Lent 2014
March 30, 2014
Read Scripture: 1 Samuel 16:1-13
When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, ‘Surely the Lord’s anointed is now before the Lord.’ But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.’ — 1 Samuel 16:6-7
Lon Kruger is a highly respected basketball coach with an amazing record at several different schools. He became the coach at the University of Oklahoma in 2011 when the team needed help to realize its full potential. I have enjoyed watching him coach since that time. Lon Kruger has the gift of seeing the heart of each of his players, and I think he absolutely loves to see them blossom and grow and succeed. Strategy is important. Putting the right people on the court at the right time against specific opponents matters. Conditioning and fitness are crucial. But actualizing the full potential of a student player is what makes winning teams and also results in students who transition into adults ready to take on whatever might come their way and make the world a better place for it. This gift is what God gave to Samuel in our story today.
Michelangelo demonstrated this same gift when he looked at a discarded huge, flawed block of marble and envisioned the classic statue of David, who became the King of Israel and the ancestor of Jesus. This David, King David, in life had much in common with the damaged stone from which Michelangelo carved. He was far from perfect, but God did not give up on him.
Some teachers are blest with the gift of seeing the hearts of each of their students. Others can acquire it through practicing the discipline of trying to see the potential in every child in their classroom and then searching for ways to make that potential have a positive impact on the child’s learning experience. Actually, everyone who crosses the path of a child (adults too) should hone in on his or her potential. In so doing you will be influencing not only the future of the child but also our world.
Prayer: God of Insight, help me to see the heart of every person in my span of influence and show me how to help them blossom and grow. Amen.
The identities of students, families, or staff in stories that are shared in the devotions have been altered to protect their privacy. Any similarities between these stories and the experience of others are coincidental. No stories about students, families of students, or staff from Putnam Heights Elementary School are included in any of these devotions.
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.