"The Heart"

(Today's reading - 1 Samuel 16,17)

Today's reading is filled with great stories, each one worthy of thinking on, so I encourage you to do just that. With that said, I want to think about a couple of verses that you probably just pass over as you are introduced to David and read about his triumph over Goliath.
Let's start at the beginning. Samuel is mourning over the fall of King Saul. God tells him to stop thinking about the past and focus on the future. Samuel is just like us, when someone we believe in fails us, we dwell on the failure and can become very depressed. Samuel was depressed, so God sends him to find a replacement for the King. He sends him to Jesse's house to meet his sons. (Be thankful for Ruth, see earlier post)
When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here before the LORD.” 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 man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:6,7) Something about Eliab made Samuel think he was King material. Samuel liked the way he looked, his physical appearance and his height. He looked at him with human eyes and saw a man that looked the part of a king; but God saw something else. God looked deeper than his physical appearance and saw who he really was and He rejected him as king. Something inside of Eliab was deficient, something in his character was lacking. He was tall and handsome on the outside, but inside he had a heart problem.
I can put on a pretty good show for people. I can act like I have it all together and I can fool the masses. "Man looks at the outward appearance." I can be addicted to pornography or alcohol. I can gossip and tell lies. I can steal and cheat. And until I get caught, I can be thought of as a pillar of the community. I can serve as a leader in my church. I can teach Sunday School. I could even be President of the United States. (although I am not sure that morals have anything to do with the last one any longer) My point is that a fresh coat of paint makes an old barn look pretty good. The timbers may be rotten and the foundation full of cracks, but from the outside, she looks great. But on the inside, she is in need of major repairs.
God sees the inside. The fresh coat of paint does not impress Him at all. He knows the truth about each of us. He knows about the rotten and the cracked. He knows exactly who we are! "The LORD looks at the heart".
Thankfully, God is in the renovation business. Our rotten timbers can be ripped out and replaced and our cracked foundations can be strengthened. Romans 12:2 gives us insight into how God will work on us. The real us! " Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." Conforming to the world is the problem and being transformed is the solution. Our old way of thinking is replaced  and we are renewed as we pour God's word into our hearts. We probably look just fine to the world, especially if we look just like it. It will love us and tell us we look great, all the while inside we are rotten.
Transformation, real transformation is not found in Oprah or Dr. Phil. It is not found in the latest self-help book or the trendy motivational speaker. Real transformation is only available through Jesus. His words are the only words that give life. (John 6:68) Take a moment to look in the mirror, deeper than skin deep. What do you see? Who is it that you really see? Who does God really see? May we decide to look inside ourselves and determine to allow the "great renovator" to work in us, to change, to perfect us. God's plan is for Jesus to be fully formed in us, that we look like Him, inside. (Galatians 4:19)