There is a growing need for the various parts of the church to start recognizing one another and working together. The “Samuels” amongst us are very often misunderstood and neglected because they are just to weird, but as can be seen from the lives of the above, to ignore “Samuels” can have devastating effects for the body. Even right from the start there was misunderstanding around the mother from leadership making the wrong assumptions.
1 Sam 1:13 Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved but her voice was not heard. So Eli thought she was drunk.
1 Sam 1:14 Eli said to her, How long will you be intoxicated? Put wine away from you.
1 Sam 1:15 But Hannah answered, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I was pouring out my soul before the Lord.
But by opening his heart, Eli allowed God to do an amazing thing and thereby ensure the future of the “church leadership”.
1 Sam 1:17 Then Eli said, Go in peace, and may the God of Israel grant your petition which you have asked of Him.
The 2 scriptures that follow really stand out for me as describing Samuel’s call and timing:
1 Sam 3:1 NOW THE boy Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli. The word of the Lord was rare {and} precious in those days; there was no frequent {or} widely spread vision.
1 Sam 3:11 The Lord told Samuel, Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of all who hear it shall tingle.
Two of the main differences that stood out for me in comparing Saul and David was their approach to God and what they asked for. Saul was very man centred in that he was more concerned about getting the blessing/favour from Abba for himself to further his own kingdom, whilst David had a broad vision and understanding that it was Abba God’s kingdom, and he was the caretaker of it.
David understood the following well:
1 Cor 12:18 But as it is, God has placed {and} arranged the limbs {and} organs in the body, each [particular one] of them, just as He wished {and} saw fit {and} with the best adaptation.
1 Cor 12:19 But if [the whole] were all a single organ, where would the body be?
1 Cor 12:20 And now there are [certainly] many limbs {and} organs, but a single body.
1 Cor 12:21 And the eye is not able to say to the hand, I have no need of you, nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.
I think we all have at times more or less of either Saul or David in us. The challenge is to become more “David like” and less of Saul. Whose kingdom are you building. So often as leaders we find ourselves believing the lie that we are “specially called” and develop our ministry and not His. This is a very fine line, but the underlying spirit of independence often stands out like a sore thumb. We have turned ministry into a business and we see our ability to be the “man of God” as a value for measurement of success – and affecting our earning ability rather than keeping focus on intimacy with the Loving Father who supplies all our needs in time and in season.