Thankful Thursday

I just can't help but be thankful this morning. Thankful for a God who looks beyond all outward appearances and talents and goes straight to the heart of His people.

Last weekend Pastor Frank continued his series entitled 'Psalms ~ Desiring God'. In order to better understand the author, David, he took us to the book of Samuel; all the way back to when David was still a boy, working in his father's field. The Lord had sent Samuel to anoint one of Jesse's sons to be the future King of Israel. After Samuel assumed it would be Eliab, the obvious choice, comes this verse:

But the Lord said to Samuel, “Don’t judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The Lord doesn’t make decisions the way you do! People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at a persons thoughts & intentions.” 1Samuel 16:7 New Living Translation

I don't know about you, but that is very encouraging to me.

God sees things inside of not only me, but each one of us that we can't even think or imagine. Take David for example. Of all the sons that Jesse had, David was the one least likely to be a candidate to be anointed as the future King of Israel. He was so unlikely a choice that Jesse didn't even call him out of the field when Samuel had him call his sons in. After all, he was the youngest. And it's not like he was already out leading people, showing his leadership skills at an early age. He worked out in the field, watching over sheep. And yet God saw in him a heart that would follow hard after God. He didn't see one who would be perfect or who wouldn't make mistakes. But, God saw something that no one else saw. He saw a future King.

The truth is, it's the outward appearance and abilities one has that impress people. But it's the thoughts and intentions within the heart that impress God. People have the ability to look ahead and see where someone's abilities may take them. But it's what is deep in a person's heart that can take one to places that only God can fathom.

I think this is a great lesson for all of us Moms. To not only be open to God using us in ways we can't imagine, but also being aware of this thought as we raise up our children. It's a great lesson as to how we should be as parents, not just noticing what is obvious in our children, but also seeing into their hearts and recognizing things within them that they don't see for themselves.

Let's let today be a day of believing God for things that seem unimaginable!!