you feel compelled,leaving a nice review would be
so appreciated as well.
For more information or toreach out, check the show notes

(12:43):
or visit jessimorganhomecom orfind me on Instagram at
jessimorganlife.
Remember God's timing is alwaysperfect.
Keep trusting him Until nexttime.
This is Jessi Morgan praying.
All Jessi Morgan Devotionsbehind the scenes.
The scenes starting right now.

(13:15):
Hello, hello, welcome back toBehind the Scenes.
I know I took a little breaklast week, but I'm back this
week just to wrap up this studyof Samson.
What's interesting about judgesagain is Samson is going to be
the last judge that is mentionedthoroughly in Judges.
The last three chapters or sois really going to focus in on

(13:37):
the Levites, the tribe of Dan, aman named Micah, a man named
Micah.
It's really going to focus inon the chaos that occurs after,
like the initial years and yearsand years of having a judge,

(13:57):
and it just shows that whenthere's no direction, when you
don't have, you know, your headon straight, you go adrift, and
so these are going to be veryinteresting chapters.
Read some of the story, readmost of it already and I'm just
like whoa.
It's just an interesting way ofhow it sets up the rest of the

(14:20):
Old Testament Just to give alittle bit of more context with
it.
After Judges we go into Ruth and, as people know, I did a full
study on Ruth and Ruth was aMoabite woman and Moabites were
not in the best of company withIsrael.
So it's just a whole thing.
And then after that you'regoing into basically Samuel and

(14:45):
you're going into you knowSamuel being he basically he was
a judge.
And then you're going into whenIsrael wanted a king, which is
going to be Saul, and then we'regoing to go into David.
So it's such a fascinatingseries of events.
Series of events and why Ruth'sstory is so important.

(15:06):
It's going to set up Davidbecoming king one day.
But I just find it sointeresting.
It's like I appreciate thestudy of Judges more now because
I feel like the story of Davidand the story of Saul and Samuel
and things like that to me ismore meaningful and makes more
sense now because I've studiedjudges.
So I hope it's been a blessingfor you.

(15:26):
Judges comes with a lot ofreally tough lessons.
It comes with a lot of learningthat no matter where you came
from, your background, if youhave a physical disability,
anything God can use you and themost flawed person can be used
and God doesn't care about thoseflaws.

(15:48):
He wants you to repent andfocus on him and give all the
glory to him.
So I just want to encourage youto just hang on and continue
this journey with me, withJudges, and excited to continue
on to the next area I'm going tocover.
I'm still kind of up in the airof where I want to go.

(16:09):
I think I might tackle David.
I have done David before, donea series, done devotionals on
David, love David.
Might be fun to look into thata little bit, but would love
your opinions.
It might be fun to look intothat a little bit, but would
love your opinions.
If anything, say it in thecomments on my social media
pages and things like that.
Let me know what you think.
But God bless, guys, and untilnext time.

(16:37):
Jesse Morgan praying off.