“Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as mus=ch as in obeying the voice of the Lord?” 1 Samuel 15:22
This is what Samuel the prophet asked of Saul, Israel’s first king. God had given Saul very specific instructions. But, Saul only partially did what God asked. Half way through he improvised. When caught, he tried to justify himself, explaining his intentions were good.
Has that happened to you? It has to me. I began to do a task, or work in a ministry I was sure God had called me to enter. But instead of asking Him along the way, “What step do You want me to take next?”, I ‘d tell myself I still had His blessings and go off on my own bunny trail; take the long, more difficult path and stress myself out. I’d end up not where I thought I would be and wondering what went wrong. Or, I would think I was doing God’s will and then discover I really was not and wonder why? It is very tempting to be like Saul. We get the message and say, “Okay, God. I will take it from here.” Off we go enthusiastically, until we hit the first boulder in our path.
If You believe God is calling you to do something, it is alright to ask for confirmation and to be absolutely sure of of the task. Then daily go to Him, ask Him to correct your course, or if it going the way He wants, to bless it. Stay in constant touch with the Master so your pride does not veer you off course into improvisation. That is why the passage in 1 Samuel is there – so we can learn from Saul’s mistake.
Dear Lord, it is the desire of our hearts to follow You and do your Will. But our will gets in the way. Keep us on course as we go about the task You have assigned , encourage us and steer us in the directions You want the project to go. Only then can we be a blessing to You and to others. Even in the Garden, Your Son prayed for verification of His task. Let us not be afraid to do so as well, then proceed with confidence that You are in control. Amen.
“I will teach you the way that is good and right. But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart…” 1 Samuel 12:22-23
