Samuel is making his retirement-from-leadership speech as the nation moves to Saul as ruler. Once more he warns the people not to try and save themselves, but look up to the Lord. They have placed way too much hope in
Handing over
Saul has passed his probationary test and now Samuel can hand leadership across to him. Not that Samuel is retiring, but his role is changing. As he leaves office, he makes a fine and powerful speech. His words show how
Prodded by the Lord
We like to tell anecdotes: stories from our lives which stand out. They aren’t simply factual records. Rather, we shape them to be striking, memorable and suited to the effect we want them to have. Sadly, due to our sin,
Take a vow!
Sometimes a Bible verse strikes us as odd. In our passage, v18 can seem that way. Why does Luke interrupt the flow of Paul’s journey to write about a haircut? But in fact the verse captures powerfully Paul’s determination to