David surprised everyone (except God and maybe Jonathan) when he became king. He did not look like a king. You know the account in I Sam 16:6-13. “The Lord said to Samuel, ‘Get up and anoint him. He is the one.’ Samuel took the horn with the oil in it, and poured the special oil on Jesse’s youngest son in front of his brothers. The Spirit of the Lord came on David with great power from that day on”.
It was God’s decision and God’s power. It was not obvious because people in the world have a worldly perspective. Not saying that person is not a good leader or a good believer but, “His ways are not our ways”, from Isaiah 55:9. God is perfect, holy, and sinless (I Pet 2:22, I John 3:5). That should reduce the surprise when a David is chosen. The people of Israel accepted David although they may have thought him an odd choice.
I want God to choose me. He may choose another but I am not an obvious choice as a missionary. Since retiring it has felt like a fight to be chosen. Am I to assume everyone else knows my future better than God? I don’t think so but I also want to be covered in the house of God. Am I stubborn or committed? Am I brave or stupid to think someone my age can go to the nations as we have all been assigned as believers to go someplace. It may, again, be across the street, across town, or across an ocean. I want to go and I also want to be here for my people. I thought it a brilliant solution to go for half a year every year until I can’t. I think that (I can’t) time will become obvious to everyone but God already knows and I trust Him to tell me. Today I met an 83 year-old past missionary who was telling me about Africa then about her current challenges – thus – she is done going most places. She asked my age but did not comment.
I wonder how surprised David was when he was chosen over his brothers. His challenge was opposite to mine – he was the youngest. Lately I am the oldest. The six months I served abroad this last year I was the oldest but it was a joy. It was the time of my life. Doesn’t that mean something? I am not a nurse, nor can I build a building. No one talent but many little talents the best of which is obedience. Would you have liked to have been the surprised father of David when God did not choose his best guess? I’m sure he loved all of his children but God chose. And why did he decide to leave David in the field? I’m thinking it was not the Cinderella debacle of hiding her away so she could not try on the glass slipper.
Luke 10:2 says, “Then He said to them, ‘The harvest IS great, but the laborers ARE FEW; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.'” I’ll work for free.
