David and Goliath, Facing Life's Giants con't
1 Samuel 17:40-52 New King James Version (NKJV)
40 Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had, and his sling was in his hand. And he drew near to the Philistine. 41 So the Philistine came, and began drawing near to David, and the man who bore the shield went before him. 42 And when the Philistine looked about and saw David, he disdained[a] him; for he was only a youth, ruddy and good-looking. 43 So the Philistine said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 And the Philistine said to David, “Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!”
45 Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 47 Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord’s, and He will give you into our hands.”
48 So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49 Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. 50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David. 51 Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it.
And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. 52 Now the men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted, and pursued the Philistines as far as the entrance of [b]the valley and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell along the road to Shaaraim, even as far as Gath and Ekron.
So today I am going to pick up right where I left off yesterday. Again I encourage you to go read this chapter yourself because it is a great story and I can't include every detail.
So we left off where King Saul told David to go fight the giant Goliath and "The Lord be with you!" Well Saul first wanted to clothe David in the finest of armor to protect him. David tried it on but decided to not wear the armor because he had never worn armor before. I am sure that it was heavy and he just want not use to moving in armor. David took with him what he was used to; his staff and five smooth stones that he chose from the stream and he put them in his shepherd's bag.
I love this because David took with him what he knew and what he had practiced with before in the field where he lived with the sheep. Not what the normal soldier used in battle but what he used in the pastures. Remember David had killed a lion and bear while in his territory. David had a different type of training for battle. The bible says that David drew near to the Philistine. Goliath was such a big deal that he had a guy there just to carry his shield that went before him. When Goliath looked at who they sent to fight him he was insulted! They sent a kid to fight him, not a seasoned warrior! Then Goliath started his trash talk again. He was so angry that he cursed David by his gods.
How many times have you been made fun of or insulted by people? What did David do? Did he shrink back in fear? NO! So then Goliath threatened David with, "Come to me and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field."
Here is David's response...wait for it..."You come to me with a sword, with a spear and with javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the Lord's, and He will give you into our hands."
David clothed himself for battle with the name of the Lord! He didn't shrink back in fear, he stated the facts, he didn't try to back pedal! He moved forward in the confidence of God as his defender. When I read this it makes me giggle because David tells Goliath that He is going to take his head. Remember David didn't even carry a sword, how is he going to take Goliath's head? Oh that's right the Lord is going to deliver Goliath into David's hands. It isn't David's battle, it is the Lord's!
David didn't take insult that Goliath had called him names. David took offense at Goliath making fun of his God! I need to remember this. When someone insults me, I should just let it go and not even give it the time of day to distract me from my real mission of serving the Lord. The Lord will defend me! If I get caught up in the name calling or the insults then I lose focus on the real issue. After all I really trust God to defend me then I shouldn't get caught up in defending myself because God will take care of me.
Okay back to the story vs 48 Goliath came at David and David hurried and ran toward Goliath. David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and he slung it with his sling and let it go! It struck the armor clad Goliath right in his forehead. The bible says that it sunk into his forehead, ouch! Goliath face planted in the dirt. Then David took Goliath's own sword and cut off his head. What happened next? Well the bully is dead so the Philistines that were once so brave turned and ran and the army of Israel chased them.
Be a leader! God can use you if you are willing to be used. You do not have to come from a prestigious background, David came from the sheep field, but David was faithful. When he was in the sheep field tending the sheep, he did his best. God trained him while he was in the sheep field. God can use you where you are now and He can place you at the front lines of battle. He is preparing and equipping you now, right where you are. Do not get impatient. In Proverbs 21:30-31 it says, "There is no counsel against the Lord. The horse is prepared for the day of battle but deliverance is of the Lord." (NKJV) In the NIV it says but the victory is of the Lord.
If you are facing a giant in your life right now, it is okay. The battle is the Lords! He will go with you. You might not feel the most prepared to face this enemy but God will equip you and He will give you the victory even if the giant is a fierce, experienced warrior. God is bigger!
One last thing. After David went to pursue the Philistines in battle, King Saul asked his commander Abner, "Whose son is this youth?" And Abner said, "As your soul lives, O king, I do not know." So the king said, "Inquire whose son this young man is."
Saul wanted to know more about who raised David. When people see you facing life's giants without falling apart, then people will want to know more about you and who your dad is. When you represent the Lord well, your life testimony will cause people to want to know your source of strength and character. They might be amazed when they find out where you have come from (like the sheep fields?) but they will want to know more!
I am so glad that God stands with me when I face life's giants!
Shanin
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