God’s Eyes

1 Samuel 16:6 KJV
And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord's anointed is before him.

Samuel was a man of God literally from his birth. Dedicated to God before conception and serving the Lord from the time he was a preschooler, I dare say he truly knew the voice of the Lord better than anyone else in his time. However, this did not stop him from erring. We are so easily deceived when we look with our own eyes on a situation. We see what *looks* good, and say obviously God THIS is what You want.

How wrong we are! And how wrong Samuel was! He looked at Eliab and thought for sure he was the Lord’s annointed, but God rebuked Samuel:

1 Samuel 16:7 KJV
But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.

God’s eyes see the heart of the matter. Whether that’s a person, a situation, an organization, etc. He knows the heart. Because of this, He often leads us in a way that’s different than we planned or different than we envisioned.

Isaiah 55:8-9 KJV
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Even when God’s plan is different than ours, we can trust that it is better. His ways are higher, so He knows more. He can plan so much better than we can with our earthly knowledge.

Samuel followed God’s plan and annointed the conquering king of Israel. Under David’s reign, Israel finally possessed the entirety of the land promised to them by God. Why did this all work out so well for David? Paul tells us:

Romans 8:28 KJV
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

If you’re saved, then you’re called according to His purpose. The verse promises if you’ve accepted Jesus everything is going to work out for your good. You just have trust Him, like David did when he faced Goliath and in every battle after. Trust His plan.