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Good morning and welcome to the Signature Word Podcast. This is for the week of Monday, June 29th, 2026. Our scripture will come from the Old Testament book of 2 Samuel, chapter 11, and verses 1 through 5, where it reads, It happened in the spring of the year at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him and all Israel, and they destroyed the people of Amon and besieged Rabbit. But David remained at Jerusalem. Then it happened one evening that David arose from his bed and walked on the roof of the king's house, and from the roof he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was very beautiful to behold. So David sent and inquired about the woman, and someone said, Is this not Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite? Then David sent messengers and took her, and she came to him, and he lay with her, for she was cleansed from her impurity, and she returned to her house. And the woman conceived, so she sent and told David and said, I am with child. I want to use as a topic collateral damage. Collateral damage originally coined by military operations, is injury inflicted on something or someone other than an intended target, specifically civilian casualties. Non military context can be drawn from this definition as well. Many are of the belief that their thinking and behavior can only adversely affect them. God's word, however, reveals there is nothing further from the truth. Everything we think and do has consequences for ourselves and for others. Like ripples on a pond, our actions spread out and affect others because everything is interconnected. And we need to remember that some actions are irreversible. Most of us are familiar with the account of David, who as a youthful shepherd boy killed the Philistine giant Goliath. Our text here in 2 Samuel is during his reign as the second king of Israel. The text does not reveal why David remained in Jerusalem while his army was on the battlefield. We can only speculate. Perhaps it's recorded as a warning to those in positions of leadership, and for that matter to all of us, that although we may decide to take a break from the battlefield, we must maintain a battle conscious mindset at all times, because temptations never take a break. David's initial attraction to Bathsheba as she stood on his balcony as he stood on his balcony was a precursor to his stepping over the line. He should have pulled back once he was told that she was married to Uriah, a faithful soldier in his army. This is what happens when we have not thought through our convictions before the temptation arises, and have not previously decided where to draw the line. Reading this account I fully believe that David did not consider the collateral damage of his actions. He was blinded by lust for Bathsheba and self absorbed in his power as the king. Yes, lust in his numerous ways will blind you to the consequences, but love and obedience will stop you from crossing the line. So what was the collateral damage? Bathsheba became pregnant, which presented a problem because she was married. Davis' attempts to cover up this affair failed. He first had Uriah brought in from the battlefield under the guise of spending time with his wife, with the hope that they would have sexual relations and Bathsheba's pregnancy would have been thought to be because of her husband. When this failed, David had Uriah return to the battlefield with a note to give to Joab, his commander. The note instructed Joab to put Uriah on the front line of the most intense battle that would in all certainty result in Uriah's death. This happened just as David had orchestrated, and he then took Bathsheba as his wife. Don't you see how messy sin can become? The child that was born to Bathsheba became ill and died, because in verse twenty seven of this eleventh chapter it says, But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord. The saying is true. What is gained from a moment of pleasure is only perceived. What is lost is real and permanent. David repented and asked God for forgiveness. His prayer of forgiveness is recorded in the fifty first Psalm. David was truly sorry for his adultery with Bathsheba and for having Uriah murdered to cover it up. His actions had hurt many people, and although God had forgave him, the collateral damage was done. Yes, some actions are irreversible. Our finally, our moral stability prior to temptation is essential to successfully resisting when it knocks at the door of your heart. Why not trust God and let him answer the door? Amen. And our weekly signature thought The life you want later is built on the choices you make today. May God bless you.