David had just been anointed as the next king of Israel by the prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 16:1-13), much to the amazement of his father and brothers. He had been in the fields of Judea tending the family flocks, seemingly consigned like the majority of the populace to live a life of productive obscurity known only to God. Israel was under the rule of Saul, who had been anointed as the first earthly king of the nation against the advice of the LORD and of Samuel as well (1 Samuel 8).
The people had demanded a king like the nations around them. Saul, because of his appearance and other character traits, fit the bill. Saul started out well and seemed to possess a desire to please God. This faded quickly as Saul began to “believe his own press,” letting pride and a growing disregard for following God’s direction and the advice of Samuel cloud his decisions (1 Samuel 15:10-35).
Because of this, God rejected Saul as king, removing His spirit and allowing an “evil spirit” to torment him. Saul was gripped by depression and violent mood swings (1 Samuel 18:8-12, 19:9-10). In an effort to help the troubled king, the court officials suggested that he find someone skilled in music so as to calm him down for a time. It is against this backdrop that David is brought from obscurity to the stage where he will be prepared to fulfill the call God placed upon his life.
While David had been anointed to be the next king of Israel, Saul was allowed to stay on the throne until his successor was fully trained. God would use the madness of King Saul to help train the young shepherd boy for his future role as the next king of Israel. God had His “toolbox` ready to build the character and faith of David. He used four specific tools that He uses when He seeks to build our character as His children and servants. God does not leave us as He found us. He saves us in order to change us (2 Corinthians 5:17), and He saves us in order to transform us into the image of His Son, the LORD Jesus Christ (Romans 8:28; Ephesians 4:11-13). The LORD God uses certain tools that are suited for the work of our transformation.
Let us examine the specific tools He used to transform David from a young shepherd boy to the greatest king that Israel would know.
The first tool God used in building David’s character was solitude. David had spent the majority of his life tending sheep in the hillsides of Judea by himself. Yet, David was never alone. He learned how to fellowship with God, listening to His voice, communing with Him, worshipping Him, and how to be at peace with himself. There were no distractions except for the bleating of his sheep.
The idea of silence and quiet, without the distractions of the world’s demands, is a foreign concept to the modern mindset. We’ve been lulled into a false idea that work and activity take precedence over the idea of solitude and “quiet times,” especially quiet times to be alone with God. If we say that we are devout followers of the LORD Jesus, then we need to follow His own example of having time alone with the Father (Mark 1:35; Luke 4:42, 6:12; John 6:15). We need to spend time with God if we are to have any chance of developing spiritual character and maturity. Let us return to be the “special people” (1 Peter 2:9) that the LORD Jesus expects us to be and set aside time for Him. The world can wait.
The second tool God used on David was that of secrecy, or obscurity. As David worked in the fields tending the flocks of his family, not only was he alone personally, but he also had it in his heart to do the job well, with no one around to say otherwise. David performed his job knowing that he was being watched by an audience of One. God watched him as he did the mundane, ordinary, and difficult tasks that came with the responsibility of a shepherd. He did nothing half-hearted but with a sense of excellence and worth.
The Bible says that it is in the shadows of obscurity that God sovereignly works in the lives of His people.
It was the forty-year time of solitude in the desert that molded Moses from a fugitive murderer who fled Egypt in shame into the great leader and lawgiver of Israel. Jesus spent the first thirty years of His life as an anonymous carpenter from the backwater village of Nazareth (Luke 2:52).
We are not to disregard those periods of obscurity and secrecy in which the LORD can place us, for it is done in order to mold us into fit vessels of service for His glory. We need to surrender ourselves to the reality that notoriety, worldly fame, or recognition may never be part of our lives and instead be content with the knowledge that whether we taste fame or are allowed to be part of the fellowship of the ordinary, it is God’s gracious outpouring of His wonderful mercy, grace, and salvation upon us that is of utmost importance and worth. God never uses our ego as a litmus test of obedience and potential service.
The other tools that God had ready to form David’s future royal character included routines and troubles. The tools of sameness and struggles are used on anyone whom God chooses for future service and significance. There is no such thing as a trouble-free life where we are handed everything necessary for alleged success in this present world. Entitlement is a vice disguised as a “right” that this present generation seems to think comes with being part of the human race.
Anyone who wraps themselves in such a ridiculous and dangerous ideology ends up as a despicable, self-centered, and potentially useless individual who will fall for the voices of tyranny and dystopia disguised as peace, safety, and comfort – and in doing so, lose their freedom, uniqueness, and potential service and use by God for better and more noble outcomes.
Routine in a job or other task is a way of gaining both confidence and expertise in that field. Expertise leads to further responsibility. Further responsibility shows maturity and dedication. The Bible says that faithfulness in the small things leads to greater responsibility because we can be trusted with getting those little things done, and that we will be rewarded for it by the LORD (Matthew 25:21).
No one starts at the top, not even those called by God into His service. There is a “boot camp” for everyone who is willing to set aside their ego, sense of importance, or belief that they are not expendable and instead give themselves over to the will and guidance of God, trusting in Him to do a great work in us – not for the sake of self-gratification or sense of importance but that in spite of adversity, tears, troubles, and setbacks, the Sovereign LORD God who created us is also going to use tools like these to shape us into not only choice vessels but also faithful servants upon whom He can rely to get the job done.
David had his share of troubles (1 Samuel 17:34-37, 40-51, 18:8-12, 19:9-10), but the LORD used these and other venues to mold David further into not only being a man after God’s own heart but also the king whose dynasty would produce the Promised Messiah, the LORD Jesus Christ.
Are you ready for God to use His tools in your life? Then give your life to Jesus Christ and let the Great Carpenter begin His work on you today.