“After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.'” Acts 13:22 (NIV)
Sometimes I wake up in the morning feeling a little grumpy. Time to do it all again. I’ll buy food that gets eaten. I’ll wash clothes that get dirty again. I’ll sweep floors that will somehow need to be swept again before the day is even done.
Is there more to all this than just doing the tasks of everyday life?
One day before I jumped into the normal routine, I sat with Jesus. And I found some big Truths as I read my Bible and took a little glance into David’s life. Despite his tendency to sin, his lack of position in his own family and how others viewed him, David had the sweet reassurance of God. And that was enough.
Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.
To his older brothers, David was young — possibly even a pest. To his father, Jesse, he was just another son. To onlookers, he was a mere shepherd boy. But to God, David was the one destined to be king of Israel. And not just any king. He was from the bloodline from which Jesus would come.
Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.
Even the way David was anointed to be the future king is a telling story. In 1 Samuel 16, God revealed to Samuel that He had rejected Saul as king and chosen one of Jesse’s sons to be the replacement.
Think of the list of qualifications that must have run through Samuel’s mind for such a position: tall, smart, articulate, brave, groomed, well-mannered, a natural-born leader. Samuel saw some of these characteristics in Eliab, David’s brother.“But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7, NIV).
Samuel had Jesse line up all of his sons. All of them were to be considered. Yet, Jesse didn’t call David in from tending sheep. Was this an oversight? An assumption? A judgment call? A deliberate choice?
Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.
Samuel passed on each of Jesse’s sons and then asked, “… Are these all the sons you have?” I imagine Jesse with a quizzical expression replying,“There is still the youngest … he is tending the sheep” (1 Samuel 16:11a-b, NIV). Surely one who spends his time taking care of animals is not the one to take care of a nation.
Overlooked by everyone else. Handpicked by God.
As soon as Samuel saw David, he knew he’d found the one. David was anointed to become king. But he was not immediately ushered to the throne. It would be many years before David was recognized by the world. So, where did he go after being anointed as king? To a refining school? A government academy? Military training? Nope.
He went back out to the fields and continued to shepherd his flock. A king-to-be doing lowly tasks. A future king whose character was refined in the fields of everyday life to prepare him for his calling.
How like us. In the midst of smelly laundry, dirty dishes, snotty noses, misplaced keys, overdue library books, bills and that birthday gift that still needs to be mailed — there is training there. There is character building. There is attitude shaping. There is soul defining. All of which must take place for us to become what God intends.
Do you ever feel overlooked by the world? Take heart — we are handpicked by God.
We aren’t just doing tasks. We are building a legacy. We are shaping God’s Kingdom. We are in the process of not only discovering our calling but that of our family as well. And I don’t know about you, but it sure does make me look at my everyday tasks (yes, even the smelly laundry) in a whole different light.
Dear Lord, I’m grateful that even when I feel overlooked, I can rest in the fact I am handpicked by You. Help me see purpose in even the most mundane moments today. And help me live my life for an audience of One. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
TRUTH FOR TODAY
1 Corinthians 15:58c, “Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (NIV)
John 15:16, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit — fruit that will last …” (NIV)