1 Samuel 9 today....... 1_Samuel 10 tomorrow...

Read it.
Sandj

Chapter 9: verse 2... was he without equal because of his hight or his character?... wonder where he got his height?... probably just another way that God had prepared "ahead of time" (no pun intended) so that everything would be ready for the present (again, no pun intended... as in "gift" of a king... ok, so I'm not as funny as I seem to think I am tonight)
verse 3-4... I wonder why they chose this route... did they see donkey tracks? did the donkeys often go this way?... after reading through the rest of the story, I wonder if the donkeys were "lost" at all, or if God had made them "lost" so Saul would go on this journey, meet up with Samuel, etc... hmmmm
verse 5... makes me smile as a parent... Saul must have known that his father loved him and that he was more important to him than the donkeys... good thing for a kid to know! :) makes me think about whether my kids know they are more important to me than stuff, or money, or time, or other people outside my family, etc... you know, in thinking about how both Eli's and Samuel's kids where so bad, and then reading this, it reminds me of something I was told one time... how your priorities should be God first, family second, and work third... and how God and ministry work were not the same... but it is so easy to confuse the two and put "good works" above our families... when we do that, I think that that is when our kids grow up to forget who God is and what position He should have in our lives... when we are confused about this, it is no wonder that our kids would be, too... we need to remember how important our kids/family is and that "ministering" to them needs to be above "ministering" to the needs of others.
verse 6... remember what was said about Samuel in Chapter 3, verse 19... it makes me think about which came first, Samuel speaking and God upholding his words; or Samuel asking God what to speak, and then saying those things which God was desiring to uphold?... how often do we get this backwards?... any thoughts as to why it might not work so well the other way around? (rhetorical questions, here)
verse 7-8... must have been a practice of the time to pay for advice (kind of like counselors now, maybe?)... anyway, it is a good practice to remember that we should be willing to offer something in return when we ask for help... however, on the reverse side of things, we should also be willing to help without desire for repayment... just some things to think about.
verse 9... interesting to have this note here, but it is helpful to understand the rest of the chapter better.
verse 10-14... good timing, huh? coincidence? I think not. :)... I guess I didn't realize that the people ate the sacrifice, too (or maybe I did read that before?)... I thought just the priests and their family ate it, but maybe not... anyway, it is interesting that only "invited guests" were allowed to eat the meal... kind of reminds me about how Jesus talks about the banquet parable in Matthew 22... we are all invited, but only some choose to come... we are all invited to be part of God's "party" at the end of times, but only some choose to RSVP... and only those who've RSVPed will get to go... have you accepted God's invite into His family, yet?
verse 14-20... the contrast here is cool... Saul is being directed by God, but doesn't know it... and Samuel is being directed by God and relies on that truth... both men are being used by God, but only Samuel has the peace of knowing that his life is under the control of God... why? because Samuel has learned who God is, and has learned to trust Him, so he has given his life completely into God's hand and looks to him for guidance and then peacefully obeys because he knows God is faithful... yet, Saul, who's life is also being directed by God, has no peace or recognition about what he is to do, because he does not know God (at least not personally), and has not learned to put his faith in Him yet... when we live like Samuel, at first we may think that giving up control of our lives and living in obedience and surrender and submission to His will will be scary or oppressive, but here, we can see that really, it is peaceful and freeing; whereas, Saul, who still THINKS he is in control of his own life, is worried and uncertain, and really for no reason, since God is still guiding him, too... crazy how we try to push God out of our lives and go it alone, and yet how much easier it is when we fully let Him in.... and an ah-ha! that the donkeys have been found... coincidence... I don't think so. :)
verse 21... remember Judges 20 when the Benjamites were almost wiped out because of the evil of their kinsmen... they were down to 600 men, and no women, and they had to get women from other places... so small tribe and clan indeed!... But God always uses the weak to show His strength (1 Corinthians 1:27-31)
verse 22... wow, honored guests!... I wonder what is going through Saul's head right now... like "I just came to find my donkeys... what's this all about?!"... or "I don't think my servant's quarter of a shekel is going to cover all this"... or ????
verse 23-24... I am so impressed with not only how God prepares things in advance, but how Samuel is obedient to God's promptings... I don't know if I would have set aside meat and extra place settings and all... I would have probably doubted that God was saying anything to me... but I guess that is where the spiritual disciplines of prayer, reading the Bible, meditation, etc, come in... so we can learn to hear God and learn to listen and obey Him, so that we become more willing and intune to hearing Him in the future.... total side note, but I do wonder what the leg had on it... I assume it was something good, but maybe it is best not to know what the "mystery sauce" was. :)
vesre 25... wonder what they talked about... was it about what was to become of Saul? was it something else, like just frivolities and getting to know each other?
vesre 26-27... so, they must not have talked, at least not in depth, about God' plan for Saul, until now.
sandJ