Poor David!
Poor David.
Everybody tried to put limits on him. It seems like every time he turned around, somebody was selling him short.
While watching his father’s sheep one day, a lion came out of the woods. Surely this little runt of a boy couldn’t stand up to a lion. Of course he could, and don’t call me Shirley. Sorry, old joke. Another day a bear showed up. Different species, same result. David 2, Predators 0.
When Samuel shows up looking for the next king, David’s own father didn’t even put him in the lineup! David’s dad, Jesse, pointed out all of his boys but David. Samuel kept looking at David’s brothers and finally asked, “’Are these all the sons you have?’ ‘There is still the youngest, but he is tending the sheep.’ Samuel said, ‘Send for him;’” (1 Sam 16:11 NIV)
As David walks up, God tells Samuel, “Rise and anoint him; he is the one.” (1 Sam 16:12
David? The scrawny little freckle faced shepherd boy? Surely, God wouldn’t choose David. Yes he would, and don’t call God Shirley.
Later, when the whole Israelite army was busy running in fear from Goliath, David took a stand and said, “Why is everybody running from this guy? Surely we can defeat him.” The entire Israelite army yelled at David, “We can’t beat him, he’s nine feet tall. And don’t call us Shirley.” I’m sorry, last time for that one, I promise…
Saul lets David in on a little secret; Goliath is big, really big. Gee, Saul, you think so? After all, he’s only two feet taller than Shaquille O’Neal. His armor weighed 125 pounds, the iron point of his spear weighed fifteen pounds!
Saul goes on to tell David that Goliath has been a fighting man since his youth, that David won’t stand a chance. Surely David… Oops, I forgot.
David knew something that Saul didn’t, and that we forget. If we are sold out to God, He is the one who fights our battles. David told Saul, “Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” (1 Sam. 17:34-37 NIV) After that impassioned plea, Saul said to David, “Go, and the LORD be with you.” In essence, “Good luck, you’re going to need it.”
Everybody expected David to back down, to run away, but David wanted none of that. He went out and faced his toughest opponent. The opponent really wasn’t Goliath, it was fear. How many great things could we do if we just weren’t afraid to do them?
In “The Conquest of Fear” Basil King writes, "Go at it boldly, and you'll find unexpected forces closing round you and coming to your aid.”
Emerson said, "Do the thing you fear, and the death of fear is certain."
You defeat worry and fear by filling your mind with the certain faith that you can do it. That is the best way to get rid of the worry and fear about those things that are bothering you. Realize that your God says to you, "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the LORD, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior…” (Isaiah 43:1-3 NIV).
With a promise like that, how can you go wrong? Simply put, you doubt. How many times have known that God was going to do a certain thing? Then you started listening to the naysayers, to those who won’t even put you in the lineup for king or believe that you can fight a giant.
When that happens, you must decide if God is for you. If He is, go for it! If He’s not, run fast, run far.
When you face the Goliaths of your life, you can look at their strength and be frightened or look at God's strength and say, “Surely I can do this.”
Yes, you can, and don’t call yourself Shirley.
Unable to pass up a corny joke… Jerry