Hot, Dry and Donkeyless
I remember first hearing Dr.
James Kennedy when he coined the phrase, "hot, dry and donkeyless.
" He was making a reference to the book of Samuel, which relates the story of Saul, Israel's first king.
Saul was in charge of his father's livestock when several donkeys are lost.
Saul and his servant spend three days diligently searching the desert for the animals, all to no avail.
(Unknown to Saul, a prophet named Samuel has been commissioned by God to find him and crown him king by divine appointment.
) On the fourth day of his search, Saul encounters Samuel who indeed tells him that he has been chosen as the first king of Israel.
Imagining what Saul might have written in his diary, Dr.
Kennedy postures he could have shared something like this: "Day one: hot, dry and donkeyless.
Day two: hot, dry and donkeyless.
Day three: hot, dry and donkeyless.
Day four: crowned king!" Indeed, how often things turn completely around when we seem to be at the end of our rope and are just about out of hope! Yet when we hold on for just a little while longer incredible things can happen.
As Ross Perot once said, "Most people give up just when they're about to achieve success.
They quit on the one yard line.
They give up at the last minute of the game, one foot from a winning touchdown.
" At times in the middle of the desert it can be hard to keep the faith.
In those moments I find that one of the most powerful prayers anyone can offer is repeatedly found in the Psalms of David.
Made up of just two words, David would simply pray, "Help me.
" When all our self effort produces little return, we are ripe for a divine appointment.
As we come to the end of ourselves, faith can move mountains because it is then that we ask for the very thing we needed all along; help.
Interestingly, Jesus shares a parable about a woman who persistently seeks justice from a judge and eventually receives it.
The parable he says, is to teach people to pray and "not give up.
" We never know what one more day, one more call, one more letter or one more attempt might bring.
In the deserts of life our thirst for God can grow due to the excessive heat, and we may discover that all of the things we most feared have been leading us to a place where royal things await.
They key to navigating our way out is to ask for help, and never give up.
Can you relate to Saul, finding yourself hot, dry and donkeyless? Keep pressing on.
You never know, tomorrow you might be crowned king.
James Kennedy when he coined the phrase, "hot, dry and donkeyless.
" He was making a reference to the book of Samuel, which relates the story of Saul, Israel's first king.
Saul was in charge of his father's livestock when several donkeys are lost.
Saul and his servant spend three days diligently searching the desert for the animals, all to no avail.
(Unknown to Saul, a prophet named Samuel has been commissioned by God to find him and crown him king by divine appointment.
) On the fourth day of his search, Saul encounters Samuel who indeed tells him that he has been chosen as the first king of Israel.
Imagining what Saul might have written in his diary, Dr.
Kennedy postures he could have shared something like this: "Day one: hot, dry and donkeyless.
Day two: hot, dry and donkeyless.
Day three: hot, dry and donkeyless.
Day four: crowned king!" Indeed, how often things turn completely around when we seem to be at the end of our rope and are just about out of hope! Yet when we hold on for just a little while longer incredible things can happen.
As Ross Perot once said, "Most people give up just when they're about to achieve success.
They quit on the one yard line.
They give up at the last minute of the game, one foot from a winning touchdown.
" At times in the middle of the desert it can be hard to keep the faith.
In those moments I find that one of the most powerful prayers anyone can offer is repeatedly found in the Psalms of David.
Made up of just two words, David would simply pray, "Help me.
" When all our self effort produces little return, we are ripe for a divine appointment.
As we come to the end of ourselves, faith can move mountains because it is then that we ask for the very thing we needed all along; help.
Interestingly, Jesus shares a parable about a woman who persistently seeks justice from a judge and eventually receives it.
The parable he says, is to teach people to pray and "not give up.
" We never know what one more day, one more call, one more letter or one more attempt might bring.
In the deserts of life our thirst for God can grow due to the excessive heat, and we may discover that all of the things we most feared have been leading us to a place where royal things await.
They key to navigating our way out is to ask for help, and never give up.
Can you relate to Saul, finding yourself hot, dry and donkeyless? Keep pressing on.
You never know, tomorrow you might be crowned king.
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