Searching for Donkeys

“One day the donkeys of Saul’s father Kish wandered off… ‘Take one of the servants with you and go look for the donkeys.  Saul…went through Ephraim…went through the region of Shalishah…went through the region of Shaalim…went through the Benjaminite region but still did not find them.” 1 Sam 9:3-4.

This is a story about a prominent man named Kish and his son, Saul.  One uneventful day was about to turn into one extraordinary anointing.  Kish sent his son with one of the servants to find his lost donkeys.  Going from city to city searching for these animals must have seemed menial and mundane.  Just walking on the dusty road putting one foot in front of the other to no avail.  Most likely similar views, similar conversation producing similar feelings…frustrating…boring…futile.  Just when Saul was about to give up and return home, the servant told him of a man of God who might be able to help.  Now on the previous day, God had informed Samuel, the man of God, that He was sending someone for whom Samuel should anoint as King.  ‘At this time tomorrow, I will send you a man…Anoint him over my people…He will save them.’  When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord told him, ‘Here is the man I told you about; he will govern my people.’” 1 Sam 9:16-17.

Searching for donkeys…day after day doing the same thing, feeling the same way and getting the same results.  Most of our days filled with boring and repetitive tasks.  We are all searching for something…a new job…a new relationship…a new purpose…more contentment...a new season for heaven’s sake!  We cannot give up and give in to what seems like futile wanderings.  God has a calling on our lives, and each day matters to arrive at that destination.  We must force ourselves to believe that every activity of every day is critical to moving us from ‘searching for donkeys to finding our thrones.’ God is working just as hard in the ordinary as He does in the extraordinary.  ‘Saul’s frustrating, time-consuming task was actually a divinely orchestrated conduit to bigger purposes.  He could not have known how God was working on the other side…aligning events and people for his arrival.  And neither can you.  All you can do is fully engage in the task before you today.  Never think your circumstances are disconnected from His leading and His will.  He uses seemingly meaningless activities as tools to guide you towards His plans.’ Discerning God’s Voice, Priscilla Shirer, p. 143.

What if Saul hadn’t pressed on looking for the donkeys?  What if he hadn’t been supported by a person who pointed back to God?  What if he felt the job he was called to was menial and beneath him?  So many things could have deterred him from discovering his royalty…pride…impatience…a failure to fully engage.  We must also be cautious to fully engage in what is before us today…tomorrow… the next day.  We must believe that the donkeys for which we are searching are up ahead and God has already orchestrated the discovery!  Don’t give up…don’t give in…ask God to give you the patience to wait, the humility to act and the confidence to claim!

‘Samuel took the flask, poured it out on Saul’s head, kissed him, and said…‘the LORD anointed you ruler over his inheritance.’  1 Sam 10:1.