How are we seen by others? Undoubtedly in the game of life, the various cards we hold represent different versions of ourselves. Local friends, teammates, family members, and supporters each have their own unique perspective.

The big nose foreigner, the one who laughs when she makes a language blunder, the frazzled woman with the screaming kids, the one with the big table who always fills it with guests, the hero of the faith who is doing what I could never do, the one whose mother is dying back home and she can't decide where she should be.

Do any of those card descriptions fit the way you are seen?

What phrases do you think God would use to describe you?

This description of David has always intrigued me:

A man after God's own heart.

When David's predecessor Saul demonstrated early on in his kingship that this powerful description would clearly never be engraved on his epitaph, the spirit of God left him and he was tormented by an evil spirit. Seeking relief, Saul sent his attendants to find a harpist who could comfort him.

One of the servants answered, "I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the harp. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the Lord is with him." 1 Samuel 16:18

What I find to be amazing is that up to this point in his life, David was just a shepherd boy who spent most of his time out in the fields. He was number eight, with seven older and stronger brothers, all of whom Samuel surprisingly passed over at Jesse's house as he faithfully followed the Lord's instructions to anoint the next king of Israel.

And yet, a servant of Saul would call David "a brave man and a warrior" and note that "the Lord is with him."

This was pre-Goliath.

David had never publicly proven himself.

And yet, God gave this servant of Saul eyes to see David the way that He saw him. And the servant both believed and spoke who David was to become.