My "New" Truck

Read 1 Samuel 16:1-13

I just bought a new truck. Well, I use the term "new" loosely...very loosely. It's new to me and that's it. Actually, the truck is a 1983 Ford Ranger, four-in-the-floor, a 255 air conditioner (that's two windows down at 55 mph), white and rust color (you figure where the rust color is). My wife thinks I'm nuts! Well, not completely, she has relented in saying how I find beauty in old, broken down things. She is trying to make a vague reference to herself, but she shouldn't. Yet, I digress. She is right though; I do like the old and what some would say is the unattractive. And this truck fits the bill. But I did not choose it for it's looks. I chose it based on three criteria: 1) I wanted a truck, 2) I wanted a truck for a good price, 3) I wanted a truck that ran. For about an hour now, my "new" truck meets these three components and I am suspecting that it will continue to do so, although the third one will be the one I have to guard the most. So, I have a truck and it will do what a truck was built to do. I can get from point A to point B and I will be able to haul things in its bed. I did not get it to look cool in or pick up women (though there is room in the truck bed if they really need a ride). So, I am happy.

It is much like the story from 1 Samuel where the prophet Samuel is instructed by God to go look for a new king. Samuel goes to the house where God tells him to go and he is entertained by a parade of seven young men, all who looked "kingly." You might say that these young men were the Ford F-350 dually, the Chevy Silverado, Toyota Tundra...well, you get the point. With each one, Samuel says, "Wow, this has to be the one." But with each one, God says, "Nope, not this one." Then God says something from which I believe we can all glean some wisdom; God says, "The LORD doesn't make decisions the way people do. People judge by outward appearances, but God looks at what's on the inside, the heart." Of course, by now, you realize God wasn't after the strong, strapping young men, God chose the eighth boy, the scrawny little shepherd boy, name David. And David became the greatest king Israel ever had.

So, am I saying that my old, rusty truck is another David? No, don't be silly, but what I do maintain is that we need to be careful about how we judge things. Sometimes the real treasures, the diamonds in our midst are still covered with mud and gunk and...sin. They just need to be polished up a bit.

Godspeed for today.
Tim