Chasing Donkeys

Do you feel like you’ve missed the memo on your calling? Tired of getting distracted and confused in this faith journey you have begun?

Has all that worrying, second-guessing and wondering whether God has set you on the right path and if He is for you caused you to want to forget the whole ‘calling’ thing altogether? So, you keep telling yourself that it’s probably best for everyone if you turn around and head back home, that place where you felt more comfortable, safer, you know, where things weren’t so scary. Well, my friend, don’t give up or give in because I know why you’ve been feeling this way. It’s because you’ve been too busy chasing donkeys.

In 1 Samuel chapter 9, we find Saul chasing donkeys. We pick up the story in 1 Samuel 9:3 ‘One day Saul’s father Kish had lost his donkeys, having wandered away, so he told his son Saul to take one of the servants and look for them…then they passed through the land of Benjamin, and still, they did not see the donkeys. “We had better turn around. If we keep going, my father will stop worrying about his donkeys and start worrying about us.” “I hear there is a man of God in this village, a man who is respected because what he predicts is always true. Before we go home, let’s go and talk to him; maybe he will have some guidance about this journey we have begun.”’ [1 Samuel 9:3-6]

Saul listens to his servant’s wise advice and after chatting with some girls who are drawing water from a well they tell them the prophet, Samuel, is in the city and if they hurry they will meet him there. ‘When Samuel saw Saul walking toward him, the Eternal spoke to him. “Look! This is the young man I told you about. I’ve chosen him to rule over My people.” There inside the gate, Saul walked up to Samuel. “Can you tell me, please, where I might find the seer’s house?” “You have found him…tomorrow morning I will tell you what you need to know and then send you on your way. As for those donkeys that wandered off three days ago, don’t give them any further thought. Someone has found them. Israel is more concerned today with you and your family.”’ [1 Samuel 9:17-20]

All this donkey talk is great; however, how does this affect me? Well, glad you asked, dear friend because perhaps, like Saul, you’re not chasing real, legit donkeys who have wandered off right at this moment in your journey toward your calling. But we can all get caught up in chasing after things that seem valuable, and important or we feel a responsibility to search for when in fact, in chasing all these things, we start to lose sight of the direction we need to be heading in our calling and like Saul we start saying “We had better turn around.”

What does chasing donkeys look like in your world?

Are you chasing after a better job? A new house? Or are you chasing after others, the people that you feel need you? We can all get caught up in the trap of chasing after things that, yes are valuable and important, just like the donkeys. They were of value and importance otherwise Saul wouldn’t have travelled three days to find them. However, what if Saul hadn’t listened to his servant that day? Would he have missed out on his anointing to become the first king of Israel? Who knows.

I love that the prophet, Samuel, says to Saul, “As for those donkeys that wandered off three days ago, don’t give them any further thought. Someone has found them. Israel is more concerned today with you and your family.” Firstly, Samuel was letting Saul know that he had come to the right person because nobody had told Samuel that Saul was there because he was chasing donkeys. Samuel was a prophet, a seer, who had heard from God before he had even met Saul. This was a young man who needed some direction.

But, I believe, Samuel was saying to Saul, “Stop chasing after those donkeys. Stop chasing after all the things you feel you’re responsible for, that you think are of value or importance. He was saying, “Saul, you’re not a donkey chaser!” Samuel was speaking life into Saul’s soul when he told him, “Don’t give the donkeys a second thought. They’re being taken care of. Someone has found them because Israel doesn’t care about donkeys, they care about you and your family. Never mind about the donkeys, you’ve been called to something greater.”

Listen, dear friend, and hear me out on this…

Jobs are needed, houses are important, and our responsibilities in looking out for others are of great value. And yet, if we’re too busy chasing after things because they make us feel good about ourselves, they make us feel special or needed or important, then we’re going to miss out on what God has anointed us for because we have been called to be so much more than donkey chasers. You’ve already spent too much time worrying about and chasing after donkeys when you were made for greater things.

Friend, you have been anointed for a greater purpose!

So, if you feel like you’ve been getting distracted and confused in the faith journey you have begun. If all your worrying, second-guessing and wondering whether God has set you on the right path and if He is for you have caused you to want to forget the whole ‘calling’ thing altogether, then stop chasing donkeys!

You’re not a donkey chaser! They are being taken care of. They’re fine. It’s all good. God takes care of every little detail with the donkeys you’ve been chasing.

Why not find someone in your world who can speak life into your anointing and help you see your calling as you head in the direction of what God has called you to do? Better yet, start chasing after God. Become a God chaser, not a donkey chaser because you have been anointed for greater things. So, dear friend, go and do that!

Wendy xo

What do the ‘donkeys’ look like in your life? Where have you been too busy chasing after things that take you away from your calling instead of to it?

Perhaps pray this prayer…

Thank you, Lord, for always being with me on my journey. Thank you for showing me today that I’ve been too busy chasing donkeys and for helping me start to focus on chasing after You instead. I want to be a God chaser and not a donkey chaser. Amen.