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Donkeys Got Lost

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DONKEYS GOT LOST Hook Sometimes, what looks like a loss may actually be a divine detour. We often associate donkeys with foolishness, but they are actually known for being cautious. What people may interpret as stupidity can sometimes be wisdom in disguise. And if God can use something as ordinary as lost donkeys to redirect a man’s destiny, He can certainly use what seems like a setback in your life to lead you somewhere greater. Scripture “Some of Kish’s donkeys got lost. Kish said to his son, ‘Saul, take one of the servants with you and go look for the donkeys.’” ( 1 Samuel 9:3 NLT ) Explanation Kish’s donkeys went missing, and Saul was sent to look for them. Saul thought he was going on a search for lost donkeys, but God was leading him toward something far greater. He went looking for donkeys and found God’s purpose. What appeared to be a loss in Kish’s household became the beginning of Saul’s encounter with Samuel—and ultimately his introduction to kingship. ...
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He Went to the Lord for Advice

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He Went to the LORD for Advice Hook How you act when you are upset says a lot about you. People will get on your nerves, step on your toes, disappoint you, and sometimes deliberately hurt you. In those moments, your response reveals more about you than how you behave when everything is going well. Scripture “Samuel was very upset with their request and went to the LORD for advice." ( 1 Samuel 8:6 NLT) Explanation Israel asked for a king, and Samuel was deeply upset by their request. Yet he did not lash out at them, give them a piece of his mind, pay them back in their own coin, or try to teach them a lesson they would not forget. He went to the LORD for advice. Samuel teaches us what to do with our pain, frustration, and disappointment: take it back to God in prayer. This agrees with James 5:13: “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray.” There is another important lesson here. Samuel was upset with their request , not necessarily angry at the people thems...
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Confrontations

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Confrontations Hook You cannot change what you are unwilling to confront. Many people are frustrated with where they are, yet they have become so accustomed to their situation that they have resigned themselves to fate. Frustration, when not addressed, can either become the fuel that drives us to confront the problem or the weight that pulls us into despair. Scripture “Fed up, all the elders of Israel got together and confronted Samuel at Ramah.”(1 Samuel 8:4) Explanation Israel had a problem, and the elders were willing to confront it. They came to Samuel and told him plainly what was happening: his sons were not walking in his ways, and their leadership had become a source of concern. Samuel became angry and upset. He prayed and sought God, which was right. But there is something important to notice: the Scripture records the people confronting Samuel about his sons, but it does not record Samuel confronting his sons about their behaviour. Samuel had prayed about ...
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Leadership Consequences

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Leadership Consequences Hook What if your greatest leadership success becomes your greatest failure at home? If you were a merchant selling good examples, would your children buy from you? Scripture “But his sons didn't take after him; they were out for what they could get for themselves, taking bribes, corrupting justice.”(1 Samuel 8:3) “Samuel gave solid leadership to Israel his entire life. Every year he went on a circuit from Bethel to Gilgal to Mizpah.”(1 Samuel 7:15–16) Explanation Samuel gave solid leadership to Israel, but his sons did not take after him. The Bible does not say Samuel was an absentee father. However, we know that his leadership required him to travel regularly between Bethel, Gilgal and Mizpah. In those days, travelling was slow and demanding. Could it be that while Samuel was faithfully leading Israel, his sons did not receive enough of his presence and influence at home? We cannot state this as fact, but it gives us a sobering lesson: You ...
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God Has Restored

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God Has Restored Hook Sometimes life can make you feel as though you have lost too much to recover. But what the enemy took is not beyond the reach of God. God is a Restorer. Scripture “All the cities from Ekron to Gath that the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored. Israel also freed the surrounding countryside from Philistine control. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites.”( 1 Samuel 7:14 ) Explanation Israel had suffered a devastating loss. Thousands had died, the Ark of the Covenant had been captured, and the Philistines had taken control of their cities and land. Yet God did not leave Israel in that condition. God went to war against the Philistines and defeated them. What they had taken from Israel was restored . Notice the language of the text: “were restored.” God did not merely give Israel something new; He brought back what had been lost. This gives us a beautiful picture of what Christ has done for us. He went to war on our behalf...
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Ebenezer

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Ebenezer Hook There are moments when life makes us realize that we could not have made it this far by ourselves. When you look back, you may discover that what you called “luck,” “strength,” or “favour” was actually God helping you . Scripture “Samuel took a single rock and set it upright between Mizpah and Shen. He named it ‘Ebenezer’ (Rock of Help), saying, ‘This marks the place where GOD helped us.’”(1 Samuel 7:12) Explanation Samuel raised a stone and called it Ebenezer — the Rock of Help . It was a physical reminder of a spiritual reality: God had helped them. Sometimes we are so focused on where we are going that we forget to remember where God has brought us from. The Psalmist puts it beautifully: “God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need him. We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom, courageous in seastorm and earthquake.”(Psalm 46:1–2) Our confidence is not that storms will never come. Our confidence is that God is our help when they come...
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God Takes Over

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God Takes Over Hook Sometimes we mistake a disappointing outcome for God’s defeat. We prayed, believed, expected one thing—and something completely different happened. But remember: your outcome is not evidence that God has lost His power. Scripture “Next morning when the citizens of Ashdod got up, they were shocked to find Dagon toppled from his place, flat on his face before the Chest of GOD. They picked him up and put him back where he belonged.” ( 1 Samuel 5:3 ) Explanation Israel had lost a battle, but God had not lost the battle. The Ark of the Covenant had been captured, but God Himself had not been captured. The Philistines carried the Ark into the temple of Dagon, perhaps thinking they had placed Israel’s God under the authority of their god. But the next morning, Dagon was lying face down before the Ark. God did not need an Israelite soldier there to defend Him. He did not need Israel’s army to prove that He was still God. God is God by Himself. When God ...
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