Wednesday, January 26, 2011

No! Now Go.

1 Samuel 16: 1-3
The Lord said to Samuel “How long will you mourn for Saul since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way.” (v2) But Samuel said “How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me.” The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you… to sacrifice, and I will show you what to do.” 

Ten years ago, God used this verse to wake me up from the pits. I had been crying over a broken relationship for months, and that morning, I received a text message saying he’s getting married. I managed a congrats reply, but right after, I found my knees shaking, my heart out of breath, and streams just flowed from my eyes. Running to God for comfort, I opened His word expecting a feel-good embrace. But He gave me one word: “Enough!” It was cold waters to my burning, brat face, but it did wash off my insanity. Gathering myself up, I sincerely sought His direction for me. I was of course hoping it would be as concrete as an events calendar or a person’s name (haha!), but He said, “Worship Me, and Walk with Me”. 

Samuel was boxed up in his loyalty and couldn’t seem to let go of his king. Maybe he even prayed for God to withdraw His hand and re-open Saul’s case. As a Father, God surely did continue to love Saul regardless of his rebellion. But justice will not alter His decision to reject him as king. When we commit public sins, we have the assurance of being fully restored to His family once we turn 180 degrees and promised to move forward. However, it will not always allow us to return to our previous leadership positions. It is an unseen future that feared even the already-mature Samuel. Amazingly, God saw a speck of willingness in our ‘hows’.  His call now shifts to taking up the shield of faith by going where He leads. If God’s concern is getting the job done, He could easily give the next king’s name and the location where he’s tending the sheep. He loves Samuel so much He wants to honor him with the joy of once again seeing His salvation to Israel. And it wouldn’t be a complete treat without letting the old man relive his old days by hearing from God directly and seeing His will unfold before his eyes, one step at a time. Oh how beautiful! What a caring, considerate God we have!

Stop signs are meant to hold us awhile, give time for other things to pass, then make us turn right or cross the other side. It allows us to rest, have a glimpse of the view, maybe sing along with the kids on board. So that when God finally hits go, we’ll say it was a necessary break for us to enjoy the journey as much as seeing the destination. I think it’s obvious now not to pitch your tents on the stop sign, right?   



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No! Now Go.

1 Samuel 16: 1-3
The Lord said to Samuel “How long will you mourn for Saul since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way.” (v2) But Samuel said “How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me.” The Lord said, “Take a heifer with you… to sacrifice, and I will show you what to do.” 

Ten years ago, God used this verse to wake me up from the pits. I had been crying over a broken relationship for months, and that morning, I received a text message saying he’s getting married. I managed a congrats reply, but right after, I found my knees shaking, my heart out of breath, and streams just flowed from my eyes. Running to God for comfort, I opened His word expecting a feel-good embrace. But He gave me one word: “Enough!” It was cold waters to my burning, brat face, but it did wash off my insanity. Gathering myself up, I sincerely sought His direction for me. I was of course hoping it would be as concrete as an events calendar or a person’s name (haha!), but He said, “Worship Me, and Walk with Me”. 

Samuel was boxed up in his loyalty and couldn’t seem to let go of his king. Maybe he even prayed for God to withdraw His hand and re-open Saul’s case. As a Father, God surely did continue to love Saul regardless of his rebellion. But justice will not alter His decision to reject him as king. When we commit public sins, we have the assurance of being fully restored to His family once we turn 180 degrees and promised to move forward. However, it will not always allow us to return to our previous leadership positions. It is an unseen future that feared even the already-mature Samuel. Amazingly, God saw a speck of willingness in our ‘hows’.  His call now shifts to taking up the shield of faith by going where He leads. If God’s concern is getting the job done, He could easily give the next king’s name and the location where he’s tending the sheep. He loves Samuel so much He wants to honor him with the joy of once again seeing His salvation to Israel. And it wouldn’t be a complete treat without letting the old man relive his old days by hearing from God directly and seeing His will unfold before his eyes, one step at a time. Oh how beautiful! What a caring, considerate God we have!

Stop signs are meant to hold us awhile, give time for other things to pass, then make us turn right or cross the other side. It allows us to rest, have a glimpse of the view, maybe sing along with the kids on board. So that when God finally hits go, we’ll say it was a necessary break for us to enjoy the journey as much as seeing the destination. I think it’s obvious now not to pitch your tents on the stop sign, right?