Today's Devotion: But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. (The Holy Bible : New International Version. electronic ed. Grand Rapids : Zondervan, 1996, c1984, S. 1 Sa 16:7)

In this passage, the Lord has given Samuel the assignment of anointing a new king to replace Saul. Samuel has been told to make contact with Jesse and anoint one of his sons to be king. Eliab was the first son that Samuel met, and Samuel thought wrongly that this might possibly be the son that God wanted him to anoint.

Today's Comments: This is the Bible's version of the saying, "don't judge the book by its cover." It tells us that we cannot necessarily rely on human senses to determine what is in one's heart. God's choice for king ended up to be a mere boy. But that mere boy whose heart was inclined to God was able, with the support and power of God, to build a kingdom like no man has seen since. Like David, with the power of God, we can do anything. Therefore, we should pray that our hearts stay inclined to God and that we live our lives in obedience to Him.