We hope this week's devotional will encourage you in your spiritual walk.
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1 Samuel 16:1-13 (NLT)
16 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.”
2 But Samuel asked, “How can I do that? If Saul hears about it, he will kill me.”
“Take a heifer with you,” the Lord replied, “and say that you have come to make a sacrifice to the Lord. 3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you which of his sons to anoint for me.”
4 So Samuel did as the Lord instructed. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town came trembling to meet him. “What’s wrong?” they asked. “Do you come in peace?”
5 “Yes,” Samuel replied. “I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Purify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.” Then Samuel performed the purification rite for Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice, too.
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.”
8 Then Jesse told his son Abinadab to step forward and walk in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, “This is not the one the Lord has chosen.” 9 Next Jesse summoned Shimea, but Samuel said, “Neither is this the one the Lord has chosen.” 10 In the same way all seven of Jesse’s sons were presented to Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen any of these.” 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. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.
Devotional Thought:
I often read the story of David and think that he was chosen by God because he was special or unique, but the Karate Kid film causes me to reflect differently. The film features the relationship between Daniel, the bullied new kid in town who struggles to find his way, and Mr Miyagi, the apartment handyman who helps Daniel navigate these difficult experiences by teaching him karate.
Something Mr Miyagi says in one scene reminds me of the passage about the young boy David. Using hand gestures, Mr Miyagi says to Daniel: Karate is never here (touches his head) or here (touches his stomach). Karate always here (touches his heart). All of the time Mr Miyagi spent with Daniel and all of the training he had him do was not just about teaching him karate moves. It was ‘heart training’. Daniel’s response to difficult situations needed to come from a good heart.
David was the youngest of the brothers. Like Daniel, he was small in stature, and I imagine he received a bit of bullying from his older brothers. The prophet Samuel thought he would be anointing the tallest and strongest to be the next king of Israel, but God chose the smallest and weakest. God said to Samuel, ‘People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’
David, the smallest and the weakest, became the great King of Israel, but that didn’t happen overnight. Like Daniel, David had to learn, he had to be trained. His heart needed to be transformed. He needed ‘heart training’. In Psalm 51 we see David’s training in action:
“Create in me a clean heart, O God.
Renew a loyal spirit within me.”
David grew to understand that being a good King can only come from having a right heart.
In this season of Lent, we are called to take time to reflect on our own hearts. Is there anything in our hearts that is leading us astray from God’s way? Are we making decisions using only our head? Are we hardening our hearts to the leading of God’s Spirit? Do we think we know better than God? Questions like these invite us into the practice of ‘heart training.’ May this season of lent be a fruitful time of reflection and growth for us all.
Prayer:
Gracious God, in this season of Lent we are reminded of the constant need for ‘heart training’. In your loving kindness, your Spirit transforms our lives so that we may be a people after your own heart. May we be open to the things you reveal to us, and may we willingly walk in relationship with you as you guide our way. Amen.
Rev. Joseph Wood, PhD
Dean of Students and Lecturer in Theology and Church History