Lied To, Yet Led by God

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Have you ever found yourself somewhere you never planned to be, only to discover it was exactly where you needed to be all along? That's the powerful theme of this week's devotional as we explore "Lied to, yet Led by God" through 1 Samuel 9-10.

I share my personal journey of moving to New York City for what I thought was a position in women's ready-to-wear at Macy's Herald Square, only to discover I'd been misled and placed in intimate apparel instead. The frustration and disappointment I felt mirrors something many of us experience – that moment when life takes an unexpected turn that feels wrong. 

This parallels beautifully with Saul's story in Scripture. He wasn't searching for a kingdom; he was just looking for his father's lost donkeys. But God used this mundane task to lead him directly to Samuel, who would anoint him as Israel's first king. Despite feeling unqualified and even hiding when the time came for his public appointment, Saul was exactly where God intended him to be.

God's sovereignty works like this in our lives too. What looks like being overlooked, misled, or placed in the wrong position might actually be divine positioning. Every twist in your journey serves a purpose in God's greater plan. 

Have you experienced a situation where what initially seemed negative ultimately led to something beautiful? I'd love to hear your story. Subscribe for weekly devotionals that bring God's Word to life through personal stories and Scripture, and share this episode with someone who might need this reminder today.

Key passages: 1 Samuel 9-10

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, hello.
You're listening to the JesseMorgan Devotions for the
Christian Heart Podcast, episode67.
This week's devotional istitled Lied to, yet Led by God,
let's go.
Hi.
I'm Jesse Morgan.
I used to just share home decorand renovation tips on social
media, but now I'm sharingsomething even closer to my

(00:21):
heart my journey and love forJesus Christ, my Savior.
Welcome to the Jesse MorganDevotions for the Christian Hot
Podcast.
This is a weekly devotional.
I started back in May 2024, butthe inspiration for it came
much earlier.
It was rooted in a faithjourney that began when my
daughter was born four monthsearly in 2023.
Through that challenging time,god worked in ways that truly

(00:43):
amazed me.
On this podcast, I sharepersonal stories of faith, woven
together with scripture to showjust how incredible God's word
can be in our everyday lives.
My hope is that through thesestories, you'll be encouraged,
uplifted and reminded of God'slove and presence, no matter
what you're going through.
So I invite you to spend lessthan 15 minutes with me each

(01:05):
week as we reflect on thesedevotionals together.
Let's all pray within.
Lie to, yet led by God.
Key passages 1 Samuel 9-10.
Hello and welcome back to thepodcast.
I feel like it's been forever,but it hasn't.
I'm so excited to have you hereand we're back after a little

(01:27):
break and we're diving right in.
So remember we're studying thebook of 1 Samuel.
It's such an intricate bookwith so many chapters and
details, but my approach here isto go chapter by chapter,
thought by thought, bringingGod's Word forward in a way that
connects your life today aswell as mine, and I do this
through my own experiences andin perspective, and my prayer is

(01:49):
that it blesses you as much asit's been a blessing for me to
share.
So, again, god laid it on myspirit to share this story with
you before we dive into the mainpassages for this week's
podcast.
So here we go.
I've talked a lot on thispodcast about my time in New

(02:10):
York, especially working atMacy's Herald Square on 34th
Street and the lessons God'staught me there, but I've never
really shared how I got there inthe first place and, honestly,
the way it happened wasn'tglamorous at all.
In fact, I was basically liedto about the position I was
supposed to take.
So here's how it went down.
Back in 2012, I was at Macy'sDateland in Miami managing

(02:35):
women's ready-to-wear on thesecond floor.
Dateland was the number twostore in the company and I
poured everything into that roleand people noticed.
So one day my district vicepresident, that big, big boss,
pulled me aside and said HaroldSquare in New York wants to
interview you.
I was shocked.
I was shook.
Let me tell you, new York wasnever in my plan.

(02:57):
But I interviewed, got theoffer and received my contract.
Now here's the twist.
The contract said merchandisemanager for intimate apparel,
aka bras and underwear area.
I stopped and immediatelycalled HR and said wait a minute
.
I thought I was going to be inwomen's ready to wear.
That's my background, that'swhat I'm good at, that's what

(03:18):
I'm known for.
And they told me oh, don'tworry, that's just a formality,
you won't actually be in apparel, you're going to be placed in
women's ready-to-wear, that'sjust the area you've been hired
for.
And I hesitated, didn't makesense.
I really did hesitate, buteventually I signed the contract
, trusted their word and packedup and moved to New York.

(03:42):
When I got there I shadowedanother manager for about three
weeks.
The whole time I still didn'tknow exactly what my area was
going to be.
Then one day I'm sitting in ateam meeting and the store
manager who hired me, in frontof everyone.
He says casually oh no, you'llbe managing intimate apparel and
, by the way, you're getting anew store manager, I won't be
your boss.
I was.

(04:03):
I was just like sitting there,shocked, and it was just.
He was just so nonchalant, sodismissive.
I felt like he just tossed meto the side.
Dismissive, I felt like he justtossed me to the side.
Here I was a brand new personin New York, far from home, not
even knowing my new, not evenlike knowing my new boss yet,
and I felt completely lied to.

