Donkey Mission

Intro

Today we begin a brand new series.

It’s based off a book a pastor who is a mentor wrote called Donkey Mission.

When is the last time you said a statement like this, “What’s the point?”

Maybe you remember thinking that in Math class in school.

trying to submit something online and trying to choose all of the busses!

Life can can sometimes seem like this picture.

So much that seems doesn’t make sense, pointless even.

We’re going to take the next 4 weeks talk about a story found in the old testament in 1 Samuel.

Each week were going to look at the story and find how we fit in the story as well and how it applies to our lives.

It’s a story of a man named Saul and his story isnt that much different than ours.

Let’s check it out together.

1 Samuel 9:1-2

There was a Benjamite, a man of standing, whose name was Kish son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bekorath, the son of Aphiah of Benjamin. Kish had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else.

From the beginning there was something special about Saul. There was a calling, a purpose, a great destiny for his life.

From a young age, he was chosen by God to be the first King over God’s people, Israel.

Did you know, that you are something special?!?

Seriously. You are destined and have a calling on your life by God.

Some of us have began to believe a lie that you aren’t.

But you need to get this, There is something special about you to God.

Before Saul was going to be the first King of Israel, (his ultimate destiny) he first had to go on a “special mission”

1 Samuel 9:3

Now the donkeys belonging to Saul’s father Kish were lost, and Kish said to his son Saul, “Take one of the servants with you and go and look for the donkeys.”

Kish, Sauls father sent them out on a “Donkey Mission”

Kish “Hey heres what I need you to do, grab a servant.. and go look for my lost donkeys...”

Seriously, isn’t there something bigger and more important I could be doing.

isn’t this beneath me.

Why am I having to do this!

Have you ever been sent out on a “Donkey Mission” before?

Sure we have, I know I have.

Things that we are living in and having to live out that we think man, this can’t be it!

What am I doing here...

I remember when we moved back to Lufkin. Christy and I were raise here and moved off in ministry for a few years.

We felt that God was calling us to start our own church. This burden, this dream for a place called City Church. Not just a church in a city but a church for our city!!

We are pumped, God has called us. We’re doing big things. This is going to be awesome!!

Wound up getting here… with not job and no place to live.

At 30 years old, a wife and 3 kids moving back in with my parents.

Had no clue where I was going to work.

I had a friend that said, hey can you use a sprayer and pain some buildings I have, And I said yes absolutely i’m great at that. I had never used a pain sprayer in my life...

Here I am, feeling that God has called me!!!

Living in my old bedroom, spray paining buildings in the summer outside, thinking, “What in the world is happening, I thought was I called to great things!!!!”

Donkey Mission.

This is kind of where Saul is found.

1 Samuel 9:4

So he passed through the hill country of Ephraim and through the area around Shalisha, but they did not find them. They went on into the district of Shaalim, but the donkeys were not there. Then he passed through the territory of Benjamin, but they did not find them.

4 Truths about Donkey Missions

1. Donkey Missions always test our patience

For Saul, this mission was long and boring. City to city and can’t find anything.

Have you seen any donkeys wondering around here...

Theologians estimate that he had walked 30-35 miles looking for these stinking donkeys...

Ever had what feel like diversions and really test your patience??

Parents, you wake up everyday with the greatest gift in the world and some days it just feels like a lot of dirty diapers, meal prep and house cleaning

You’re looking for a good job and it seems like nothing is coming available from place to place to place.

The career went from fulfilling to excruciating..

Donkey mission.

In our culture today, we all just want to be THERE don’t we.

Whatever there is.

We just want to skip to being the King.

But we don’t want the donkey missions that it takes to develop us to be ready for our place in the palace.

We all just want to arrive!

We want it and now.

We want all that our parents have and more, but 15 years earlier.

We to be the boss in 2 years.

We want to be over that ministry in 5 months or God hasn’t called.

Social media doesn’t help us, because it looks like everyone else is living there best life, sitting in their palace while we are out here chasing stupid donkeys.

Our world tells us it’s all about getting there, finding the donkey to get past this moment and on to something better and more significant.

Our culture makes us feel like “there” is more important than God humbling us in the middle of our seeming pointless donkey missions.

But God will and his ways don’t really look that way.

To God, progress is a process.

1 Samuel 9:5

When they reached the district of Zuph, Saul said to the servant who was with him, “Come, let’s go back, or my father will stop thinking about the donkeys and start worrying about us.”

Saul was ready to quit.

He was done looking for the donkeys.

I’m more valuable and important than these dumb animals, Dads probably worried about me know.

Let’s just go back..

