Dear Lord; Happy Friday Father!
As you’re aware Father, during my Scripture reading time as of late I’ve been reviewing the books of the Old Testament. I always find wisdom and vital foundation in those pages, however once in a while I run into a passage that seizes my heart and connects me to Your Word even more deeply.
Such was the case as I read from 1st Samuel last night.
Samuel had recently delivered Your condemnation of Saul’s disobedience in the battle with the Amalekites, and was mourning the situation when You instructed him that he was now to travel to Bethlehem for the purpose of anointing a new king. You indicated that it was to be a son of Jesse, but gave no specifics as to which son had been chosen.
When Samuel reached Bethlehem and was received by Jesse and his family, he saw Eliab (Jesse’s eldest son) and due to the young man’s stature assumed that he was Your intended selection. You however, used that moment to teach Samuel (and now me) a valuable lesson…
“But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”” – 1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV)
You know Father, while I already knew that to be the case, this verse still left a powerful impression on my heart. We spend so much of our time tending to our outward appearance and presentation, but in the end You know our hearts; what we think, our motivations, our fears, and our convictions. The more we focus on true transformation of our inner selves and less on impressing the world around us, the more obvious Your Presence becomes in our daily lives.
What a wonderful lesson to pray on going into the weekend. 🙂
Amen.
~Phather Phil
Hi, I’m Phil Malmstrom, a.k.a. Phather Phil. I’m self-employed, father of two wonderful young men, an ordained minister who delights in spreading Jesus’ Message of Hope and Love, a science-fiction junkie, an aspiring photographer and above all that one of God’s Children who rejoices in His Blessings each day. 
I love your perspective on this verse. Why do we focus so much on our appearance, when God is more concerned with our heart? I want to spend more time making sure my heart “looks good”. Have a blessed weekend, Phil! 🙂
Thank you Lisa! And funny enough, when your heart looks good that light from inside works it’s way out… 🙂
Have a Blessed Day!
Great prayer Phil. I want to focus on making my heart right with God and pleasing Him. Thank you for this lovely reminder!
Thank you Jenifer! I want that as well. 🙂
Have a Blessed Day!
Wonderful message Phil. This is just one of the many things that sets God apart from mortal man: the ability to see the heart and not judge by outward appearance only.
Have a great weekend!
Thank you Debra! And I’m so thankful He does!
Have a Blessed Day!
I go along with what Debra said. We have missed out on so much by looking at the outside of a person when it is the heart that counts. Thanks for a great post. Blessings to you and have a great weekend.
Great point Deane! We all try to see into peoples’ characters, but the only one who truly knows our hearts is God.
Have a Blessed Day!
Moving prayer, Phil. I listen to Fort Wayne Ind. great Christian radio station., WBCL ( has a great web site too http://www.wbcl.org) and this verse reminded me so much of one of their DJ who was killed in a car accident a number of years ago. Jeff has such a love for God and His joy just bubbled from him. Anyway he would end each of his shows with this verse. Thanks for sharing today, Phil
Thank you Jean! It always amazes me the places that bits of Scripture show up in our lives. It sounds like I would have liked his program… Thank you for sharing this memory. 🙂
Have a Blessed Day!
Amen Phil. There’s a real battle for the heart eh! I want to learn how to nurture it, encourage it, believe in it and that will not happen by having a focus on outward appearance. I’m a heart man too and I’m discovering growing freedom as I allow God to deal with my pain and fears and grow my heart.
Thanks again for the gentle encouragement.
Thank you Paul, and welcome! Knowing exactly what “state” our heart is in allows our Heavenly Father to target our spiritual feeding to meet our needs, we simply need to open ourselves to that guidance and care.
Thanks for visiting and have a Blessed Day!
I somehow missed this post on Friday, Phil. Very nice. It’s definitely a lesson the Lord keeps reminding me as well. If our hearts are right Him the rest falls into place. We need to focus more on that than worrying about the outer appearance. Thanks.
Thank you Eileen! When we have the Light of God coming from within, our outward appearance tends to always show it!
Have a Blessed Day!