²¹  And Saul said, “May you be blessed by the Lord, for you have had compassion on me. 

1 Samuel 23:21

Dear God, oh, how we have to be careful. The setup for this story is that Saul was chasing David and the Ziphites decided to be on Saul’s side and rat David out. And Saul invoked your name–I would argue he used it in vain–and asked that you bless them for their compassion and pity towards him. Were you happy that the Ziphites chose Saul’s side over David’s and put David in more danger? Probably not. But did they think they were doing the right thing by you and by serving your anointed? Probably so. They thought they were doing the right thing by you and by the king you placed over them. Saul, in his delusion, commended them and asked that you bless them. They were so wrong.

This is a reminder for me that I almost never know what you’re doing at any given time. It’s very dangerous if I start claiming you did things, ordained things, or blessed things for my benefit or the benefit of those I’m rooting for. Or even if I’m just freely interpreting your will incorrectly. I think of the people who claim you saved President Trump in the assassination attempt, but ignore the man behind him who died. Did you or didn’t you intervene in saving President Trump? I honestly don’t know. But for some to claim they know what you were doing there is foolish, in my opinion. But there are any number of other examples of people (including me) proclaiming your providence when it’s really just how things worked out. Or you need something to happen, but not for the reasons we think. In the case of this story from 1 Samuel, maybe you needed David to be on the run so he could learn and it would prepare him to be a better king than he otherwise would have. So while you were for David, you needed Saul to have the upper hand for a while. The Ziphites didn’t know that in real time. So they might have accidentally done the right thing but for the wrong reason.

Father, make your plan for my life foolproof. Make it John-proof. Help me to be humble enough to understand I am a fool and earnest enough in seeking you that I will even accidentally do what you need me to do despite my ignorance. Guide and ordain my path. Guide and ordain the world’s path. I don’t know what you’re doing in the short term or the long term. I measure time in days, weeks, and months, and you measure it in yeard, decades and centuries. I don’t know where all this is going or how it all works out. Just help me to do my part, starting with worshipping you, loving you, and loving others. The rest of the chips can fall where they may. Oh, and before I go, I have a few people on my heart this morning. You know who they are. You know their challenges, their grief, and their needs. I pray that you will touch each one and the family of those who are supporting them and sharing in their grief and challenges. For your glory, oh Lord.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen