The Upper Room Devotional 27th November 2023
The Upper Room Devotional 27th November 2023, Monday Message by Robin Martin (Mississippi, USA)
TOPIC: Beyond Appearances
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TODAY’S READING
1 Samuel 16:1-13
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 people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” – 1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV)
The student dining hall has shelves full of fruit. Usually I grab a few apples on my way to my next class. But I find it difficult to choose the best apples. Many that are spotless and bright red are actually flavorless or bitter. I prefer the yellow apples. They are bruised, dirty, and look unappetizing. But despite their inferior appearance, they are the sweetest apples I’ve ever tasted.
Likewise, God looks beyond appearances when viewing us. God doesn’t care about our bodies or how we appear; God looks at our hearts and sees our true worth.
David’s brothers were taller, better looking, and more heroic than he was. Any of them would have been an obvious choice to be the next king of Israel. But God saw their appearances and their hearts — and at God’s direction Samuel chose David. Though he was not as impressive outwardly, David was someone after God’s own heart.
If we want to be like Christ, then we should learn to see people God’s way — not for their outward presentation but for their hearts. May we learn to see how God sees and to love how God loves.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Dear God, give us eyes to see people’s true worth and the conviction to ignore worldly standards. Help us to see as you see and love as you love. Amen.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
I will follow Christ’s example and look at the hearts of others.
PRAYER FOCUS
Someone I have misjudged
The Upper Room is a daily devotional magazine published in more than 30 languages and 100 countries around the world. The daily meditations are written by readers of the magazine and others interested in sharing their faith experiences through writing—both laity and clergy, published authors and new writers. The meditations are stories of real people working to live faithfully with the Bible as their touchstone. Every day, readers of The Upper Room around the world read the same story in many different languages and pray the same prayer together.
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