Saul the Desperate

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 28:3-20

TO CHEW ON: "He inquired of the Lord, but the Lord did not answer him . . . . Saul then said to his attendants, 'Find me a woman who is a medium, so I may go and inquire of her.'” 1 Samuel 28:6,7

The Philistines were threatening again and Saul was terrified. He wanted to talk to God and find out what to do. But Samuel had died, Saul had killed the priests, and no prophet came with any message. God was silent.

In desperation Saul asked his servants to find a medium. A medium was a person who could contact the spirits of dead people and get messages from them. But this power came from Satan and not God. God had commanded Saul to rid the land of all mediums and spiritists.

Still Saul’s men managed to find a medium. Saul disguised himself and went to her house. He persuaded her to try to bring up the spirit of Samuel so Saul could talk to him.


Soon the woman saw something coming out of the ground. And then Samuel’s voice filled the room, “Why have you disturbed me?”

“The Philistines are threatening again,” said Saul. “I need to know what to do.”

Then Samuel gave Saul a message he probably didn’t want to hear.


With that Saul fell on the floor, weak and paralyzed with fear. The knowledge he got through the medium didn’t help. It only made him more afraid.

True to the prediction, Saul and three of his sons were killed in battle the next day. Here is how the Bible talks about his death: “Saul died because he was unfaithful to the Lord; he did not keep the word of the Lord and even consulted a medium for guidance and did not inquire of the Lord. So the Lord put him to death . . .” (1 Chronicles 10:13,14)

PRAYER: Dear God, help me to stay away from the things and practices that don’t please You. Amen.

MORE: Occult warning
The world of the occult is fascinating, but dangerous. Here are some things to keep in mind when tempted to get involved in occultic practices like horoscopes, telling fortunes, talking with spirits, palm readings, witches, warlocks, I-Ching, seances, the Oiji game, Wicca etc.

1. These practices are condemned many times in the Bible. Some places are Leviticus 19:31, Micah 5:12 and Revelation 21:8

2. Satan is known for lying. Though the things we learn from the occult about ourselves, others and the future may seem accurate, we need to remember the source of that knowledge – Satan. Talking about Satan, Jesus said, “. . . there is no truth in him. When he lies he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” John 8:44

3. If you have occultic objects and books in your home, in your room or in your desk or locker at school, be like the Christians in Ephesus (Acts 19:19), and get rid of them.

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.


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Hands Off!

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 26:1-12

TO CHEW ON: "But David said to Abishai, 'Don’t destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed and be guiltless?'” 1 Samuel 26:9

Messengers came running to Saul. “We’ve seen David,” they said. “We can tell you where he is!” So Saul took three thousand soldiers and went to the place the messengers had said.

David had his own spies. They knew exactly when Saul arrived and where his army was camped. One day David went to the hill overlooking Saul’s camp. As he peered down, he saw Saul asleep in the middle of all the soldiers. Even his bodyguard, Abner, was asleep.

After dark, David and his friend Abishai crept down the hill and into the camp. They tiptoed right past all the sleeping soldier to the place where Saul lay.

“Here’s your chance,” whispered Abishai. “God is giving Saul into your hands. Let me kill him for you.”


“No!” David said. “He’s the king that God chose. It’s up to God whether he lives or dies. I won’t lay a hand on him.” But David took Saul’s spear and the water jug that was close to his head. Then they left the camp as quietly as they had come.

When they were at the top of the hill David shouted, “Abner!”

Abner woke up “Who are you?” he asked.

“Where is the king’s spear and water jug?” said David. “You didn’t guard your king very well!”

Illustration by Annie Vallotton from the Good News Bible
© American Bible Society 1976, 1992, used with permission.

By now Saul was awake. He realized the danger he had been in and how David had spared his life. He felt bad. “I have sinned,” he said. “I won’t try to harm you again.”

PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to respect and honor the people You have called in a special way, like David honored Saul. Amen.
 
MORE Respect for leaders
Saul was doing bad things. God’s blessing was no longer on his life. Still David knew that he had been God’s choice as king over Israel. David was determined to respect God’s choice.

Some people God puts over us are parents, pastors, school and Sunday school teachers, coaches. Most times those people are good. But sometimes they are bad and want to hurt us. Below are some things from this story about how to act toward people over us. Which thing does this story does not teach:

1. We should respect the people in authority over us.
2. Sometimes the people over us are bad or evil.
3. It’s always okay to get a teacher or coach we don’t like in trouble
4. God is able to care for us even when we’re under bad leaders.