(04:24):
But here's what happened next.
I met my new store manager andwe clicked right away.
She was so supportive, patientand encouraging as I learned a
whole new business intimateapparel and, of course you know,
with her support I actuallybegan to get the hang of it and
flourish.
And here's the beautiful partIn Intimate Apparel I met a

(04:45):
wonderful merchandise lead thatworked for me.
We hit it off and sheeventually introduced me to a
young man who was looking for ajob.
I had an on-call position open,so she set up an interview for
me to meet him.
He was so respectful, politeand eager to work.
I hired him because I neededthe help and that young man
turned out to be my futurehusband.

(05:05):
Looking back, I can see God'shand so clearly now, and at the
time I thought I had been liedto, tossed aside and overlooked.
And at the time I thought I hadbeen lied to, tossed aside and
overlooked, but really God waspositioning me for his plan.
And that's exactly what we seein 1 Samuel, chapters 9 and 10.
Israel had rejected God anddemanded a king.

(05:26):
So the Lord told Samuel in 1Samuel 9, 16,.
It says Tomorrow, about thistime, I will send you a man from
the land of Benjamin and youshall anoint him to be prince
over my people, israel.
And that was Saul.
But notice how Saul's storybegins Not with a crown, not

(05:46):
with a throne, but with lostdonkeys.
Scripture says in 1 Samuel 9,3,.
It says In 1 Samuel 9, 3,.
It says Now the donkeys of Kish, saul's father, were lost.
So Kish said to Saul, his son,take one of the young men with
you and arise, go and look forthe donkeys.
So Saul searched high and low.
He and his servant traveledthrough the hill country of

(06:06):
Ephraim, the land of Shalisha,shalem and even the land of
Benjamin.
Saul was over looking for thesedonkeys and he told his servant
, they should go back finally.
But then the servant replied.
In 1 Samuel 9, 6, it says Behold, there is a man of God in the
city, and he is a man who isheld in honor.

(06:27):
All that he says comes true.
So now let's go there.
Perhaps he can tell us the waywe should go.
You see that Saul was ready toquit, but his servant remembered
Samuel's reputation.
Everyone knew he was a trueprophet whose words never failed
.
People sought out Samuel fordirection straight from God all

(06:48):
the time.
So while Saul thought he wasjust chasing donkeys, god was
actually directing his steps toSamuel, the very man who would
anoint him king.
And so they met.
And after their meeting, saulhumbly protested am I not a
Benjaminite from the least ofthe tribes of Israel, and is not

(07:10):
my clan the humblest of all theclans of the tribe of Benjamin?
Why then have you spoken to mein this way?
It says in 1 Samuel 9, 21.
Basically, it's just.
It shows that Saul feltunqualified, insignificant, but
God had already chosen him.
And then, in chapter 10, it allcomes full circle.

(07:33):
In 1 Samuel 10, 1, it says thenSamuel took a flask of oil and
poured it on his head and kissedhim and said has not the Lord
anointed you to be prince overhis people, israel, and you
shall reign over the people ofthe Lord and you will save them
from the hand of theirsurrounding enemies?
But even after being chosen andanointed, saul still wrestled

(07:55):
with insecurity, the what-ifs,when the time came for his
public appointment.
Scripture says that he hid.
Imagine that God had chosen him, samuel had anointed him, and
yet Saul was hiding.
He couldn't see himself the wayGod saw him.

(08:15):
I was hesitant in my story abouttaking the job, entirely due to
the area.
I didn't have confidence atfirst that I could handle this
business.
But God did.
He put me there.
He gave me an amazing storemanager.
It forced me to accept thisrole and to move through it.
But at first I didn't see itand God kept me there and I met

(08:40):
my husband.
And that's the sovereignty ofGod, that's the authority and
the supreme of God.
His path and his authority, asI mentioned, doesn't always make
sense to us.
It can look like you're beinglied to, tossed around,
overlooked or even hidingbecause we feel unqualified.
But behind it all he isaligning every detail for his

(09:04):
purpose and just like using Waze, the app for driving directions
.
Sometimes it reroutes you in away that feels completely out of
the way, but in the end, youarrive exactly where you need to
be.
So let this encourage you todayEvery step, whether it looks
like a blessing, a mistake or adisappointment, god is using it

(09:29):
to position you for his best.
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, thank you forreminding us today of your
sovereignty.
Thank you for showing us,through the story of Saul, that,
even through our own stories,that nothing in our lives is
wasted.
Even when things don't go theright way, lord, the way that we

(09:50):
expect, even when we feel lost,overlooked or insecure, you are
still guiding our steps.
Lord, help us to trust you whenthe path feels confusing.
Help us to see that every twistand turn has a purpose.
Remind us that you are placingus in the right place at the
right time, with the rightpeople, all according to your

(10:10):
will for us.
I pray for every listener todaythat they would find comfort in
knowing you have a plan for them, that you were ordering their
steps and that you are workingall things together for their
good.
Give them peace, lord, givethem courage and strengthen
their faith as they follow you.
We thank you, lord, for yourgoodness and for your grace and

(10:34):
for never leaving us.
We love you and we praise you,lord, in Jesus' name, amen.
God bless you everyone.
Thank you for listening.
Till next time.
Well, that wraps up this week'sepisode.
My prayer is that thesedevotions bring you a little
closer to God each day.
If you felt encouraged, don'tkeep it to yourself.
Share this episode with afriend or loved one who could

(10:56):
use the same reminder.
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For more, check the show notesor connect with me on Instagram
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Until next time.
This is Jessi Morgan prayingoff.