The LORD answered, “Listen to them and give them a king.” Then Samuel said to the Israelites, “Everyone go back to your own town.” – 1 Samuel 8:22

Today’s Scripture Reading (February 22, 2019): 1 Samuel 8

I am tired of the force of gravity, especially when I am stuck in the middle of rush hour traffic. I mean, have you ever noticed that there are no roads that will take you directly where you need to go. Instead, you have to plan a route through the city or countryside that has more twists and turns than a good mystery novel. The city in which I live also possesses a river that winds its way through the city, often influencing the twists and turns of the city streets. And everywhere, there is the ever-present reality that there are thousands of other people trying to do the same thing. If only I could fly a straight line from where I am to where I need to go. But then there is that pesky thing called gravity.

Obviously, my tirade is done with great amusement. There is never going to be a reality where the force of gravity disappears, nor would it really be a good thing if it did. Almost everything that exists requires gravity. And to be honest, I am not sure that I want hundreds of thousands of flying cars piloting themselves over top of our cities. That sounds, at least to me, like a recipe for catastrophe.

There is something humorous about the people’s cry for a king, and God relenting and telling Samuel to give them what they want. God is clear. The people’s desire for a king is not a rejection of Samuel and his leadership. It is a rejection of the Theocracy and the reality that God is king. But humorous part is that it will be God who will be choosing the king. The people will never get away from the reality that God is still leading the nation.

Sometimes I have to admit that I wonder if God’s choice of Saul as King was a message or a joke that God was playing on the nation. Saul checked off all of the boxes that the people would want in a king. Tall, handsome, and physically powerful, Saul projected a great image of the newly founded monarchy, and yet he was a failure. Did God not know that Saul would fail? Or was that the point of the first King of Israel? I don’t know the answer, but it is a good question to ponder.

The Bible seems to indicate that our leaders are still chosen by God. But the most interesting question might be “what is the message that God is trying to send us?” Is he giving in to our desires, letting us suffer from the choices that we have made, or is he leading us into a better tomorrow? It is a hard question to answer, and in the end, I think that the answer to that question might surprise us.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: 1 Samuel 9