Answers

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.


Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Safe

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Psalm 91:1-16

TO CHEW ON: "I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.'” Psalm 91:2

What things frighten you?

Do you know one person who isn’t afraid of something?

Even courageous David, when he was hiding from Saul, was probably afraid. He was scared of being found by Saul. He was afraid of being killed.


We don’t know if David wrote Psalm 91. He could have written it. In it the writer reminds himself how God is his protector. Find the word pictures from Psalm 91 that show how God protects us
- God is a 1._________ and 2._________ (Psalm 91:2).

A fortress was a place where soldiers were protected. They could see their enemies and shoot at them, but the enemies couldn’t get them. Sometimes it was a natural place, like rocks on a hillside. Sometimes it was man-made, like the thick-walled towers on city walls. God can be that safe place for us.

- God is like a bird. He covers us with his feathers like a mother bird protects her chicks.

- God is like a 3. ______________ (Psalm 91:9). We can live in God and be protected, just like we are safe from rain, storms and the sun when we are in our homes.

- God sends 4. _______________ (Psalm 91:11). God gives them the job to protect us from physical harm.

PRAYER: Dear God, please remind me of Your protection whenever I feel afraid. Amen.


MORE: Pictures of protection
The Bible gives us more pictures of God as our protector. He is compared to:

- A shelter from the storm (Isaiah 25:4).

- A shade from the heat (Isaiah 25:4).

- a watchman (or security guard) who never goes to sleep (Psalm 121:4).

Choose your favorite picture of God giving you protection. Draw a picture of yourself as you are kept safe by God in that way.

Answers

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.


Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

All-seeing Eyes

TODAY’S SPECIAL: Psalm 139:1-16

TO CHEW ON: "You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways." Psalm 139:2,3

David couldn’t sleep in his own bed any more, or eat at his own table, or be close to the people he loved. That would make it too easy for Saul to find and kill. Instead, he had to run away. He ran from city to city. But as soon as someone recognized him he had to leave because it was no longer safe.

Finally David found a good place to hide in some caves. Saul couldn’t find him there. David’s own family didn’t know where he was. But Someone did. God never lost sight of David all the time he was hiding.

In Psalm 139 David writes about God’s all-seeing eyes. Pick out every statement below, that tell where God sees us and what He knows about us. (Psalm 139:1-16)

1. God sees where we sit in school.
2. God sees us when we get up in the morning.
3. God knows what we will say this evening.


4. God sees us when we’re in a space rocket.
5. God sees us when we’re under water in a submarine.
6. God sees us when we’ve moved to a new home across an ocean.
7. God sees us when we’re in total darkness.
8. God saw us when we were being formed inside our Moms.
9. God knows how many days we will live and sees every one of them.


If you picked every statement – you’re right. God sees everything about us, past, present and future.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for seeing and knowing all about me. Amen.

MORE: Eyes
When compared to God’s sight, ours is very limited. Still our eyes and the sense of sight is a wonderful thing. Here are some neat facts about eyes and sight:


1. We need light to see.
2. Our eyeball is about the size of a table tennis ball.
3. Everyone’s iris (the colored part of your eye) is different and can be used like a fingerprint to identify you.
4. Our eyelids close automatically whenever they sense danger.
5. We blink thousands of times a day.
6. Our tears wash our eyeballs and keep them healthy.
7. Our vision can be improved with glasses, contact lenses or surgery.
8. Birds of prey like hawks, eagles and owls have the sharpest vision.

Find out more about eyes and your sense of sight through books or the internet.

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.


Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Best Friends

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 20:32-42

TO CHEW ON: "Jonathan said to David, 'Go in peace, for we have sworn friendship with each other in the name of the Lord saying, "The Lord is witness between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants forever."'” 1 Samuel 20:42


King Saul’s jealousy meant that the palace was no longer a safe place for David. Saul even told his servants and his son Jonathan to kill David if they got the chance. So David left to live somewhere else. This made Jonathan sad. He liked David a lot. In fact, you could say they were best friends.

One day Prince Jonathan asked his father, “Why are you trying to kill David? He doesn’t mean you any harm.”

“You’re probably right,” King Saul answered. He promised to stop trying to kill David. Then Jonathan convinced David to come back and live in the palace again. But no sooner had he moved back when again Saul tried to kill him and David had to run for his life.

