Have you ever felt forgotten and overlooked? Maybe even persecuted and unloved? You might resonate with this week’s Bible study about David’s early years and how he was “the nobody that nobody knew.” However, God had a purpose for David and also has a purpose for you and for me. We will see in this week’s study how God specifically chose David. God also chose you. You are His beloved. Brennan Manning says, “Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. This is the true self. Every other identify is illusion. God’s love for you and his choice of you constitute your worth. Accept that, and let it become the most important thing in your life.”
For purposes of review, Israel was demanding from Samuel a King be appointed to solve all their problems. Even though Saul was “an impressive young man with no equal” (I Samuel 9: 2), he was not a good king and was disobedient to God. This week we find Samuel on a journey to Bethlehem in search of a new king.
INVITATION: There are patterns to how God moves in the hearts of people. This is true regardless of what decade it is or what culture you come from. What might God have for YOU in this week’s study from the early life of David? How can you insert yourself into the story and the situations and listen for God’s still, small voice in your life?
MONDAY: I Samuel 16:1-5: Samuel is constantly responding to the voice of the Lord. None of this would have ever happened had he not been open and attentive to that voice. How do you listen for God’s voice? How to you check what you hear, feel and sense with God’s written word? The secular sentiment of “following your heart” can be dangerous. Jeremiah 17:9 tells us “the heart is more deceitful than all else.” Do you have accountability in your life regarding what your heart tells you and what you hear in your inner being? How do you recognize the voice of God?
TUESDAY: I Samuel 16:6-7: Samuel is guided by the Lord in his search for the new king, learning that “man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart,” the core of one’s being. Recall a time when your evaluation of a person’s character or suitability for service relied mainly on outward appearance. Did this prove to be misleading or cause problems later? How might you pray for God’s help to look at people rightly, as the Lord sees them? Pastor Adam suggested we all memorize verse 7(b). How might you make this a mantra or breath prayer in your life?
WEDNESDAY: I Samuel 16:8-12: The sons of Jesse are paraded before Samuel, but David is overlooked. He is apparently not even mentioned or considered. It appears he is intentionally excluded. Verse 11 mentions Jesse saying "there is still the youngest.” Pastor Adam pointed out that in the original language this means “runt” or “pinky.” It appears David was even called names and perhaps made fun of by his own family. When have you felt excluded and overlooked? Because of Jesus, you and I are adopted and approved into God’s family. God sees you and knows you. He loves you and has a plan for you, just as he saw and knew David. How does that make you feel today? How might you have a conversation with Jesus about that? Express your gratitude to Him, but also consider journaling and thinking about what Jesus might say to you about how much he loves and adores you. Have you ever prayed like that before, i.e. listening for God’s voice and imagining what he might be speaking into your life as you listen and remember what the word of God says about you and about God’s character?
THURSDAY: I Samuel 16:13: The beginning of David’s life is important to make note of. He had passion and love for God. He also had some failures, but what David found in God at the beginning, he ended up lacking later in his life. We all do that sometimes in our faith journey, don’t we? We decide we haven’t found in God exactly what we hoped or were looking for, so we begin looking everywhere else. We seek “other Gods” to satisfy us, even as we profess the name of Jesus Christ. David’s faith journey isn’t so much what David did or accomplished for God, but what GOD does in and for David - - in spite of himself! Doesn’t that bring you encouragement and hope today? Where are you looking for identity, happiness and fulfillment? Could it be that Davids time as an outcast tending sheep was the very thing that trained him and prepared him for what God had for him? Could there be something in your life that seems negative or unproductive or “beneath you” that could actually be part of God’s plan for your life and your future?
FRIDAY: Ephesians 1:3-11: When the Bible speaks of love it is more than a sentimental or romantic concept. Love reveals the compassionate heart of God fo you and for me. It also reveals God’s active presence with us. We recognize God’s love by paying attention to what God does on our behalf - just like what he does in David’s life. Notice the verbs Paul uses to describe God’s actions: blessed, chosen, predestined, adopted, given, loved, lavished. What does each verb express about God’s nature? How does each verb invite you to experience your spiritual blessings in Christ today?
SATURDAY: Ephesians 1:18-20: We have riches and inheritance and power because of Jesus Christ. How can you live in that truth today and in the upcoming days?