Jump Start # 942

1 Samuel 30:6 “Moreover David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, for all the people were embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.”

We continue our look at the life of David. Our passage today reminds us of the long and difficult road that David often traveled. Humble beginnings, sky rocketed to national hero and then the most wanted man in the nation. David became so desperate from running and hiding from King Saul that he joined himself with the Philistines, the enemy of Israel. This is one place Saul could not touch him. While he is hiding among the Philistines, the Amalekites make a raid on the city where David and his men had hid their families. The city was burned and their families taken captive. The text reveals the sunken feeling, “Then David and the people who were with him lifted their voices and wept until there was no strength in them to weep” (v. 4). Our verse soon follows. David’s men are so upset that their anger turns against David. They plan to kill David. They blamed David for the kidnapping of their families. Distressed. Bitter. Angry. Broken hearted. There is nothing much left in David’s men.

Three thoughts:

First, there are times when it seems that we simply cannot endure any more. We feel that we are at our limits. David and his men were running for their lives. Saul had tried to kill them. The Philistines didn’t trust them so they were forced to leave. Now, their families were kidnapped and their homes destroyed. The rubber band within us can get so stretched that we feel that we will snap at any moment. That’s where David’s men were. They had enough.

What these men were going through reminds us that problems do not line up one at a time, like airplanes waiting to take off. First, one goes, and then it’s time for the next in line. Problems are not like that. They come, often two, or three at a time. Problems at work: new policies that do not make sense, co-workers who do not work, demanding bosses, dead lines; problems at home: teenagers who want to run with the wild group, a mate who feels that you are not devoting enough time to the family, things that need fixing, aging parents who need you; problems with the finances: the household budget isn’t working, college is coming for the kids, you are driving a car that is on it’s last leg, your retirement funds look low, you can’t afford a vacation, the kids are wanting everything; problems at church: the elders are fussing about doing more, they want you to teach another class but you don’t know how you’ll have the time to prepare for it, the preacher loads the guilt about not doing enough, you feel stressed, tired, over worked and you don’t see things getting any better. Does this sound familiar to you? Many are there. Problems do not come one at a time. They often come as three or four at a time. King Saul was not going to give David a break because his family was kidnapped.

Second, we often turn against the wrong person when we are stressed and bitter about problems. David’s men were going to stone David. What good would that do? David had kept them safe all this time. David was not responsible for the kidnapping of their families. They needed to rally around David. Instead, they added to David’s problems by becoming a problem. Sometimes in grief, couples will turn against each other. Sometimes in the midst of church problems we fight the very people who could help us the most. What would happened had they been successful? They would have killed God’s anointed. They would have killed their hope of rescue. Years ago there was a 16 year old who was killed in a car accident. It was very sad. The family was crushed. I told the parents that this event would either pull them together as a couple or it would pull them apart. It wasn’t too long after that the couple divorced. Pointing fingers, finding fault, blaming others usually doesn’t reverse what has happened. It’s only an outlet for our anger. Anger will lead us to saying and doing things that we often will regret later on. Blaming David would not bring the families back. They needed a plan. They needed leadership. They needed to rescue their families.

Those in leadership roles, whether at work, home or church will experience similar rejection like David did. When emotions are running ahead of reason, people will react and say mean and hurtful things. They make threats. They want to quit. It takes tough skin to be a leader when the troops are bitter, angry and wanting to find fault. Shouting isn’t a good option. Quitting doesn’t help things. Let people calm down. Come up with a workable plan. Be there for them. Show compassion. These are all steps that leaders must take to get the troops back on target.

Finally, our passage tells us that David strengthened himself. David encouraged himself. There are times a person has to do that, especially the leaders. David couldn’t count on the men, they were looking for rocks to throw at him. Saul was no help. The Philistines were useless. His family was gone. He was all alone in this. He could have sat down and cried “there is no one here for me.” Instead, he strengthened himself. He encouraged himself. This is done through thinking, praying and connecting with God. Everyone had left David—but God. God was still there. God was still on the throne. God is one that David could count on. God was there for David. All those Psalms. All those hymns. All those prayers. All those Scriptures. They reminded. They connected. They helped David. He found his strength. He was ready to go on. He was back. He was focused and ready to go.

There are times we need to do this for ourselves. There may not be anyone else. Our family may be suffering and of no hope. Sometimes the church can be clueless and indifferent. Friends have their own problems. It seems that no one is there to lift us up. If you are not able to strengthen yourself, you will crumble. Many do. They expect others to be their help. When that doesn’t happen, their faith dies. They give up. The problems conquer them. They become defeated. That happens every day. They blame the schools, the government, the church and even the family for letting them down. They become more bitter. They become a spokesman for hate. What they failed to do was to strengthen themselves.