Again Jonathan tried to get him to come back. “My Dad and I are very close,” he said. “He hasn’t said anything to me about killing you.”

But David refused to come back. Instead, he and Jonathan made a plan to test Saul’s real feelings. In a few days Saul’s family would gather to celebrate a festival. Though David was expected to come, he would stay away. Jonathan would watch Saul’s reaction. If Saul didn’t care that David was missing, everything was probably alright. But if he got angry, they would know that Saul really was planning to kill David.

The first day of the festival, Saul said nothing about David’s empty place. But on the second day, Saul asked Jonathan where David was.

“His brothers asked that he spend time with his own family,” Jonathan said.

Then Saul’s temper flared – this time at Jonathan. “Don’t you know that David has his eye on being king?” he asked. “If he doesn’t die, you’ll never get to be king yourself.” And then in a rage, Saul hurled his spear at his own son.

Jonathan knew now what Saul’s true intentions were. The next day Jonathan went to the place where he and David had agreed to meet. Even though it was dangerous for him to even be seen with David, he again risked his life for his friend to tell him the sad truth. Before they parted, they promised each other that whatever happened they would always be friends and would always treat each other’s families with kindness.

PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to be a good friend, like Jonathan was to David. Amen.



MORE: Friendship
1. What are some ways Jonathan and David were good friends to each other?

2. Who is your best friend?

3. What do you like about being friends with that person?

4. What can you and your friends learn about friendship from David and Jonathan?













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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Green-eyed Monster

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 18:1-16

TO CHEW ON: "Saul was very angry; this refrain displeased him greatly. 'They have credited David with tens of thousands,' he thought, 'but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?' And from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David." 1 Samuel 18: 8.9

David’s victory over Goliath sparked a big celebration. All the women in towns along the road from the battlefield to the palace came out to cheer. They had tambourines and lutes and sang a song:

“Saul has slain his thousand
and David his ten thousands.”

When Saul heard this, he grew very jealous. They were praising David more than him. Next they’d want to crown David king.

Because David was now a famous warrior, Saul invited him to stay at the palace. David had actually been at the palace before, to play the harp for Saul. He did this to calm Saul when an evil spirit bothered him.


The day after they got back, the evil spirit came to Saul again and he asked David to play his calming music. This time, though, Saul’s jealousy was too strong. As David was playing, Saul took up a spear and threw it at David, trying to kill him. Just in time, David got out of the way. But from then on, jealous Saul couldn’t get the thought of killing David out of his head.


PRAYER: Dear God, please show me any jealous feelings in my heart and help me to deal with them. Amen.

MORE: Five ways to fight the Jealousy Monster
Have you ever been in a situation like this?
- The teacher pays special attention to other kids in class but ignores you.
- The new kid in your school has stolen your best friend.
- You have trouble liking the person who beat you out in baseball tryouts.

Are you tempted to respond with jealousy?
(Jealousy = when you resent or hate someone who is getting what you think you deserve, what you would like to have, or what you once had and lost.)

Here are five ways to fight the Jealousy Monster:
1. Admit that your jealousy is sin (Galatians 5:19-21).

2. Ask God for forgiveness (1 John 1:9).

3. Ask God for wisdom to know how to deal with your jealous feelings (James 1:5).

4. Accept yourself as God made you (Romans 12:3-8).

5. Accept the things that are happening in your life – even the ones that make you feel jealous – as allowed by God (Romans 8:28). He works even through difficult things to make you into the person He can use. Be teachable.

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Giant Problem

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 17:38-50


TO CHEW ON: "All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s and he will give all of you into our hands." 1 Samuel 17:47

Though Samuel had anointed David as Israel’s next king, Saul continued to rule. And Israel was still fighting their old enemy the Philistines. At one time instead of fighting with their whole army, the Philistines picked a nine-foot giant named Goliath to challenge Saul’s soldiers. “Pick one man to fight me,” he shouted. “If he wins, we’ll be your slaves. But if he loses, you’ll be our slaves.”

For forty days Goliath came out and challenged the army like this. Of course no one volunteered. Instead, each day the men grew more afraid and intimidated.

Meanwhile, David was still looking after sheep. One day his dad asked him to check on his brothers at the battlefront and take them some food. He went and had just found his brothers when Goliath came out to shout his daily challenge. “Pick a man to fight me,” he bellowed. “Why aren’t you coming? Are you chicken?”



