“Now the Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons.”…So it was, when they came, that he looked at Eliab and said, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before Him!” But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”…So he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, with bright eyes, and good-looking. And the Lord said, “Arise, anoint him; for this is the one!” Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah.” (1Sam 16:1,6-7,12-13).
David did not look like someone capable of fighting Goliath. No one would have imagined such a thing, let alone suggested it, least of all King Saul. Often epoch-making moments do not announce themselves. Yes David had been anointed to replace King Saul. However, the incident had been quiet, and discreetly secret. Therefore, David went back to his routine as a shepherd boy. Though he had the anointing of kingship, he did not replace Saul immediately. God took him through a process that would prepare him for the responsibility of the position. God’s methods of preparing His servants for their future responsibilities are varied. Nevertheless, they are intended to produce the same result: the usefulness of the man or woman to God.
God’s ways of preparing His servants for special assignments are usually not exhilarating because His thoughts and ways are not man’s (Isa 55:8-9). God is more interested in our commitment and loyalty to Him than in our arrogant acts of sacrifice. “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him…” (2Ch 16:9). Events in later years would prove how necessary the rigorous training, to which God had subjected David, had been. David maintained the right attitude throughout his preparation. He did not attempt to rule over Israel, until God put him on the throne. How is God preparing you for the special assignment He has for you, and how are you responding to this preparation?
Like David, you have been chosen for a special responsibility, whether you know it or not. However, God’s plans for us do not materialise automatically. They require our cooperation with Him. God calls us to partnership with Himself. David cooperated with God by faithfully looking after his father’s sheep, though he had been chosen and anointed King. His devotion to his father’s few sheep prepared him for the responsibility of kingship. God calls us to be faithful in our current responsibilities, regardless of how seemingly insignificant they are. The experiences we gain in such situations will come handy in the future, when we handle greater responsibilities. David proved indeed to be faithful in little.
Notice that David had the experience of having killed a bear and a lion while in the relatively solitary context of nomadic life. Your most important preparation for public service takes place in secret, away from public notice and admiration. David’s response to King Saul in defence of his preparedness to take on Goliath is priceless. “Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” Moreover David said, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!”” (1Sam 17:36-37). Though there was probably no one who had witnessed David’s fight with the bear and the lion, the experience equipped him with the most invaluable of qualities: faith in God and His word. Shalom.
