• Hide and Seek

    By: Kristen L. McNulty

    Reprint rights available on request. Email the author at kristenmcnulty@hotmail.com.

    It's a game we all played as children, hide and seek. When someone else had the turn of being it, we'd frantically run and hide in the best hiding place possible, hoping that when the person who was it started looking, we'd remain hidden.

    It's a fun and harmless game for kids to play, but when we as teens or adults play it as a way of avoiding what God is calling us to, not so much.

    Saul Anointed As King


    We see this in the life of Saul. The book of 1 Samuel tells us how the prophet Samuel was told by God that Saul was going to be the first King of Israel. Samuel found Saul and anointed him with oil, then gave him a series of signs that would confirm what Samuel was saying was true. Sure enough, we're told that all of the signs were fulfilled and the Spirit of the Lord came into Saul, giving him a new heart and the ability to prophecy (1 Samuel 10:11). The people around Saul were amazed to see the change in him and you'd think that Saul himself would be overcome with what God had done and was about to do. But the story goes on.

    We're told that Samuel goes before all of the people of Israel and announces to them that while God wasn't happy with their request for a king, He was going to give them one. Picture the entire nation of Israel gathered, probably holding their breath and looking to Samuel for this divine announcement. Maybe children were on their parents shoulders, hoping to get a glimpse of the man who was about to be king. But the entire ordeal became rather anti-climactic when Samuel announces that Saul was the chosen one and when the people looked to see their king, he was no where to be found!

    Saul Plays Hide And Seek


    "Then he brought each family of the tribe of Benjamin before the Lord, and the family of the Matrites was chosen. And finally Saul son of Kish was chosen from among them. But when they looked for him, he had disappeared! So they asked the Lord, 'Where is he?' And the Lord replied, 'He is hiding among the baggage.'" 1 Samual 10:21-22


    Imagine that. Out of all the tribes and all the people of Israel, God's choice for the job of king isn't out there leading the parade towards the palace. No instead he's hiding in the baggage in the same way a child would during a game of hide and go seek.

    Eventually Saul is found and brought before the people and despite the fact that Saul clearly wasn't exactly willing to embrace this role, Samuel tells the people: "This is the man the LORD has chosen as your king. No one in all Israel is like him!" (1 Samuel 10:24)

    A Look In The Mirror


    While it's easy to look back and point the finger at Saul as being a coward for hiding from the calling God had placed on His life, we shouldn't be pointing the finger here, instead we should be looking in the mirror. If it's possible for people like Saul and Jonah and many others in the Bible to run from what God called them to do, it's more than possible for you and I to do the same. We all need to ask ourselves in what ways do we hide from doing what God wants us to?

    When there's an open door in a conversation to start sharing about Jesus, do we hide behind a change in the subject instead of allowing God to speak through us?

    When we're presented with a ministry opportunity at church, do we hide behind our schedule and say we're too busy instead of clearing our schedule for the sake of serving God?

    When we know someone who is hurting, do we hide behind excuses instead of reaching out to be the hands and feet of Jesus to that person?

    Following where God leads us isn't easy or convenient. Sometimes He will take us to places we'd rather not go. But if God is calling us there, how dare we scoff at following? Instead of hiding from the call, we need to stand up and go with Him wherever He leads, trusting that while we might feel in over our heads, that He never brings us to a place He doesn't go with us!

    God Uses People Who Don't Think They Have What It Takes


    And when God is with us, He gives us exactly what we need in the moment to serve Him. Over and over again in the Bible we see how God used people who thought they didn't have what it took to do absolutely incredible things. We need to trust that if He gave Moses, the guy with speech problems, the words to confront Pharaoh with and if He gave Gideon, the man who was from the weakest clan and was the least in his family, the strength to lead Israel to victory in battle, He can do the same for you and I.

    Saul's story teaches us that when God calls, we need to put aside our tendency to hide, and instead follow. Because after all, while a game of hide and seek might give a few thrills as a child, there's nothing more thrilling in life than walking with God and watching Him use us in ways we couldn't even dream or imagine.

    "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you." Deuteronomy 31:6


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