Today’s Scripture: I Samuel 16:1;6-7;11-13
Now the Lord said to Samuel, “You have mourned long enough for Saul. I have rejected him as king of Israel, so fill your flask with olive oil and go to Bethlehem. Find a man named Jesse who lives there, for I have selected one of his sons to be my king.”
6 When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, “Surely this is the Lord’s anointed!”
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
11 Then Samuel asked, “Are these all the sons you have?”
“There is still the youngest,” Jesse replied. “But he’s out in the fields watching the sheep and goats.”
“Send for him at once,” Samuel said. “We will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”
12 So Jesse sent for him. He was dark and handsome, with beautiful eyes.
And the Lord said, “This is the one; anoint him.”
13 So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the flask of olive oil he had brought and anointed David with the oil. And the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David from that day on.
Today’s Devotional
This week we are going to use the life of David as the basis of our devotionals. We are starting with David’s anointing as king found in First Samuel.
David should have never been king. He was the 8th son of Jesse – a nobody. He was not even thought about as a possible-maybe king. It seems that his whole family just forgot about him while he was in the fields with the sheep and goats. How many of us have felt that way?
How many times have you thought to yourself “I’m just a nobody. I’m not important.” Or how many times have others belittled your abilities and looked right past your potential? Sometimes it’s easier to stay hidden in the field while others are being chosen.
But God does not work like the world works – or even how we would work. God sees all of us – the whole package: warts, sins, damage, and potential. God does not leave us out in the field. He wants us to come in and take our place as disciples and as agents of God’s kingdom.
David was a remarkable king. But he had to come in from the field and believe what God was saying to Samuel about him. How can you come in from the field today and believe what God is saying about you?
Today’s Prayer
Thank you God that you look on the inside while everyone else looks on the outside. Help us to trust what you say about us. Help us to understand that you have given us everything we need to succeed in what you are calling us to do and to be.
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