The elders and the people of Israel had
approached Samuel, the judge of Israel chosen by God, demanding a king like all
the nations around them. Both Samuel and
God knew that the people were demanding this not out of their faith &
obedience to God, but rather in rejecting God and turning once again to the
worship of idols, this time an idol in the form of a king. God instructed Samuel to warn the people of
the high cost of a king, but the people were oblivious to his warnings & to
the seriousness of their sin. The people
were ecstatic in anticipation of this new king for their nation. Since even the people knew that the king must
be of God's choosing, it fell upon Samuel as God's judge to choose a king. The events that we hear in today's first
reading bring Saul into contact with Samuel in a way that makes the prophet
certain that Saul is God’s choice for Israel’s king.
Recently, we have made a concerted
effort in our parishes and in our diocese to promote vocation awareness in our
Church. We have had families praying for vocations and we have been handing out
a chalice and a book of prayers at our masses in our to raise awareness and to
pray for vocations. As we hear in
today's first reading, God chooses specific individuals for certain ministries
& leadership roles. It is up to us
to discern God's will and to follow his calling.
As we hear how God chose a king for his
people, may we be aware of the different ways God is calling us in our lives,
how we all have vocations as followers of Christ. May we thank God for the vocations that we
have, and pray for the courage and fortitude to follow his will for us in our
lives.
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