David heard him and was shocked. “Why are we letting him insult the army of the living God like this?” he asked. And then he volunteered to take on Goliath himself.

“Put on my armor for protection,” Saul insisted when the men brought David to him. But David found Saul’s armor way too heavy and cumbersome. He took it off and began walking towards Goliath unprotected.

Goliath saw him. He was insulted. “You’re going to fight me with sticks? Do you think I’m a dog? You’ll soon be bird food!”

1. How did David answer him? (1 Samuel 17:45) __________




2. When David was close enough, he took a stone from his bag, put it in his sling and let it go. Then what happened (1 Samuel 17:49, 50) __________



3. What do you think was the main reason for David’s success: (Choose one)

A. He was skilled with the sling.

B. God helped him because David trusted God and stood up for His honor.

C. He was brave because he was young and didn’t know any better.

PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to trust You and stand up for You like David did. Amen

MORE: Modern Goliaths
Have you ever met these modern Goliaths? Can you think of more?
- A smart-mouthed kid in your class teases you for being a Christian.
- A teacher in your school makes fun of God and the Bible.
- Your Dad’s boss makes sure he works every Sunday shift even though he wants to go to church.
-

Ask God to help you find a way to stand up for God to the Goliaths in your life.

What do you think: Do people who honor God in this way always win as spectacularly as David did?

Answers

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Dethroned

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 15:17-26

TO CHEW ON: "Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams." 1 Samuel 15:22

Samuel came to Saul one day to give him a new job from God. He was to fight Israel’s old enemy, the Amalekites. After the battle was over, Samuel gave him plain instructions not to let any person or animal escape alive.

Saul’s army won easily. Then they did as Samuel told them and destroyed all the people. But they kept the best cattle and Saul saved the life of king Agag.

After the battle God talked to Samuel. “Saul hasn’t carried out my instructions,” He said.

So Samuel went to find Saul. When Saul saw him he was all smiles. “I did exactly what God told me to,” he said.

“Then what are the sounds of sheep and cattle I hear?” Samuel asked.

“The soldiers kept those,” Saul said. “They’re planning to sacrifice these animals to God. I destroyed all the people just like you told me to. I only kept Agag the king.”



But Samuel wasn’t fooled by the Saul's excuses. “God wants your obedience,” he said, “not your sacrifice. What you did shows that you have a rebellious heart which doesn’t want to obey God. Because you have rejected God, he has rejected you as king. He has torn the kingdom from you and your family and will give it to one of your neighbors.”

Then Saul was sorry. He wished he could go back and do what God had told him to do.

PRAYER: Dear God, please help me to obey You and the people, like my parents that You have put over me. Amen.

MORE: Obedience
We don’t have specific instructions of things God wants us to do like Samuel gave Saul. But God does give us general instructions on how to live. These are in the Bible.

One set of instructions is the Ten Commandments - Exodus 20:1-17.

Write the commandment that is easiest for you to obey. _____________

Write the commandment that is hardest. _________________________

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Impatient Saul

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 13:7-14

TO CHEW ON: "He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. So he said, 'Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings.' And Saul offered up the burnt offering." 1 Samuel 13:8,9

One day after Saul had been king for a while, Saul’s son Jonathan attacked a Philistine outpost. This was like poking a stick into a wasp’s nest. Immediately the Philistines gathered their army and came against the Israelites to fight.

Saul’s army was only two thousand men. In a panic he sent trumpeters through the land to call back the rest of the army and anyone else able to fight. Then he and his men waited. They waited for more soldiers to come. They also waited for Samuel, the prophet and priest, to offer a sacrifice and ask for God’s help. Saul knew that it would be useless to go to war without that.

Meanwhile every day the Philistine army grew larger. It swelled to three thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers and thousands upon thousands of soldiers.

The men in Saul’s army watched and grew more terrified by the hour. Soon they lost all courage and began to run away and hide in caves, among trees, behind rocks and in cisterns.

Saul too felt afraid and desperate. Where was Samuel? He said he’d come in a week. The week was over and he still hadn’t arrived. If they didn’t get going soon, his army would be down to nothing. Even though he wasn’t a priest, Saul decided to make the offering himself.

He was just finishing when Samuel arrived.

“What have you done?” Samuel asked. When Saul told him, Samuel said, “You have acted foolishly.” Then he told Saul that God was displeased with him and there would be consequences of his impatience and disobedience.

