Hey, Carpool Crew. Welcome back to Carpooling with Heroes of the Bible. I'm really glad you're here today. Whether you're riding in the car, heading somewhere with your family, or just listening on a long road trip, thanks for spending a few minutes diving into the Heroes of the Bible with me. In our last couple episodes, we talked about something that changed Israel forever. First, Samuel the boy listened to God. He said the memorable line that we should all know: 'Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.' Then we talked about the people who asked for a king. They came to Samuel after he was a lot older. He was a prophet, and he was told that they wanted a king. For hundreds of years, Israel had been different from the other nations because God was their king. But the people said, we wanna be like everyone else. God warned them through Samuel that kings would take their sons into armies, collect taxes, gain a lot of power. But the people didn't change their minds. So God told Samuel to give them a king. And that brings us to today's story. We're gonna meet the man who looked exactly like the king everyone imagined in their mind. His name was Saul. Now, here's something interesting about Saul that you wouldn't know unless you read all the details of his life very carefully. Saul came from the tribe of Benjamin. Yeah, back then there were a lot of different tribes, 12 of them to be exact, in Israel. And he was in the tribe of Benjamin, which actually was the smallest tribe in Israel. In fact, the tribe of Benjamin had nearly been wiped out during a terrible civil war described in the book of Judges in the Bible. So Saul came from a tribe that was not very powerful or famous or well known. But Saul himself looked like a king. The Bible says something very specific about him. In 1 Samuel chapter 9, verse 2: 'There was no one more impressive among the Israelites than he. He stood a head taller than anyone else.' In other words, if you lined up everyone in Israel, Saul would literally stand above the entire crowd. He was tall, he was strong, he was impressive. If the people were voting for a king based on appearance only, Saul would've won easily. But the way Saul meets Samuel is actually pretty funny. It all starts with some lost donkeys. Yeah, you heard me right, lost donkeys. Saul's father had some donkeys wander away, and he sent Saul to go find them. Now, donkeys were extremely valuable animals in that time because people used them for travel and carrying goods. So Saul and a servant began walking through the countryside, looking for those missing animals. They searched everywhere. They walked through the hills, the fields, in several regions of Israel, but they could not find the donkeys anywhere. Eventually, Saul said something like, 'Let's go home. My father is probably more worried about us than the donkeys by now.' But the servant had an idea. He said, 'There's a man of God in this town. People say whatever he says comes true. Let's go ask him where the donkeys are.' That man of God was Samuel. Now, here's something really fascinating happening behind the scenes. The day before Saul arrived, God had already spoken to Samuel and told him something important. He said, 'Tomorrow I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin. Anoint him as leader over my people Israel.' So while Saul thought he was just searching for donkeys, God was actually guiding him straight toward Samuel. When Saul arrived in town, he didn't even know who Samuel was. He actually asked Samuel for directions to find Samuel. Pretty funny moment. Imagine asking someone, 'Hey, do you know where Samuel the prophet lives?' not realizing you're talking to him. Well, Samuel invited Saul to a special meal that night. And here's another interesting detail from the Bible: Samuel gave Saul the seat of honor at the feast. Now remember, Saul didn't know yet that he was about to become king, but Samuel already knew. Later, the next morning after dinner, Samuel took Saul aside for a private moment, a little conversation, and Samuel did something incredibly important. He poured oil over Saul's head. And this was called anointing. See, in ancient Israel, anointing someone with oil was a sign that God had chosen that person for a special role. Samuel told Saul that God had chosen him to lead Israel. Then Samuel gave Saul several signs that would prove God was truly with him. One of those signs involved greeting a group of prophets who were worshiping God with instruments like harps and trumpets and flutes. And something amazing happened. The Bible says the Spirit of God came powerfully on Saul, and he began prophesying. People who saw it were so surprised, they started asking a famous question: 'Is Saul also among the prophets?' It was their way of saying, wait, Saul is doing that too now? Who is he? But Saul's story wasn't finished yet. Even though God had chosen Saul privately, the nation of Israel still needed to recognize him publicly as king. So Samuel gathered the entire nation of Israel together, and they began choosing a king by casting lots, which was a way of asking God to reveal his choice. There's a lot of moments in the Bible where they cast lots. They cast lots in Jonah's story. When they were about to crucify Jesus, the guards were casting lots for Jesus' items, his clothing and his stuff. And guess what? The first lots chose the tribe of Benjamin. Then the next casting of lots chose Saul's family. Then the third time it chose Saul himself. And something strange happened. When they went to bring Saul forward, they couldn't find him. The Bible says Saul was hiding among the supplies. Yes, a man who was about to become the first king of Israel was hiding in the luggage. He was hanging out in the coat room. Eventually they found him and brought him out in front of the people. And when everyone saw him standing there, tall, strong, impressive, the people shouted, 'Long live the king.' Just like that, Israel had its very first king. But as we'll see in the next episode, being chosen as king and being a good king are not always the same thing. Saul started his leadership with an incredible promise, but something inside his heart would eventually cause serious problems. Next time on Carpooling with Heroes of the Bible, we'll see how Saul begins to make choices that lead him down a dangerous path. And we will learn an important lesson. Looking like a leader on the outside doesn't always mean you're following God on the inside. I'll see you next time, Carpool Crew.
