“Then one of the young men said, “Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Bethlehemite who is a skillful musician, a mighty man of valor, a warrior, one prudent in speech, and a handsome man; and the LORD is with him.” So Saul sent messengers to Jesse and said, “Send me your son David who is with the flock.””
You see, what we see the Holy Spirit doing for David is He mightily fills a teenager, and as a byproduct, gives him spiritual gifts, that as he uses them to the glory of God, begin to open up doors for him. And the beautifully mysterious thing that God was providentially setting up, by king Saul inviting David to play in his court, was Saul was giving David access to the very throne he’d eventually reign from. He was moved closer to fulfilling his purpose because he had been given access to use his gifts. And If we’re going to create a safe space for youth to fulfill God’s purpose for their lives, then we’ve got to…
GIVE THEM ACCESS TO FULLY USE THEIR SPIRITUAL GIFTS.
I’ve actually sat cringing in meetings where youth were not given access just because they’re young, instead of looking to see if they had the gift and a heart for Jesus. I’ve even watched, dumbfounded, while others tried to block their access to fully using their gifts, given by the Holy Spirit, because how they use their gift is not their preference. And then we scratch our heads and wonder why so many of them leave! Youth will not stay when they’re not given access to owning, shaping and creatively re-packaging how the mission is executed according to how the Spirit has gifted them!
Notice the sequence of events and the key role the adults played in David’s life. Samuel anointed David, then left him to go home. Then Saul, hearing of David’s gifts, gave him access to fully use his gifts. And this was the set up, by the Holy Spirit, to position David to fulfill his purpose. David was literally demonstrating in his life what his son Solomon would later write in Proverbs 18:16, which says, “A person’s gift makes room for him And brings him before great people.” Proverbs 18:16 NASB. One adult helped David receive his Spirit-anointed calling and gifting, then got out of the way, while the other adult gave David access to fully use his gifts in the space he would eventually take over.
The lesson from the LORD here is clear. Our job is to help this generation of youth receive the Holy Spirit’s anointing and gifting, step aside and give them access to fully use their gifts in the spaces where we lead, so they can replace us. Our job is not to hinder them and stifle the full expression of the gifts the Holy Spirit has given them, which is for the salvation of souls, or else we will have to answer to the Holy Spirit! We are not to follow the path Saul eventually took of being threatened by the thought of being replaced by this teenager, actively trying to stop him while desperately trying to hold on to position. It should be a sobering warning that the Spirit eventually left him. And no this is not a younger generation verses older generation thing. No! The youth need the older generation to play a very important role that’s critical to the mission. They need you to give them access, guide, mentor and train them to do what you do better, then replace you. This is disciple-making! You’re supposed to want them to replace you. One of the first jobs of a leader is to find and train your replacement! Moses is supposed to look for Joshua to be trained to replace him! Train and put them in leadership now or they’ll be gone tomorrow!
The story of David’s anointing gives us a blueprint for creating a safe space for our youth to fulfill God’s purpose for their lives. This is how we raise up a mighty movement of disciple-makers!
Creating a safe space for youth to fulfill their purpose is like… the military putting young people on the frontlines who’ve been train to win battles by seasoned soldiers!
Creating a safe space for youth to fulfill their purpose is like… the NFL choosing young football players to be coached by older athletes to execute plays that win games!
Creating a safe space for youth to fulfill their purpose is like… Jesus choosing young people to disciple them into a massive Kingdom movement that changed the world!
Creating a safe space for youth to fulfill their purpose is like… God raising up a group of young people who longed for Jesus to come and launched the world-wide Advent movement that’s preparing people to receive the soon coming of our Savior King!
For, you see, we will create a safe space for youth to fulfill God’s purpose for their lives when we focus on the heart instead of appearance, when we call them to receive the Spirit’s anointing, and when we give them access to fully use their spiritual gifts.
The story of David being anointed before his being appointed as king of Israel was providentially designed by God to push us forward down through his royal lineage to the ushering in of the true Anointed King of Israel, Jesus the Messiah. He was anointed by the Spirit to fulfill His life’s purpose of revealing the love of the Father in all He did, giving His life on the cross to atone for the multitude of our sins and then rising victoriously from the grave, having secured the wonderful gift of our eternal salvation! And now, the Good News is He extends His nail-pierced hands to you to receive the overwhelming abundance of His forgiveness and grace, so that you too can be anointed by the Holy Spirit, in power, to fulfill His purpose for your life.
