1 Samuel 17:32-19:17
Psalm 59
1 Samuel 19:18-24
David killed Goliath and became an instant hero in all of Israel. To
reward him, King Saul made him a commander in his army and gave his daughter
Michal to him in marriage. By leading his men on many successful expeditions
against the enemy, David’s fame eclipsed the King’s and that, of course, did
not sit well with Saul.
We will follow Saul’s descent into jealousy in the days to come. For today,
I’d like to focus on David’s victory over the Philistine champion. When Goliath
entered the scene, a colossal character who taunted and terrorized Saul’s army,
every Israelite soldier and staff member was dismayed, except for David. He
couldn’t believe that this monster was allowed to trash talk “the army of the
living God.” He, of course, volunteered to confront Goliath and the rest is
history — fallen
giant, rising star!
Did you notice that everyone ran away from Goliath, but David ran
towards him? Why is that? Goliath’s size, strength, arrogance, and intimidating
words caused everyone to cower in fear, yet David was not afraid. Why not? Was
it because David was a suicidal maniac who had a death wish? No. Was it because
David was brimming with self-confidence? He was described as a mighty man of
valor, but no. In fact, we see David running from Saul. Why, then, was David
willing to face the giant when no one else would? It all came down to
who eclipsed whom?
During a solar eclipse, the light from the sun is temporarily blocked
by the moon. Thus, a larger object is “hidden” by a much smaller one. Oftentimes,
when we face difficult circumstances, we focus on the size of the problem
and allow it to eclipse the truth of the sovereignty and might of God. In the account of
Goliath, David was the only person who looked at him in comparison to the power
of his God. “You come to
me with sword, and spear, and javelin,” he said, “but I come to you in the name
of the Lord Almighty!” While everyone else had their eyes on the big man, David
had his eyes on his big God; and, big problems are no match for a big God!
Daily Reflection
How does one reach such a confident faith like that of David? Did you
notice how David explained it to Saul? God had delivered him before from lions
and bears. How does that apply here?
You will not wake up one day with the faith of David. Faith
is added each day, stretched and strengthened as you trust God with each trial.
The
catch is you will be tempted to focus on the size of your problems and let them
intimidate you, cause you to fear and cower. Instead, you must look past
the problem, as David did, to the size and might of your God.
Have you ever allowed your problems to eclipse your God? What lessons
did you learn?
It’s a matter of faith and perspective. Step out of the shadow of the
giants and, instead, view them from the vantage point of heaven. Say to them, “Today,
the Lord will conquer you!”
BiAY.org | Day 104 — 261 Days to Go
No comments:
Post a Comment