If I could go back and redo parts of my experience as a teenager in high school, one of the main things I’d do is not be so stressed about whether or not I had a girlfriend. Instead I’d focus more on the quality of my friendships and being more intentional about discovering my purpose. Let me give you an example of what I’m talking about. I’m somewhat embarrassed to tell you that when I was a youth, I had a close friend who was like a cousin to me, that would literally challenge me as to which of us could get a girlfriend by Christmas or Valentine’s Day, so we wouldn’t be scene as not having a gift to bring to school to give our girlfriends. Yeah, that happened. Looking back now, after getting married, the handful of relationships I had back then were so immature, short lived and shallow in comparison to what I have now with my wife. Yet, back then, to break up with your girlfriend felt like such a major hurtle to move on from because of all the emotional investment.
Well, hopefully this gives you a little window into how Samuel the prophet felt, though at a much deeper level, as we enter the story in 1 Samuel chapter 16. Samuel had invested so much into setting Saul up as the first king of Israel. However, when he increasingly rebelled against God without true repentance, and God finally had to declare that He’d rejected Saul as king and would find another king who’d be a man after His own heart, Samuel was grieved. As a matter of fact, the prophet Samuel had grieved for so long that God eventually had to step in and say, “How long will you grieve over Saul…?” And for some of you, it’s as if I can hear God asking you the same question. God knows that people grieve differently over the loss of people, things, possibilities and opportunities that they were emotionally invested in. And believe me, He grieves along with us. Yet, there comes a point where God has to tell you, like He told Samuel, “You’ve grieved long enough, My child. It’s time to move on. I’ve still got a plan and a purpose for you to fulfill! It’s time to rise up, because I’ve got something far better in store!
For Samuel, it meant that God was calling him to go to Bethlehem to anoint the next king of Israel from among the sons of Jesse. Now, should Saul hear of this Samuel’s life would be in danger, especially since the road from Ramah, where Samuel was, to Bethlehem, passes through Gibeah where Saul was. Therefore, God gave Samuel the cover of going to Bethlehem to offer sacrifice in order to preserve his life and conceal his real mission of anointing the next king. You see, for Samuel, the role of king had been shaped by his experience with selecting Saul. However, Saul now represented an older generation, a previous era that was giving way to a new one. And it’s this “Saul-shaped” image of what Israel’s king should look like and be like, that God needed to re-shape for Samuel as he invites Jesse and his sons to the sacrifice. For they would all soon discover that Yahweh had intended His purposes to be fulfilled through someone younger than any of them would have chosen, much less even thought of considering for the role.
Unfortunately, today there are many who still see through the same lens that Samuel, Jesse and his sons saw through. They still see the work and mission of the Kingdom as something mainly for the adults, yea even senior adults, to shape, lead and run. Therefore, the creativity, innovation, energy and Holy Spirit anointed gifts of our youth, our teenagers, gets stifled, discouraged and the mission of Christ is severely hindered. I’m telling you, with the deepest conviction, that God is not pleased with this! So how do we make the shift? How do we become the difference? How do we create a safe space for youth to fulfill God’s purpose for their lives? Well, I pray it’s with humble and open hearts, willing to learn of the Spirit, that we approach the sacred text today. Because, I believe it’s here the Spirit wants to speak to us and give us some practical help on our quest today, beginning in 1 Samuel 16:6…
