1 Samuel 10: 6-7 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.
Intro
Have you ever heard of the term, “decision fatigue?” It’s the idea that we are faced with so many decisions, we eventually get burned out and it becomes more and more difficult to choose.. One of the most difficult decisions that I’m face with is when my wife asks me what I want for dinner.
Life is full of decisions. From what school or career to choose, to who we marry, to decisions in our job that will have an effect on other people, we are constantly having to choose what we believe is the best option.
One of the most challenging parts of deciding to follow God’s plan for our life and submit our will to His is trying to make a big decision when the answer doesn’t seem clear. Discerning what God has for us can be hard even when we want to follow it.
Text
In 1 Samuel, the people have decided that they want to have an earthly ruler to be their king. They have turned their back on God’s plan for Him to be their sole ruler. Samuel advises them that it isn’t going to go well for them. Choosing a human king is going to bring hardship for their nation. However, the people want what the people want. So God tells Samuel that a man named Saul is going to be the next king of Israel.
Imagine being Saul. Currently, you aren’t in any leadership position over the nation. You don’t have any prior experience in politics. Not only that, Israel has never had a king! You are tasked with building the ruling system of Israel from the ground up. Who are you going to appoint to be the head of your department of transportation?
Saul was walking into totally new territory. He was going to have to make decisions that he didn’t know the outcome of. He was going to have to make constant decisions that were going to influence the nation, individuals, and families. I love the advice that Samuel gives him in 1 Samuel chapter 10. He tells him, “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.” (NIV) First, he tells him that God is going to change him. Second, that to move forward with what he believes he needs to do. Third, that God is present with you.
Application
Saul didn’t know every decision that he was going to have to make. But God told him to do whatever his hand finds to do. He told him to move forward. He also told him that He was going to be with him. This is some of the most encouraging advice we can get in those seasons where it is hard to know what path to choose. So many times, we want the answer to be clear. However, I believe that part of how God chooses to help us grow is to wrestle through hard decisions with Him. It doesn’t mean to move forward too fast and make decisions without thinking about them. We can trust that if we are truly seeking God’s will and prayerfully approaching big decisions, He’s going to be with us and protect us in the process. There have been times where I have made decisions that I felt extremely confident that God was leading me in. I love those decisions! There have also been times where I have to wrestle through pros and cons and it seems like God is more silent. Those are the seasons, where I believe the real goal, is what God is doing in me through the process. So rather than getting discouraged that we don’t have the answer, we can thank God that He is with us and seek out how He is trying to change us in the process.
Next Steps
Is there an area of your life that you have been seeking God’s will or answers in? Have you had a hard time discerning what He wants you to do? This week, try setting aside some time to not only seek God’s will, but to also ask what He is trying to reveal to you in the process.
