1 Samuel 8:19-20 (NASB) " Nevertheless, the people refused to listen to the voice of Samuel, and they said, “No, but there shall be a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles."

The other day I was in the church nursery and I got a sippy cup out to give a drink to one of the little boys. My son saw the sippy cup and wanted it, instead of his cup we brought from home. His cup was almost identical to the other boy’s cup, except that it had a removable handle. I like to give my son cups with handles because it makes it easier for him to drink, he can hold it with one hand and still easily drink out of it. However, to avoid a tantrum over the other boy’s sippy cup I took the handle off of his cup, and he seemed quite pleased to have the exact same cup. His cup was actually better beforehand, but he wanted it to be the same.

The children of Israel had a better system than all the nations around them, because it was the system God had set up for them. But they only wanted to be like the other nations, and they insisted to Samuel that he appoint a king, since Samuel’s days were coming to their end. God let them have their way, even though He knew it was not the best way. You don’t have to look far in the Old Testament to find evil kings and problems that stemmed from having a kingdom just like all the other nations.

God’s ways are always best, but sometimes we settle for less because we want to be like the world. It takes faith to be set apart!

-Kevi

 

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