1 SAMUEL 16

I just love it when the Bible hauls off and slaps me upside the head. This was one of those chapters. I read the whole thing, of course, recognizing the most famous verse along the way—"People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart."(vs 7) But, mentally, I never really got past verse one. It hit me right between the eyes the second I read it:

"The Lord said to Samuel, 'How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way!'"

Realizing that God stands outside of linear time, I have often wondered exactly how He experiences our linear time. I don’t even know if He thinks of time in concepts like past and future. Both are terms related to linear time, and He is beyond that. However, I think it can be said that, when it comes to His dealings with us in our time, He is always on the move.

God is a mover and a shaker. Always advancing, always progressing, always moving ahead. I don’t think He ever gets stuck in the past. I don’t think He sits around and pines for the future. I think He is now, in the moment, present—especially when it comes to His dealings with us in our time. That’s because the only time we can experience God is in the present moment. We can’t interact with Him in our past. We can’t communicate with Him in our future. All we have with Him is this moment.

And here is God saying to Samuel, How long will you stay fixated on what’s in the past? Get up and get going! We’re moving, here! And it was just as if God was saying those words to me. Won’t you quit obsessing over your past sins? I’ve forgiven them. Won’t you stop reliving your past mistakes? I’ve forgotten them. Here I am—in this moment! Today, there are new horizons. Come with Me!

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be left behind on the road. God is on the move, and I want to go with Him! I may not know where we’re going (actually, I might be scared if I knew). I may get tired sometimes (are we there yet?). But I don’t want to get caught like Lot’s wife, looking back at what used to be, when God is with me in this moment.

It really doesn’t matter what happened to yesterday’s plan. And it really doesn’t matter what tomorrow’s plan might hold. What matters is that God has plans for this day, this hour, this moment. Are you ready to go?