Scripture
So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully on David from that day forward.
~ 1 Samuel 16:13 (CSB)
Quote
Ambition can be like sea water, the more you drink, the more you thirst and if you drink too much, you go mad.
~Lord Alfred Tennyson
When Samuel came to the house of Jesse looking for a king, David was not present. Jesse had assembled David’s six older brothers but David got no invitation to the party. David’s brothers saw him as a brat, a kid looking for trouble or a good fight. The scripture gives us no indication of what Jesse thought about David but evidently, he did not think David was king material. David spent a big part of his childhood serenading sheep. As a shepherd, he spent a lot of time alone which gave him plenty of time to work on his music. He learned to fight by protecting the sheep from predators. I’m not saying David had no ambition. I think he had a lot of ambition but just not as a musician. Like so many talented people, he was not impressed with his ability to write and sing songs. No doubt it was a God given talent that David used to entertain himself and the sheep. In those early days, David played for himself and the sheep: there were no large audiences, no thundering applause but David was not the least bit discouraged, he kept playing, singing and writing. David didn’t hire an agent, he didn’t send tapes to local radio stations, he did not promote himself in any way. He simply wrote, played and sang new songs. Again, let me remind you that I am talking about his musical ability not his political or military aspirations. I don’t know that David created a library or archives of his music and yet think of the billions who have enjoyed his music. His songs are more popular today than ever before; far more popular today than during his life time. David had no idea that his music would someday be on YouTube.
Here is the point. Do not worry about fame or notoriety, just faithfully exercise your spiritual gifts. Humble yourself before God and in due time, He will exalt you. Oswald Chambers never wrote a book. What about MY UTMOST FOR HIS HIGHEST or BIBLICAL PSYCHOLOGY? Over thirty works are published in his name but he wrote none of them. His wife began studying his notes and she compiled every book that bares his name and there are some great ones. He never wrote the first book. Preachers amuse me trying to write books. Preaching is one thing, writing books in another. I seriously doubt that C.S. Lewis tried to preach. Do you sometimes feel like a hidden talent? If folks only knew your ability; if they would only give you a chance? Listen people, I came to this conclusion some twenty or more years ago. It is not so much about your talents and your gifts as it is the ANOINTING of the LORD. This is what set David apart. If God wills that you be famous, you will be famous. I feel no pressure to be great. My concern is to be faithful. My job is to humble myself; it is God’s responsibility to exalt me in due time. If that is in heaven, I can wait; if it is never, may His will be done.
- PTL for three gorgeous days in a row…Thank You Jesus!
- PTL the two weddings are history. I didn’t get that nervous about the second one until I seen the crowd. I have no problem with both of them being history.
- June and I enjoy LUKE 14 although we were treated like outsiders. First that accused us of being visitors and when June said, “Good, that means we eat first,” they said no. All in fun {I think} and we enjoyed the tradition that began in the late 80’s. I’m just not sure if it was 88 or 89. It is getting close to 30 years old and that is good these days. I never dreamed that June and I would be the oldest in attendance. Of course Mrs. Edith and the Sanfords bailed us out. I don’t know how old the ladies but Charlie is 81 and still runs a chain saw. I don’t remember Joe David mentioning Hannah last night but she made all the dressing and she had a busy week. Anyway, I want to thank all those younger than myself who have taken up the mantle. We had enough food to feed 500. Tina does a good job in the kitchen and Mandy had it well organized. I was impressed with the entire crew.