Can you strengthen yourself? Can you pull yourself out of the ditch? It’s never you by yourself. It’s you with God. It’s relying on God to help you. David’s strengthen didn’t come from within him, it came from above. It came from God. That’s how you do it. You think about all those sermons, and classes, and articles, and hymns, and verses. You have built a foundation upon the rock. Sure the rains came. Sure the winds blew. But you stood firm because of your foundation. It is that foundation that gets you through. It’s not someone’s smile. They may not smile. It’s not someone sitting beside you. They may not sit with you. It’s not someone holding your hand. They may not hold your hand. It’s God who will get you through.

David strengthened himself. You can do that. You can make it—with God.

Roger

Jump Start # 939

1 Samuel 17:33 “Then Saul said to David, ‘You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight  with him; for you are but a youth while he has been a warrior from his youth.”

This week we are taking a look at the life of David, the courageous and faithful servant of God. Early in David’s life he meets one of the greatest challenges of his life—fighting the giant, Goliath. David and Goliath—a story that so many of us grew up with. Goliath, the seasoned warrior stood over nine feet tall. David, the teenager, had never been in the army, yet was taking on Israel’s greatest enemy. Goliath is armed with spear, sword and shield. David is armed with faith in God. Five smooth stones, a sling and confidence in God and the giant came tumbling down. Great story. Powerful lessons. It’s easy to keep this superficial and miss some greater lessons for us.

Consider if you will:

1. Goliath wasn’t David’s problem. David was a kid by our standards today. He wasn’t military. There was an army. There was a king. There were many people who ought to fight the giant. What did David know about fighting? What did David know about Philistines? The reasons why David should not get involved are numerous, yet he went. He went to the king. He went to the brook to gather stones. He went before the giant. I think we find it too easy not to get involved because we say “It’s not my job.” So we stand on the sidelines of life. It’s not my battle. There are kings and armies that ought to do this. So we sit back and watch a country deteriorate, or a church fall apart, or a family degenerate. What can I do, we say. It’s not my job, we tell ourselves. That didn’t stop David. He made it his job. He got involved. Christians are not sideline people. They are engaged in the battle of life. They are teaching, showing, serving and helping. Shame on us for walking away from battles. Shame on us for allowing Satan to gain ground. Shame on us for doing nothing. Battles are messy. Battles are intense. Battles involve causalities. How can we say we care and then sit back and watch a family fall apart or a church fizzle out?  Goliath wasn’t David’s problem, but he made it his problem.

2. For any good that you want to do there are those, often on your side, that stand in the way. David had two sets of opposition to deal with. First was from his own brothers. David’s oldest brother, Eliab burned with anger against David (1 Sam 17:28). Why was his own brother angry? You’d think he support and be on his side. No. Was it guilt? Was it jealousy? Was it that he thought David didn’t know what he was doing? Had he not heard of his little brother killing a lion to save the family sheep? That would have been the talk around the dinner table. This wasn’t just a wild idea. There was some merit to what David was saying. There was some experience to what David had done.

David’s second opposition came from the king. Our verse today quotes Saul. You are not able. What defeating words. You are not qualified. You are too young. You are not good enough. You can’t do it. You will fail.

Sometimes the words of defeat come from our own sidelines. Those in the family, those in the church, those we count as friends—they throw water on any idea that you may have. It may be that they are trying to keep us from failing. It may be that they believe we can’t do it. Young David had to conquer those giants before he faced the real giant. You can’t do it has killed many ideas, suggestions and projects. David would have none of that. He knew. He believed. He pushed onward. If you let someone talk you ought of an idea, maybe you weren’t convinced yourself to start with. David wasn’t like that. He knew God. He knew it wasn’t about him but God. David stood his ground and was not going to be talked out of what he planned to do

3. Sometimes those of us that are older need to step back and listen to the younger voices. Experience doesn’t always trump youth—it didn’t here. Experience kept Israel on the sidelines. The soldiers and the king didn’t have a plan. They had no solution for the giant. This wasn’t a sudden problem. Goliath was taunting Israel every day for more than a month. What was the king and this generals talking about? What was the strategy? The text gives us no insight. This could have gone on as long as the Philistines were willing. David, the teenager, had a plan. Sometimes younger voices do know what to do. Sometimes that younger voice in the pulpit can say things better than the older seasoned voice. Sometimes parents need to listen to what their kids are saying—they may have a good idea now and then. I like to see churches using younger people.

Israel was saved, not by the wisdom of her king, nor by the strength of her army. No, it was by the courage of one of her teenagers. A sling instead of a sword. No shield. No backup plan. Charge at the giant and sling a rock at his head. That plan won’t make the military manuals. On paper that plan looks bad. With God, all things are possible.

David had trust in God. David had experience with God. David knew.

We must wonder if we are standing in the way of young David’s today. Are we telling them, “No,” when we ought to give them a chance. One of the hardest things all young people face is trying to find a job without experience. Everyone wants to hire the guy with five years experience. Where does a guy get that if he has zero experience? We must wonder, do we even listen to the ideas of those younger than we are?

I guess Saul was in the position that he could have stopped David. He could have called guards and had David escorted away. He didn’t. He didn’t know what else to do. He allowed David a chance. That’s more than some get.

The nation was saved by young David.

Roger