He stood tall in stature, he was physically attractive, muscular, wealthy, and powerful!
“Who is ‘he’?” you ask.
“…and why is ‘he’ not here with me?”
Well single ladies, you can find him in the book of 1 Samuel. What happened is, God relented and gave the Israelites their first King. His name was Saul. Some of the first few words of assurance this seemingly “good catch” received are “. . . God is with you.” (1 Samuel 10:7)
Despite God’s promise to be with him, Saul held strong to his tendency of taking matters into his own hands. We see this in 1 Samuel chapter 13 when he offered sacrifices himself that were to only be offered by priests. We see it again in 1 Samuel chapter 15 when he failed to completely wipe out the Amalekites as God had commanded. Then, in 1 Samuel 31, he chose to take matters into his own hands one last time by asking his armor bearer to take his life in a battle with the Philistines.
Unfortunately, the opening list of attributes did not make Saul an ideal catch or role-model afterall. He was small in God’s eyes. His sin made him ugly. His lack of faith made him weak. He was spiritually bankrupt. And although he did have great power, he was unable to command the respect and allegiance of the people he led.
As such, King Saul had a brilliant beginning but a tragic ending.
The good news is, with God’s Word in hand and therefore the option of having Saul’s story in mind, there is no reason for any of us to have a such a tragic ending. We have a chance to turn to God now as we realize that those words of assurance God shared with Saul, apply to us as well.
He may not be with you. She may not be with you. They may not be with you.
But, rest assured, you do not have to take matters into your own hands for God is indeed with you!
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