Faith: Story of David shows us God is watching to make ordinary days exceptional

The village of Bethlehem must have been buzzing with excitement at the news that leaked out through gossip. Even though Samuel, the prophet, tried to keep his trip a secret, eventually someone had discovered that the venerable old religious leader was coming to Bethlehem. Samuel, a circuit-riding preacher, traveled among the people, but Bethlehem was far south of his normal route. In fact, Samuel had never been to this little village just outside of Jerusalem.

So unusual was this visit that the elders of the village “trembled at his coming” (1 Samuel 16:4), probably wondering whether they had done something wrong that might have prompted this powerful man to come to judge their village. But Samuel assured them he had come peacefully to share a time of worship with them. He sent word to a man named Jesse to be present for this special occasion, without even revealing the exact purpose of his visit.

Those in attendance could discern that the old prophet was prayerfully looking over Jesse’s sons. They did not know God had directed this old man of prayer to anoint one of those young men as the new leader of the nation. When Samuel was introduced to Eliab, Abinadab, Shammah and their four other brothers, he was impressed by their stature and demeanor, but God somehow conveyed to him that none of these men was the chosen one.

Certainly feeling disappointed at the possibility his mission had failed, Samuel asked Jesse whether all of his sons were present. The father confessed that his youngest son was still in the field watching their flock of sheep. He did not deem it important to include him in the family celebration. Samuel’s heart leaped with fresh hope, and he urged the father to bring his youngest in from his chores immediately. In fact, the old prophet said he would not sit down until this boy was present in the room.

When a messenger rushed out to the nearby field to tell David to head for the house immediately, this teenager must have been surprised that he would be included in this meeting. Even though he had always cultivated a heart toward God and a love for his sheep, David was probably not aware anyone else had noticed his devotion. He played his harp and sang songs of worship in private, with only the animals to listen and flick their ears in his direction.

He did not know anyone saw him kill a lion and a bear that attacked his sheep (1 Samuel 17:34-36), but Psalm 78:70-72 said God saw his care of the flock and decided David was the kind of leader he wanted to be over the people of Israel. God had vetted this young man long before the feast in Bethlehem.

Called hurriedly from the field, David had no time to wash up and don appropriate clothes. But when Samuel took one look at this ruddy teenager with the smell of the field as his cologne, he knew at once that David was the reason God had sent him so far out of his normal travels to anoint a new leader for the nation.

When the prophet pulled his horn of anointing oil from his pouch and poured the sacred potion over the tousled head of this teenager, there must have been a collective gasp throughout the assembled family and elders of the village. David himself must have been surprised by God’s grace and overwhelmed by this sudden honor.

David’s experience is an illustration of how God still intersects people and “surprises” them with a moment of grace. He can turn an ordinary day and an unlikely circumstance into a special sanctuary. Hope can be born in a moment, and answers of the heart can appear suddenly. It wouldn’t surprise me if he didn’t show up at any time, to anyone, for any reason, just like for David.