“And Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all the young men here?” Then he said, “There remains yet the youngest, and there he is, keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, “Send and bring him. For we will not sit down till he comes here.””
1 Samuel 16:11
In 1 Samuel 16, we are introduced to young David. Here we learn that he was tending his father’s sheep out in the fields. Think for a moment about what that might have been like—it probably isn’t what we would consider a natural training ground for a future king. But that is exactly what it was. David spent many hours in the fields watching over the sheep. This was time well spent because it was during this time that David learned to appreciate the reality of the presence of God.
Picture David on a calm, dark night, looking up at a sky filled with stars. As he gazed at the countless lights, he later declared, “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You care for him?” (Psalm 8:3–4).
This was David’s training ground that prepared him to shepherd God’s people. It was likely monotonous, where he often did the same things over and over again. After all, how exciting can sheep really be? Think of how lonely those nights must have been. Yet the solitude of this training ground taught him to enjoy the presence of God and to speak with Him often.
It was not only a lonely and monotonous training ground, but also an obscure one. There was no spotlight on David; no one saw what he was doing day after day. This taught him faithfulness—to the Lord and to the sheep entrusted to his care.
It was out of such a training ground that David could write, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” He understood his own waywardness as a sheep that could easily wander from the Shepherd. He knew his need for God’s grace and guidance. He could also write, “He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.” As a young man, David’s life was marked by quietness, and he knew the joy of fellowship with the Lord.
David was not perfect, but his heart was set on holiness, and he desired that it would be evident in his life. We see this when he declared, “He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” As a shepherd, David faced many dangers, but he learned to place his confidence in the Lord during those formative years. He also learned to appreciate the protecting and correcting hand of God, as seen in his words: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”
David expressed gratitude for God’s provision when he wrote, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over.” He also revealed a heart fixed on God when he declared, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
Anchor For Today:
Wherever you are today, that is God’s training ground for you. The Lord is shaping and molding you for something He has prepared. It may not be to be a king, but He desires to use you just as He did David. What will be your response to what you are passing through right now?