In The Field Is Not The Same As Forgotten

​In the bible, we read about Israel's search for a new king.

God told the prophet Samuel to go to the home of a man named Jesse in Bethlehem because one of Jesse’s sons would be the next king.

So, Samuel went.

When Jesse’s oldest son, Eliab, came before Samuel, Samuel was impressed. Eliab looked like a king. He was apparently tall and strong and Samuel immediately thought, this has to be the guy.

But God basically told Samuel: Don’t be impressed by what he looks like. People look at what’s on the outside. I look at the heart.

So Eliab wasn’t the one.

Jesse brought another son to Samuel.

Not him.

Then another.

Not him either.

One by one, seven of Jesse’s sons stood before Samuel, and every time God said, No. That’s not the one.

Samuel had to be confused at this point. God had specifically told him that the future king was one of Jesse’s sons.

So Samuel asked Jesse: “Are these all the sons you have?”

And Jesse said, Well, there is one more. The youngest. But he’s out in the field taking care of the sheep.

And as it turned out, the one not even invited to the party, the one out in the fields working away without any understanding of this search for a king, this son named David, he was the one.

He was the new king Samuel was sent to find.

This story is uplifting to me. I remember being a kid standing in the middle of open fields. Hiding. Seeking isolation. Somewhere deep inside—and maybe at times, not so deep inside—believing surely there is no grand purpose for this life of mine.

And yet, here I am today. Not a king, for sure, but experiencing a feeling of being called in from those fields for God to say: this is the one.

This is the one to be called in from isolation to promote healing and connection.

This is the one who knows what it feels like to hide, called to help others come out of hiding.

This is the one who knows what it is like to feel unseen, called to help people feel seen, heard, and known.

This is the one who has carried hurt, called to help others discover hope in the middle of theirs.

This is the one who spent years judging himself, called to invited others to release all judgment and adopt curiosity.

This is the one who once went to the fields to disappear, called back into the fields looking for people who still believe disappearing is their safest option.

And all of that leaves me wanting to remind you, remind you that if you feel like you are out alone in the field, out there feeling forgotten in the grander purposes of life—you are the one.

You may feel forgotten in the field, but God knows exactly where you are.

You may feel outside of God's plan in the field, but sometimes, the field IS God's plan.

You may be in the field, but God will always find you there.