PRAYER: Dear God, please guard me from the impatience that would cause me to do things my way instead of Your way. Amen.

MORE: Waiting. . . waiting . . . waiting. . .
Do you like to wait? What things make you impatient?

It’s easy to get impatient with things, people – even God, especially when He doesn’t seem to hear and answer our prayers.

Here is a verse that reminds us God is always on time. You might want to memorize it.

"In that day they will say, 'Surely this is our God; we trusted in him and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation.'” Isaiah 25:9

Next time you’re tempted to impatiently do things your way instead of waiting for God’s help in His time, remember the story of impatient Saul, review this verse and wait for God's timing.

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Changed!

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 10:1-9

TO CHEW ON: “The Spirit of the Lord will come powerfully upon you and you will prophesy with them; and you will be changed into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.” 1 Samuel 10:6,7

The next day Samuel sent Saul back home. Just before they parted, Samuel took out a bottle of oil and poured some on Saul’s head. Anointing him in this way showed that Saul was God’s choice to be Israel’s king.


1.To make sure that Saul knew this was God’s idea and not just Samuel’s, Samuel predicted some things that would happen to Saul in the next few hours. Which thing Samuel did not say: (1 Samuel 10:2-6)

A. You will meet two men who will tell you the donkeys have been found and your father is now worried about you.


B. You will find the donkeys on the road to Gibeah.


C. You will meet three men carrying goats, bread and wine.


D. You will meet a band of prophets playing instruments and prophesying.


E. You will prophesy and be changed.

2. What happened as Saul turned to leave Samuel? (1 Samuel 10:9) __________

All the things happened that day, just as Samuel had said.

When Saul met the prophets and joined them in prophesying, praising and worshiping God, the people who knew Saul and his family were surprised. “Who would imagine that Saul would be a prophet!” they said. It was obvious that he had been changed.

From that time on God was with Saul in a special way. God’s Holy Spirit changed him and gave him everything he needed to do the job of being king.

PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for Your Holy Spirit who changes us into people who can do the things You ask us to do. Amen.

MORE: Power for everyone
Before Jesus came, the Holy Spirit helped especially the people who had big assignments from God.

Just before Jesus went back to heaven, He gave all his followers – those that were living then and those that would live in the future – a big assignment. It was to tell the Gospel. They were to tell people all around the world the good news that Jesus had paid the penalty for their sins. By trusting in Him, everyone could be forgiven and be friends with God.

But in order to do this assignment, every one of them would need Holy Spirit power. Read the story of when the Holy Spirit first came on many people at once in Acts 2:1-13.

Answers

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's. 

Lost but Found

TODAY’S SPECIAL: 1 Samuel 9:15-20

TO CHEW ON: "Now the day before Saul came, the Lord had revealed this to Samuel: 'About this time tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him leader over my people Israel...'” 1 Samuel 9:15,16

When Samuel told the people to go home after they had asked for a king, he didn’t know who that king would be. But God did.

Some time after that some donkeys got lost. Their owner Kish, from tribe of Benjamin, sent his son Saul and a servant to look for them. They walked for miles and miles but they couldn't find the donkeys. Finally Saul was ready to give up. “We’d better go home,” he said, “or Dad will start worrying about us.”

“Let’s try just one more thing,” the servant suggested. “A prophet lives nearby. Let’s ask him if he knows where the donkeys are.”

Meanwhile Samuel, the prophet, had heard from God. God had told him, “Tomorrow I will send a man to you from the tribe of Benjamin. He will be the new king.”

The next day Samuel was walking outside his house when along came a tall, handsome stranger. “Do you know where the prophet’s house is?” the stranger asked.


Even as Samuel was replying, “I am the prophet,” God was speaking to him. ‘This is the man.’

Samuel told Saul that the donkeys had been found. Then he invited Saul to his house for a meal. They had a long talk and Saul spent the night.

How interesting that God used an ordinary, even annoying thing – losing something and having to look for it – to bring Saul to Samuel. Can He still work in everyday situations like this? Does He?



PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for being in every place and happening in my life. Amen.




MORE: Donkeys
Donkeys were more common in the Bible than horses. Find out about donkeys:
1. How are they different from horses?
2. What do they eat?
3. How would you care for them?
4. How are they useful to people?
5. Read some more donkey stories from the Bible
- A donkey speaks: Numbers 22:21-31
- A donkey carries Jesus: Matthew 21:1-11

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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.


Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS  are available too at Other Food: daily devo's.