Samuel and Saul

• 1 Samuel 1 (p.211)• 7:2-3 – Samuel’s leadership

• Samuel is devoted to the Lord.• Samuel gets his strength from obedience to God.

• 8:4-7 – Samuel is rejected• 10:20-24 – Saul becomes king.

• Saul is gifted and respectful.• Saul is insecure but strategic.

Adversity is a crossroads that makes a person choose one of two paths:

character or compromise.

John Maxwell

Every problem introduces you to yourself.

It shows you how you think and what you’re made of.

John Maxwell

Saul’s Compromises

• 13:10-12 – the burnt offering• Saul chose strategy over obedience.

• 15:7-15 – only doing half the job• Saul had excuses instead of remorse.• Result – insecurity grows

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.

Martin Luther King, Jr., “Strength to Love” speech