Untitled Sermon

A man after the heart of God.

I am going to paraphrase a devotional that I read Saturday morning written by Jeannine Seery published in Bible Study Magazine May-Jun ‘09.

It is titled An Entry-Level King

Reflections on 1 Samuel

I am using this devotional to get a glimpse of why the Lord said David a man after my heart.

Do you remember your first job? Mine was a tree thinner for the USFS the summer of 1964 after my first year away at college.

Moment with God: A Devotional on Every Biblical Book An Entry-Level King

The best thing about my first job was that I knew it was temporary—I had no doubt that it was not part of my career path and I’d move on to bigger and better things.

David was a young man with what was viewed by some as a low-level first job—a shepherd.

There was no career advancement for a shepherd, no “golden staff” after 20 years of service. But this does not mean he didn’t enjoy it, or at least grow through his experience.

David’s labor was not in vain. God used it to refine him and draw him close. In the silence, David became intimately acquainted with God. His life circumstances transformed him into “a man after [God’s] own heart” (Acts 13:22 NLT). They prepared him to fear nothing, not even Goliath. As a boy, David said to King Saul, “The Lord who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear [while tending my father’s sheep] will rescue me from this Philistine [Goliath]!” (1 Sam 17:37 NLT)

As i recall an experience in my own live....

I think you all can recall an incident in your life that could have made a difference in your life that God my have protected you from.

David’s occupation gave him a window into God’s nature. As he cared for his sheep, he came to recognize God’s providence. Later, when facing a different wilderness experience, David drew on his knowledge that his Good Shepherd would “let him rest in green meadows and lead him beside peaceful streams” (Psa 23:2 NLT). (God’s role as shepherd shows that he views no occupation as low-level.) When Saul pursued David in an effort to kill him, David recalled that the “rod and staff” of the Almighty would “comfort and protect him” (Psa 23:4 NLT).

As he emerged victorious, he marveled in the knowledge that “surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever” (Psa 23:6 NLT). Finally, when almost done in by his own sin, David recalled the vision of a lost sheep being led back to the flock by a merciful Shepherd, allowing God to “renew his strength” (Psa 23:3 NLT). Invaluable life lessons learned by a mere boy watching over his father’s flock.

Many of us are called to vocations that some would deem insignificant. Could it be that in this monotony, God is trying to refine our character and teach us more about his own? None of our jobs are trivial in God’s eyes—everything has a purpose. Perhaps the experiences that seem the most futile give us opportunities to bear the most valuable fruit, “fruit that will last” (John 15:16 NLT).

I had a number of different jobs in my lifetime and...

I didn’t take those jobs to make me a better Christian, I had other reasons...

David lived his life...

When we refrain from filling silence in our day with empty noise, we more clearly hear the voice of God. In stillness, standing before Almighty God, our defenses are stripped away; suddenly there is nothing to hide behind. Exposed and vulnerable before our own Good Shepherd, we are rightfully humbled and have the chance to meet him heart to heart.

Seery, J. (2014). An Entry-Level King. In J. D. Barry & R. Van Noord (Eds.), Moment with God: A Devotional on Every Biblical Book. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.