We’ll just tell him we couldn’t find them so we can get back to doing “more important” things.

it’s all about my comfort, it’s all about what I want, it’s all about… me.

Sometimes guess what, it’s not.

What is comfortable and easy isn’t God’s priority!

His patience was getting tested.

1 Samuel 9:6-7

But the servant replied, “Look, in this town there is a man of God; he is highly respected, and everything he says comes true. Let’s go there now. Perhaps he will tell us what way to take.” Saul said to his servant, “If we go, what can we give the man? The food in our sacks is gone. We have no gift to take to the man of God. What do we have?”

Saul saw all of the things that couldn’t be done.

1 Samuel 9:8

The servant answered him again. “Look,” he said, “I have a quarter of a shekel of silver. I will give it to the man of God so that he will tell us what way to take.”

2. Donkey missions keep us humble

Can you imagine how humbling this would have been for Saul.

He’s so impressive, he’s important.

But he’s going to the man of God. Seeking the prophet, about some donkeys...

This would be like showing up to Billy Grahams house (when he was alive)

And saying, Hey I know that you are helping with world peace and millions of people are getting saved, and consulting presidents and writing world changing books, but… I can’t find my watch, is there anyway you could pray and help me find it....

Can you help me find my dads donkeys...

And he had to bum money off of his servant just to get in!

our humility is tested in moments that we can feel are sometimes beneath us but actually develop us.

1 Samuel 9:10-12

“Good,” Saul said to his servant. “Come, let’s go.” So they set out for the town where the man of God was. As they were going up the hill to the town, they met some young women coming out to draw water, and they asked them, “Is the seer here?” “He is,” they answered. “He’s ahead of you. Hurry now; he has just come to our town today, for the people have a sacrifice at the high place.

3. Donkey Missions test our integrity

Just at the moment when Saul was about to encounter his greater destiny by meeting the prophet, distraction came. Details matter in the bible. No accident it recounts that these were young women.

There are always distractions and diversions along the way that get us off track and sidetracked from missions we are supposed to be on.

Donkey missions test our integrity.

Way too many people lose their way in the middle of lifes places that they thought were too hard, too pointless, and they get distracted and tempted and get off course instead of staying the course.

In the immediate, what we are in may look so pointless. What’s the point!

And even if we do accomplish it, and do our very best, what does it matter, it’s just a group of donkeys.

It’s easier to steer off and give in to our immediate satisfaction and gratification instead of continuing to move ahead.

He had a decision, was the mission important enough to keep going.

We all do this.

Things dont look the way we thought when we thoughts so we:

Quit a job

Quit a ministry

Walk away from a relationship

We leave a church.

we quit and walk away in so many areas in our lives because what we do in the moment and seem so pointless.

Maybe for you you are tempted to quit and walk away in some area of life and this is a wake up call.

Don’t quit on that family, don’t quit on that marriage, don’t quit in ministry, Don’t quit on God, don’t quit in moving forward.

It may feel fruitless and pointless now, but you will make it through God will see you through the other side.

1 Samuel 9:14-17

They went up to the town, and as they were entering it, there was Samuel, coming toward them on his way up to the high place. Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel: “About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him ruler over my people Israel; he will deliver them from the hand of the Philistines. I have looked on my people, for their cry has reached me.” When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him, “This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people.”

4. Donkey Missions are always about more than donkeys.

At the exact moment that it was so tempting to walk away. To give up. To thrown in the towel.

God was talking to Samuel about Saul.

God had a whole plan!!

What seemed pointless to Saul was actually a part of God’s greater purpose for his life.

the things you don’t understand, the seasons and the moments, are often the donkey missions God uses to prepare us for the greater mission he has for us.

We just have to be patient enough, humble enough and faithful enough to trust God in it.

Now that we’re here, I’m in such awe of God and so grateful I didn’t quit when it got hard.

I didn’t quit when I had to move back in with mom and had to paint some building that felt so pointless to my calling.

3 Challenges

1. Be less concerned with the greater mission and just more faithful in the Donkey Mission.

Just start being faithful in the place you are now.

It’s not about arriving, let’s be faithful in the journey.

2. Don’t let anything be beneath you.

The fastest place to progress in God’s economy is serving.

Serve others, serve your family,

Decide in your work you will be a servant as unto the lord.

3. Stop seeing things a pointless, start seeing them as practice.

You just never know what God is using to set up yoru greater mission.

Some of us have check out on things in our lives.

Some of us have started rolling our eyes at things we have to get through.

What if we just surrender it to God and see what he will do.

Response

Salvation - we are lost donkeys. Jesus went out on a mission.

Prayer.