“Better to keep your mouth shut, and be thought a fool,” goes the old down-home version of these two proverbs, “than to open your mouth and remove all doubt.”

I’ve known a few truly wise people, and a handful of brilliant scholars (which may be two quite different things!). I’ve been impressed with the realization that, in a room full of people with much to say, the wise and the brilliant are almost invariably the last to speak.

Many great leaders have found it difficult to pass on the baton of leadership. Samuel was different!

At a public meeting, Samuel did five things:

Whenever I read this story, I feel sorry for Saul.

He is in the early stages of leadership, is getting the army established when his son Jonathan wins a skirmish with their old enemies the Philistines that leads to a declaration of war.

Israel was vastly outnumbered militarily and the people “had so much confidence in their army” that many went into hiding, some even fled to the east of Jordan!

Over the years I’ve heard people give various reasons why they don’t believe the good news about Jesus Christ. These reasons run the gamut from the deeply personal to the loftily philosophical, from heartbreak to arrogance. Some invoke science, claiming faith and “logic” are somehow irreconcilable. Others point to the moral shortcomings of those of us who do believe, claiming the credibility gap is too wide.

The church is built on a hole in the ground.

Literally.

The women saw it first. They ran to tell the men, who ran to see for themselves. Each of them beheld it, a wide dark gash in the earth.

It was a second chance for Saul. He could have been a key player in God’s long term justice.

When God’s chosen people Israel were delivered from Egypt, the nation of Amalek was the first to attack them. God declared his enduring opposition to Amelek (Exodus 17:8-16), but gave them 400+ years to repent.

Samuel had a struggle between his head and his heart. Mentally he knew that God had rejected Saul. But emotionally Samuel grieved and still longed for God’s blessing on Saul.

The great prophet Samuel now is fearful of his protégé Saul; what if he finds out about this anointing of a new king? I love the fact that God grants this dear servant a “cover” for his trip to Bethlehem. “Take a heifer with you”. It worked perfectly!

Needs surround us. Needs invade us. They can overwhelm us, or they can motivate us to take action. Those with eyes to see perceive not only their own needs, but also those of other needy people around them.

A very needy crippled man is brought to Jesus.

I curled in a fetal position, dark eddies of despair threatening to overtake me. My world was crashing down around me. I gasped out to God for help, for a small measure of peace. Over time, he pulled me from that dark place. But it didn’t come easy. I had to believe God could – and would – take those burdens I carried; I had to believe he was listening.