DATE POSTED Thursday, 2022-07-21
WRITTEN AT: O Brien, FL

SCRIPTURE FROM: 1 Samuel 10:6, 9,
TRANSLATION: New Living Translation (NLT)

BIBLE TEXT: ⁶ At that time the Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you, and you will prophesy with them. You will be changed into a different person. 
 ⁹ As Saul turned and started to leave, God gave him a new heart, and all Samuel’s signs were fulfilled that day. 

APPLICATION: Somehow I believe that many of us postpone doing what we feel God has ordered for us. We tend to wait for confirmation from other trusted sources, and we tend to wait until the very last minute, just in case we’re not sure it was truly God speaking to us. Where is our faith? Compare this story of Saul to that of a situation that we may hear is going on at our church. Saul was appointed king by the prophet Samuel. One of Saul’s first assignments involved an encounter with a band of Philistine prophets while visiting Gibeah. Samuel convinced Saul that he would also begin to prophecy with these men, because the power of God will come upon him. Ok, so what would you and I do in response to an old priest telling us such a far-out story? Having just been appointed king, don’t you think that our minds would be racing with ideas on what we would want to accomplish as king? We may hear about these extreme predictions by the older priests of our community, often we will try to respectfully dismiss what he is suggesting. After all, we can hardly believe they think that are about to prophecy?? Yeah, right! But friends, remember what I said earlier – God knows our very thoughts. Based on what we read in these verses, Saul had no reservation about doing what Samuel ordered him to do. He had no reason to question the actions of the priests he would meet, nor the matter of God’s powerful hand in his own life. Saul had faith to believe that if God’s messenger said it, he could believe it and proceed with the necessary orders given to him. Notice that God didn’t wait until Saul arrived at the well, or when he would be greeted the prophesying priests. God knew Saul’s heart and intent, and He changed Saul’s life when he turned and began to obey his orders. I believe that God might search our hearts today and examine our faith, to see if this story of His ministry to and through Saul might have an effect on us. Whether it would enhance our level of obedience without a bunch of questions. What do you suppose God would find? Would He be as quick to empower us because of the evidence of faith that He sees in us?

BLESSING(S) NOTED: God performed His awesome work in Saul because He saw the immediate response to all that Samuel ordered of him!

PRAYER: Precious Lord, thank You for keeping us accountable for all that You demand through Your Word and through Your servants. Please forgive us for the times that we doubt and insist on doing things ‘our way’. Lord, may we always look to you for all things necessary for life here on this earth. We want to obediently follow Your commands, and to be Your hands and feet while allowed to remain here. Please continue to work through us so that the world will know You and witness Your good works. Humble us to be Your servants and Your likeness to a lost and hurting world. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. You may also visit me on Spotify and listen to Nuggets while you’re out and about. I would encourage you to find a church home near by your home, and attend as frequently as you could. Get to know God, and allow His people to encourage and strengthen you in your Christian walk, while making every effort to be a blessing to them. God is at work among His people! Please consider growing in your faith, as you worship with fellow believers!