True Worth

True worth is in being, not seeming;
In doing each day that goes by
Some little good; not in the dreaming
Of great things to do by and by.
For whatever men say in their blindness,
And spite of the fancies of youth,
There’s nothing so kingly as kindness,
And nothing so royal as truth.

-Alice Cary

My daughters and I studied this poem for our language arts lesson today. As is often the case, the teacher learns more than the students! Though deeply inspired by the words of this poet I couldn’t help but reflect upon another poet of long ago, a Psalmist named David…

How many years of David’s life were spent tending sheep? Fifteen, twenty, thirty? I don’t actually know, but if YOU do then please leave a comment 🙂

Tending sheep: A menial, too-small-to-do-anything-else kind of job. Not the career path anyone really wants. Not a job that receives much praise. In fact, it’s sort of like being a sound tech ~ nobody really cares about what you do or even notices you sitting back there in the sound booth… until something goes wrong, then all eyes are on you. That’s our little shepherd boy psalmist. Nobody really cared about who he was or what he did. Until One Day…

“Dad, someone’s at the door! He looks important.”
“Well, get the door then, Son.”
Creeeek.
“Um, hello Sir. What can I do for you?” asked the eldest.
“I have been summoned to extend a royal invitation for your entire household to attend…da da daaaa! The Ball.” (Ok, so it wasn’t really The Ball, but rather a feast for the Lord with sacrifices and such, but this is TOTALLY a Cinderella story… just wait!)
So, Jesse’s household began preparing themselves for The Royal Ball – I mean The Feast of the Lord.

Invitations given. Preparations done. It was go time! Samuel, the Judge of Israel, had been sent to determine which son from Jesse’s household had been chosen by God to become the next king of Israel. Everyone was on pins and needles as each son of Jesse walked the aisle to stand before this judge. Their worth, their reputation, their future – everything could change in this one moment in time.

“And, sir, what is your name?” asked Samuel with a quiet confidence and firm authority.
“Eliab, your greatness.”
Eliab was tall and noble looking. Surely this must be the one the Lord has chosen, thought Samuel. But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his face, nor on the height of his body, for I have not chosen him. Man judges by the outward looks, but God looks at the heart.”
“Next please.”
Abinadab stepped forward.
“I have not chosen this one,” the Lord said to Samuel.
Ugh. “Next please.”

Those words were repeated again and again and each one of Jesse’s sons were sent away. (What a royal let down, right?)
Samuel stood confused. He was sure the Lord told him that the next king was from the household of Jesse. But before giving up, he asked Jesse, “Are these all of your sons?”
“Well, no, your honor… there is one more. But he’s just a small boy out in the fields taking care of my sheep. I doubt he’s the kind of person you’re looking for. I mean, I love him to pieces… he’s quite darling really, but not kingly.”
Never the less, Samuel commanded, “Bring the boy to me. We will wait.”

INTERMISSION. (Cue Jeopardy theme song)

And we’re back.

David walks in, out of breath and all pink-cheeked, wearing his typical rags and muddy boots. (Guess the fairy godmother missed out on this one.) Samuel looked him up and down and again the words of the Lord came to mind, “Do not look on his face, nor on the height of his body… Man judges by the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart.”  Then, clear as could be, the Lord spoke to Samuel, “Arise, anoint him, for this is the one whom I have chosen.”

And they all lived happily ever after…
THE END.

David, little ‘ol David – the one who almost didn’t make it to the ball – was indeed the chosen one! But, we all know that Happily Ever Afters are only for fairy tales. David’s life was no fairy tale.

While I would love to discuss the many facets of David’s life, I am trying to learn the art of brevity in blogging, so in this post I simply want to highlight a few characteristics of David that relate to the poem, True Worth by Alice Cary, we read at the beginning.

“True worth is in being, not seeming.”

David was the real deal. He genuinely loved God. All of those years tending sheep were spent in fellowship with Him. Granted, sheep don’t exactly offer stimulating conversation and this probably helped force him into a closer relationship with the Lord, but still… it worked! Those years were all purposely designed by God to prepare David for the plans God had for him, even though David could never have imagined what those plans would be.

The eyes of the LORD search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. 2 Chronicles 16:9

“In doing each day that goes by
Some little good; not in the dreaming
Of great things to do by and by.”

David was faithful in the small things, in the mundane and monotonous. Sure there was the occasional killing a bear or lion with his bare hands, but for the most part it was simply “blaaaah” all day long – get it? Blah? 🙂 Sheep go baaa, but I turned it into blah because it was boring?… ok, moving on.

David didn’t know at the time what the ‘anointing’ meant. Samuel was the only one who knew that the anointing meant God had chosen David to become the new king of Israel. So, imagine you’re David and you’ve just been recognized and honored in a very holy and unique way, but you have no idea what you’re supposed to do about that. You lay in bed thinking, Wow, that was cool… never would’ve seen that coming. And then you wake up at 4:00am to go back to tending sheep. That’s what he did! David had to return to the same job he’d done his whole life even though he was now destined to become king of Israel! David remained faithful in the small things, doing some little good every day – not dreaming of the great things he might do some day in the future. And then one day a simple act of obedience to take lunch to his brothers results in David defeating a giant. Wow, you never know what simple obedience might lead to.

If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities. Luke 16:10

“For whatever men say in their blindness,
And spite of the fancies of youth,
There’s nothing so kingly as kindness,
And nothing so royal as truth.”

What made David so kingly? Perhaps it was his kindness. His kindness towards stupid, wayward sheep. His kindness towards accusing, condescending brothers. His kindness towards a demon-possessed king who wanted him killed. Kindness towards those who don’t deserve it, indeed that is a man after God’s own heart.

What made David so royal? It certainly wasn’t perfection. We all know the story…lust, adultery, murder. But David didn’t hide the truth. When confronted with his sin he didn’t blame-shift. He owned it, straight up. And he was desperately broken over it. Read the Psalms of David and you’ll see a man of truth. Raw with emotion. A man who isn’t blameless because he’s sinless, but a man who’s blameless because of forgiveness.

Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty! Psalm 32:1,2

Wow, I hope this post inspires and encourages you, even if you’re not a lover of poems and psalms! I’d love to hear your thoughts about this poem True Worth by Alice Cary and the life of King David, or even about Cinderella… so please post a comment and share them!

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Author: Niki Schemanski