Hi everyone,
It has been too long since I have been here, and so much has been happening.
I have been reading through 1 Samuel lately and it has been so very good! Tonight I want to share a thought from 1 Samuel 16:12...
"...and the Lord said, "Arise, anoint him, for this is the one"
Where does the Lord call His servants from? He calls them from the secret place. He didn't choose His servant from the front line, those who polished up and paraded. Those who looked the part and had the right words to say. He chose His servant by what He knew of David's activities and priorities in the secret place.
The secret place of David was not a vacume, and neither is the secret place of your life.
What was going on in David's secret place?
1. He was developing faithfulness. A shepherd was a lonely and lowly occupation but David was content and faithful there. What lonely and lowly place are you in right now? Are you faithful in carrying out your responsibilities, or are you constantly restless and discontent, wishing for something else. Settle down and embrace your current season as if it was your whole life's work, because it may well be. But that work, done with love and faithfulness will send ripples of blessing out over future generations, and to places you may never go!
2. He was getting some wins. How would David ever have been ready for Goliath and other battles ahead without the confidence and skill of the wins he had alone on the hillsides of his home farm? These weren't people he was protecting, they were mere sheep, but to him they were worth fighting for. The battles you are facing right now are worth winning. The fact that there is no-one watching and cheering you on is immaterial. God is watching...and please get this - HE REALLY WANTS YOU TO WIN THIS ONE - its worth fighting for.
3. He was worshipping. 'Worship' has almost become just about the music, and that was certainly a huge part of what was going on in the sheep paddocks with David. But David's worship was never just about the music. He enjoyed God. It was a walking/talking vital relationship with God, a sharing of all of his life with God. The good, the bad and the ugly; the highs and the lows. His worship wasn't about the form, it wasn't even about the heart... it was from the heart. The only audience David had was a few sheep but that didn't matter to David, the only One that mattered was God Himself - and isn't that the truth?
I believe there were days in David's life as the national hero that he longed for the obscurity of the hillsides of the family farm.... but one thing is for sure - he never lost the capacity to retreat to that secret place of faithfulness, victory and worship as the only man God ever called 'after my own heart'.
We need to ask the question...
"What's going on in the secret place of my life?"
Much love,
Lynda
