That is a great trait for a young person to have, isn't it? When you have a young person that thoughtful, considerate, and respectful, it tells you something about his heart and the way he was raised. Proverbs 10:1 says, "A wise son makes a father glad." Saul's servant was able to appreciate the concern; but he suddenly remembered that the itinerary of the old prophet, Samuel, meant that he was in a nearby town. So, the servant of Saul said, "Let's go down and see the man of God. He is highly respected. Everything he says comes true. Possibly, he will be able to get a word from the Lord and tell us right where to go, so that we can locate the animals." Isn't that innocent? That is real faith, isn't it? The Lord had to be pleased, as He listened in on that conversation. Essentially, the servant was affirming that the Creator God, who was in the act of superintending not only planet earth, but also the entire cosmos, was concerned about his lost donkeys. (God has never changed. He is interested in the totality of our lives. Praying Saint, don't you ever be afraid that you will trivialize God. We can "cast all of our cares upon Him because he cares for us.")

Advertisement

Consulting Samuel sounded like a good idea, but there was one problem; they had no gift or offering to present to the old prophet. Nevertheless, they managed to come up with a little something for an honorarium (Preachers haven't changed much over the years). Thus, they set out to locate Samuel, the great prophet, who was now well up in years.

Now, hone in on the sequence. The very day before, the Lord had revealed to Samuel that a young man from the land of Benjamin would be coming to him, and that he was to be anointed king of Israel. Look at I Samuel 9:16: "'About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him leader of my people Israel. "' There is something fascinating here. The Lord is entirely and beautifully orchestrating this whole drama. This whole thing has been predetermined and prearranged by a sovereign God. Proverbs 21:1 says, "The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of the water; He directs it wherever He chooses."

It is God who calls, ordains and crowns. I Samuel 10:1 says, "Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on Saul's head and kissed him, saying, ‘Has not the Lord anointed you leader over his inheritance?'" That is a wonderful story, and there are so many jumping off places in terms of application. I want to go back and focus on Saul's search. I want us to "park" in that segment of the story. Look again at Saul's three days, which he spent looking for his father's donkeys. Remember, that was an agrarian culture. Donkeys were like a type of moving van on legs. They were absolutely essential. This was a very important assignment. Losing a herd of donkeys, in that day, would be something like having your station wagon put itself in gear and drive off on a fling. No man of us could stand that. We would want to go and retrieve it immediately.