Lost Donkeys = Unexpected Blessing

 

“And the asses of Kish Saul's father were lost. And Kish said to Saul his son, Take now one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses.” I Samuel 9:3

I began my day quite early and out of routine; I needed something a little different. Sometimes the days start to run together in a ho-hum kind of way and I find myself in need of adventure. Yes, even for a gal who doesn’t do change well, sometimes a change is just what the doctor ordered. 

God is great. God is good. There is no doubt in my heart or mind concerning that fact. He is always present and sees us in every day. I have that assurance. There is a certain peace about being so sure too. 

Yet, even though this is settled in my mind, life still happens. There are little issues that pop up and problems which must be dealt with on a regular basis. That’s life. That’s a result of living in a sinful, fallen world. 

After window shopping for a bit, I decided to sit in my truck and read my Bible for a bit while I waited for lunchtime. I only read one chapter before I began writing. Thank goodness for iPhones; I can write any where, at any time. Including Target parking lots!

I Samuel 9 caught my attention. There was a problem in this chapter - missing donkeys.  

Saul’s father sent him on a search to find them. He searched and searched, but to no avail. However, while he was dealing with this problem, he ended up finding something he didn’t intend to. You see, while he was trying to get through this problem, God brought him in front of Samuel who anointed Saul to be king. 

Whoa!!! While he was looking for lost donkeys, he found his anointing. 

I stopped reading. My heart was quickly processing all this info in real time and I thought about getting out and taking a victory lap around the truck. I’d never seen this before! In fact, I don’t remember this being taught on a regular basis in a Sunday school lesson like David and Goliath was. However. I think I’d change that now! It seems to me to be an important life lesson. 

How many times do we only see the problem we’re dealing with and fail to recognize what we gain along the way?

I just celebrated my 48th birthday, and I’m still learning daily. 

Every problem brings with it the potential and opportunity for unexpected blessings. 

What a powerful, encouraging nugget of truth for us to hold onto. 

How many times do we go through trials or just in living life in general and can only see our situations as problems?  I’m guilty! It’s easily labeled as just something else “negative” in life. But, in this chapter, we see that even blessings can be disguised as problems. How encouraging is that for people who feel they have more negative than positive moments in life? That simply means a lot of unexpected blessing is waiting to be found. 

I’ve said it before, I’m learning and proving the phrase to be true: God never wastes a hurt. That doesn’t mean we can’t. I’m convinced that throughout every rough spot in our road, if our perspective is adjusted, we can gain a nugget of blessing - if we’ll expect the unexpected. 

Saul didn’t expect to meet the Prophet Samuel and be anointed king, he was simply looking for lost donkeys. You see, even when our perspective is on the problem at hand, God can still land us in unexpected, blessed spots along the way. How much more so, if we would go into every trial and problematic situation we face automatically expecting to receive more?

I sat and wrote in awe. A Holy moment right there in my truck as revelation flooded into my heart and mind. That chapter wasn’t really about the problem -  finding lost donkeys - it was about Saul finding more than he expected. Yeah, kind of like the revelation I had just received because I was feeling the ho-hum doldrums that day and needed a change. My heart was immediately uplifted. 

Our trials and negative situations aren’t about us finding answers and getting through it as quickly as possible, they’re about us gaining nuggets of blessing along the way. 

Lessons of hope in restoration. Peace in the midst of the storm. 

Joy in the darkness. 

Trust in the overwhelming moments. 

Faith during bouts of doubt. 

Etc. 

These lessons cannot be learned any other way than starting with a problem. We learn them by facing them and allowing God to speak to us through them. Yet, it’s not about the problem at all. The problem is just the vehicle which takes us to our blessing. 

If you’re in a less-than-ideal situation today, if you’re not feeling victorious, remember this: 

Lost donkeys = unexpected blessings

Let’s be encouraged today...we’re onto something more than lost donkeys. There’s a purpose and a plan for every problem in this life.  There’s a nugget waiting for you along the way. Be sure to find it - it will be SO worth it.