Text: 1 Samuel 13:13-14; 16:1-23
“The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outside of a person. But the Lord looks at what is in the heart.” —1 Samuel 16:7
Some sports journalists say it is “quite possibly the greatest walk-on story in the history of college football.” Brandon Burlsworth had one childhood dream. He wanted to play college football for the Arkansas Razorbacks. But all he heard was that he was too fat, too lazy, and too slow to make the team—even as an offensive lineman.
Brandon wasn’t offered a scholarship, so he decided to try-out as a walk-on. Though outwardly awkward, what nobody could see (and coaches couldn’t measure) is what was in his heart. He worked harder than anybody else. He was the first one to arrive at practice and the last one to leave. He studied diligently while teammates partied. During his freshman year, Brandon turned body fat into muscle and went from being one of the slowest runners on his team to being one of the fastest. After his freshman year, Brandon was granted a scholarship to finish the next three years at Arkansas where he earned a Master’s degree. His senior year, he became an All-American and was later drafted by the Indianapolis Colts. After the Colts’ mini camp, Brandon was already promised a starting position as a rookie but never got to play one game in the NFL. He was tragically killed in a car accident right after the camp.
In 2016, a movie was made about his life called “Greater.” In the movie, Arkansas Razorbacks coach Houston Nutt finds Brandon working out alone in the team gym and says, “Character is what you do when nobody is looking.” But Brandon had a bigger idea of character. He said:
“There’s always Someone looking, Coach.”
Brandon Burlsworth was exactly right. Someone is always looking. Someone always sees the heart. That Someone is God, who has a history of taking the most unlikely of people and turning them into heroes of the faith. When God decided to raise up a young shepherd boy to become king over all of ancient Israel, the Lord told Samuel: “For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
God is not impressed with what may impress others. We may try to impress others with our talents, our résumé, our strong skills, being the life of the party, having nice things, or by showcasing our lives all across the world through social media platforms. But God isn’t impressed with those things. We may even try to impress God with religious activity. Jesus said of those in his day, “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.”
The heart is what God is after: “I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds” (Jeremiah 17:10), and that’s why God gave us the command to “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life” (Proverbs 4:23). Though David wasn’t a perfect human, God did see something in his heart that made him fit to be a king—“The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart and the Lord has commanded him to be prince over his people.” David’s heart is what made a path for his destiny. He knew that Someone is always watching, even when he was alone tending the sheep.
Integrity means our outward life is consistent with our inner convictions. God is looking for people of integrity. “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him.” Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this week.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, you have promised to give strong support to those who have integrity in their hearts. Teach us through your word how to be blameless toward you with our hearts, and that our outward actions would consistently align with our inner convictions. Holy Spirit, reveal any unconfessed sin and enable us to live surrendered to you always. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Application:
- What comes to mind when you hear the word integrity?
- How would you describe a person who is “after God’s own heart,” such as David?
- Scripture teaches us to guard our hearts “with all vigilance.” What does that look like?
- What is your biggest takeaway from today’s text (1 Samuel 16:1-23)?
- Is there sin in your heart that needs to be confessed, or a vulnerable area of your life that needs to be brought to the Lord in prayer?