I have spent some time in this space the last few weeks discussing King Saul’s failures and King David’s successes. Saul was a disappointment to God while David was “a man after God’s own heart.”

Can we be people after God’s own heart? When Paul said that about David in Acts 13:22, he clarified why David was such a man in such a deep relationship to God: “And when he had removed him (Saul), he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’”

I am not the mighty warrior that David was, repelling the enemies of Israel in combat. I am not gifted with the talent to write the intimately personal psalms David wrote as he praised God, questioned God, sought God, and rediscovered God. I am not going to, literally, face a nine-foot giant, armed with only a slingshot and five smooth stones, and come out the victor.

But can I set a goal to do all the will of God? Can you and I become people who capture the heart of God because we choose to be completely submissive to Him, honoring Him in all our life choices and directions?

There is not a traditional battlefield in my life right now where I am called to be a soldier, so I would not set a goal to be a man of valor in such a situation. But maybe I can set the goal—a God goal—to be a man of valor on the battlefield of spiritual warfare I am called to engage in every single day.

You are in the same spot I am in. Just like me, you can make that choice and commitment. It can become our defining, dominant intention. This is the meaning of Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount when He said that we need to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” (Matthew 6:33)

I have long been fascinated by a single statement Jesus told His apostles early in His public ministry. It is not because it has deep theological mysteries revealed. It is more of a “this is the way I walk with God everyday” explanation. And if I want to be in step with God through the Spirit, using Jesus as my example, then this one sentence is significant.

John 4 is a benchmark chapter in the early ministry of Jesus. He and his band of twelve are traveling north and Jesus leads them right through the hated land of Samaria. Many Jews would have been inclined to add miles and time to the trip by going around any parcel of ground owned by a Samaritan. Jesus took them through it.

The chapter is dominated by Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, punctuated by her response to the realization that Jesus is more than a self-proclaimed prophet. Their discussion was private since the apostles were in the city to buy provisions.

As they return, she leaves, probably on the run, back to Sychar to tell people about Jesus. This chapter is important because the ministry is now going public. Jesus, along with His apostles, will teach in the open for a couple of days in the city. Many will believe, in part, because of the testimony of a less-than-reputable woman.

The disciples returned with food. They urged him to eat. He confused them by telling them, “I have food to eat you do not know about.” (John 4:31)

They did not know He had any food. Getting supplies was why they were sent into Sychar. Did someone give Him food while they were gone? And then this:

Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and accomplish His work.”

The greatest joy in Jesus’ human life was to do the will of the Father. The deepest satisfaction He experienced was to do the will of the Father. His goal was to finish any work God put before Him. This passion sustained Him! It was food for the soul that was much more nourishing than food for the body. Jesus sought first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. He modeled what He taught.

David was a man after God’s own heart because he did all the will of God. Jesus, the Son of God who was also called the Son of David, considered doing the will of the Father as essential to life as food is to the body.

Can you and I reach such a spiritual place that doing the will of the Father sustains us?