1 Sam
16:1-3, 10-13 (ESV) The Lord said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve
over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your
horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have
provided for myself a king among his sons." 2 And Samuel said, "How
can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me." And the Lord said,
"Take a heifer with you and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.' 3
And invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do. And
you shall anoint for me him whom I declare to you."
. . .
. . .
10 And
Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse,
"The Lord has not chosen these." 11 Then Samuel said to Jesse,
"Are all your sons here?" And he said, "There remains yet the
youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep." And Samuel said to Jesse,
"Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here." 12
And he sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy and had beautiful eyes and was
handsome. And the Lord said, "Arise, anoint him, for this is he." 13
Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers.
And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel
rose up and went to Ramah.
NOTE: Fascinating
that Jesse does not even include all of his sons. It is as if he only had seven
sons, and the eight son was just a servant. Later on, even the attitude of the
sons toward David suggest some lesser respect. I could be, as some have suggested,
that David was illegitimate. If that was true, and that is a big IF, it would
make the story much more interesting. God chooses what the world rejects or
sees lowly to be important. But without this side story, he is still the
youngest and the shepherd, hardly the stock of kings. But in God's economy,
that is exactly the leader he was looking for--someone who did not think too
highly of himself, someone who served others, someone who knew how to shepherd,
and (as we will find out later) someone who love God deeply. That is God's idea
of the perfect leader. There is a lesson for us here. If I get this job that I
hope to get, and if it leads to leadership opportunities, I want to imitate
David. 1) I don't want to act as if I'm important (ever). Everyone is just as
important as me, from lead analyst to secretary to vice president to janitor.
We are all human beings. 2) I want to serve others as a servant-leader. I live
not to be served but to serve. And I want to set that example. 3) I want to
care for others under my authority. I want to know what is happening in their
lives. I want to pray for them. I want to help them achieve their goals. 4) I
want to continue to put a priority on my relationship with God. I want to
always make my time with God and my prayer time and important part of my day.
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