Christian Counseling Service -- Devotions

Recruiting

Sunday, March 10, 2002

1 Samuel 16:1, 6-7, 10-13
The Lord said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king."
When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the Lord's anointed stands here before the Lord."
But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."
Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, "The Lord has not chosen these." (11)So he asked Jesse, "Are these all the sons you have?"
"There is still the youngest," Jesse answered, "but he is tending the sheep."
Samuel said, "Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives."
So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, "Rise and anoint him; he is the one."
So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came upon David in power.

I have been reading John Feinstein's A Season on the Brink, 1985-86 with Bobby Knight and the Indiana Hoosiers basketball team. A rhythm of "this year...next year" weaves through the days of the coaches' lives. Whether this year's team experiences exultant victory or galling defeat, the next day there is a possible member of next year's team the coaches need to see playing somewhere in the country. It never stops.

Referring to a potential recruit in South Carolina, "Knight wasn't sure about him as a player, but he was sure about him as a person. Remembering where that kind of thinking had gotten him, Knight was approaching him cautiously."

Knight went two directions that weekend. He also saw a player named Keith Smart in Kansas, and he felt exactly the opposite way about him. Good player, not so sure about his personality.

Eventually, he changed his mind and chose Smart. The next year, Keith Smart went on to make the game-winning basket in the 1987 NCAA Championship game. Smart eventually became a coach himself. Talking of his championship ring, Smart says, "I wear it now -- not so much to say, 'Hey, I'm a national champion,' but because on our rings we had 'Teamwork.' All the players that were on that team, we were all so close and still are today."

When Samuel chose David, he was choosing God's champion. Samuel listened, he poured the oil, David went on to defeat Goliath and become the king of Israel. God loved him. Jesus' favorite name for himself was "son of David."

I'm glad Samuel had his ears open.

You gave us two ears, Lord, and one mouth. Open the first, and shut the other.

Devotions Archive

Recruiting

Sunday, March 10, 2002