Good Morning!! It’s a beautiful day, let’s read something together that makes us better!
What stands out to me today is that David went through some times when his ministry should have failed, or he should have been defeated in battle…but every time the Lord did something incredible to turn the tide in his favor. It seems there were times when David was as close to death as you can get without actually being dead…only to rise again and become a conqueror! Apparently God had used earthquakes, storms and maybe hail or gale force winds…or a volcano…who knows….to help David win battles. When you look at the rock formations in Israel, all the geological evidence is there to support volcanic eruptions and earthquakes.
So David states that his dedication to God in times of peace is what motivated God to help him in times of battle. To put it another way, when everything was going good, David didn’t forget to worship and obey. And when things turned bad, God didn’t hesitate to show up and help.
That causes me to look at my “peacetime” life and wonder if I am being obedient enough. Are there commands that I am skirting, because things are going well, and they don’t seem to be very important commands anyway? I mean, to the best of my knowledge I am living in complete obedience, and praying for the desire and resolve to serve more and know Christ in a more personal way. I don’t want to say “it’s too late to serve God” if you begin when trouble comes…maybe it’s not too late to know God and enter into heaven, but it may be too late to emerge victorious from the earthly battle. Perhaps David’s strength and success lay in his ability to worship every day throughout his life. He didn’t call on God when things got tough….he had a running conversation going.
I also marvel at the number of powerful men who surrounded David. And it appears that he was quite the warrior himself. I have heard that leaders attract others who are like themselves. I wonder, where does that leave God’s people in Youngsville? What sort of leaders do I attract, and what does that say about me? If I were to desire certain characteristics in others, can I find those same characteristics in myself? Can I model what I want others to become? Is what I desire for myself and others biblical? These are questions that I must ask of the Lord, and pray that I am humble enough to hear the answer clearly.
In Psalm 57 David says “my heart is confident in you, Oh God! No wonder I can sing your praises!” My prayer today is that my heart will be confident in God, however that plays out in my life. I mean, I don’t know exactly what “being confident in God” means for today’s sermon, or tomorrows concrete pour, or Tuesday’s staff meeting….but it has something to do with my ability to praise…which should be a part of my every day life….so that when times of trouble to do come my way, I can be confident that God will arise to help me, as he did his servant David.
I know this reading brings us to the close of David’s exploits in Scripture. (at least for a while). I look forward to meeting him in heaven and getting to know him. I suppose that he will be the one close to the throne, dancing and carrying on.
Faithfully,
PR