David: Breaking the Rule

Prompt:

Jan 20

Breaking the Law

Think about the last time you broke a rule (a big one, not just ripping the tags off your pillows). Were you burned, or did things turn out for the best. 

Hi. My name is David. 

I have previously been mentioned on this blog by my first wife, Michal. And I must say that she painted quite the right picture of me – a man crazy for Yahweh. 

You see, growing up, I was usually away from the rest of the world. I am the last born of 8 boys and in all fairness, I enjoyed my childhood. I would sit in the kitchen with my mother while all my brothers went out to tend our sheep. Father used to wag his walking cane at me and say, ‘That’s the reward of a strong man who bears many men in Israel. He never has to worry about what to eat’. I learned a lot from father but not for long. When I turned 12, Abinadab, my second brother called me and told me with his usual strict voice, ‘You are now in charge of tending the sheep. You have come of age’. No one ever said it out but Abinadab had bouts of depression. He was a sharp contrast from Eliab, my first brother. Eliab was a sight! (at least all the women thought so). 

Anyway, Shammah and I would go to the field and tend the sheep. In truth, Shammah would go and see that girl down the creek and leave me to tend the sheep. When I turned 13, he completely left me to myself and that was how I got to be called ‘David the Shepherd boy’ It was the beginning of my exciting life. 

I had such great passion for tending sheep. Out there in the wide wide fields, no one could stop me. By Yahweh, all the sheep were at the mercy of my protection. I realised how extremely gullible they were. All they needed was a leader to follow. And so I practised leadership with them for fun. Sometimes, I would walk in a zig-zag pattern and look behind me to watch them all follow suit. Sometimes, I would gather them and tell them how the day was going to be. I would tell them about my future plans and about how great I was going to be. I practised public speaking, chastising, love and true leadership with the sheep. And I kept growing both in strength and in wisdom.

You see, that’s the thing about growth – no one has to witness it for it to happen. I grew so much in love and strength that one time, I killed a hungry unfortunate lion with my bare hands when it tried to take my sheep. I’ll admit that after I did that, I sat on the grass in the pool of the lion’s blood and just shook for about an hour. ‘I could have died’, I kept thinking. But in the moment when I leaped into action, all I could think of was the lives of my sheep. I cannot fully exhaust what the quiet of the field did to me – my singing, my playing the harp, my poetry, AND my relationship with Yahweh. The city is so noisy… if you truly want to enjoy a conversation with Yahweh, go to the field where nature is at its peak. Even the birds would convey Yahweh’s love to you…

But anyway, I slowly digress. One day, as I tended sheep, I saw one of our servants (Elisha) run towards me as though our house was on fire. I ran towards him and demanded to know what was wrong. He was breathing heavily so I told him to sit down and drink some water but he shook his head. He said father, all my brothers and PROPHET SAMUEL were waiting for me. He said they were standing in the living room and that he had heard Prophet Samuel say that they would not sit until I arrived. My mind was racing. What terrible crime had I committed in the Temple on the last sabbath day? Or perhaps, Yahweh had shown the prophet a vision concerning me… it must have been a terrible one for the prophet not to have sent for me but to summon all my brothers and father. Father would be so mad! Elisha offered to tend the sheep and I hurried home. With every step I took, I spoke to Yahweh. I told him to forgive me (I was never the most perfect Jew) and I told him to tell Prophet Samuel that He had forgiven me.

When I arrived at home, I walked into the living room and truly, there was the prophet and my father and my brothers. My brothers looked red except Shammah; Shammah was usually always happy. Later, prophet Samuel would say that when I stepped in, I was ‘glowing in health and had a fine appearance and handsome features’. I wonder how he came about that because I looked like a terrible mess with all the running and sweating. 

Prophet Samuel then looked up to the ceiling and nodded like he heard Yahweh speak audibly, I shivered. Then he looked at me and said, ‘Kneel’. I knelt. He said, ‘For the Lord has chosen you David, son of Jesse to lead his people, his holy people of Israel.’ For a moment, I was going to say, ‘My sheep in the field are the Lord’s Holy people?’ But I just watched my brothers shift from foot to foot (Shammah was making funny faces) and my father was smiling in a way that said, ‘David never stops amazing me’. I was going to tell him that I also knew nothing of what was going on when I felt the prophet pour his jar of oil on my head. Time froze. The prophet did not just pour oil on anybody anyhow like water. If the prophet anointed you, you absolutely had to be king. My mind was racing. King Saul was still ruling us then. Would he die soon? Would we rule together? Would he descend from his throne for me when he heard of this? Did he know about this? Too many question…

After that day, I still went to tend sheep. I told all the sheep what happened. I would occasionally get shivers down my spine when I thought about the fact that anything could happen at anytime to King Saul and I would be called upon to lead the people. I was only 25 years old.  But like I said, the field is a good place to talk to Yahweh. I settled a lot of things with Him…

So yes, King Saul was in rule, and I broke his rule by my being anointed. 

Did I get burned? Did things turn out for the best?

Both…

I fled my house, my life was threatened, I hid in caves and sang songs of sorrow…

But yes! It turned out for the best also. I became one of the kings of Israel… and my rule was amazing. 

But most of all although I broke the Rule of Saul, it launched me into the beginning of my amazing race after Yahweh’s heart…

To read more of this story check here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here