Today I focused my prayer on the needs of others. There are people in my life that are facing some big challenges and I know they need more than the help that I can give them. So I asked Father to bless them in a way that they would recognize Him in their lives and to bless me that I would be aware of the opportunities to let them know that He loves them.
1 Samuel 21
This chapter is a strange one to me. Here we see David, the sweet singer of Israel; the giant killer; the man who would be king of
Up to this point, David has done everything right in his life. He has been the absolute model of faith, courage, obedience, integrity and devotion to God and to his king. But, he is still a very young man who is living a long way from his home and family. David needed some stability in his life. So, God placed some things and some people in David’s life to be a support system for him.
Work – 1 Sam. 18:13 – A humble shepherd boy had been promoted to a captain over a thousand in Saul’s army. He was also the chief musician in Saul’s court. His work gave him stability in his life. He needed that; he leaned on that.
Popularity – 1 Sam. 18:16 – The people of
Michal – 1 Sam. 18:20, 28 – David was given a wife who genuinely loved him. No doubt David drew great strength from leaning on the support of Michal’s love for him.
Jonathan – 1 Sam. 18:1-4 – Jonathan proved to be a faithful friend to young David. He was David’s eyes and ears in the throne room. Jonathan even placed his friendship to David higher than his allegiance to his own father. David often leaned on the support of his friendship with Jonathan.
Samuel – 1 Sam. 16:13; 19:18 – The prophet was also a support in the life of David. Samuel taught David about sacrifice, service and worship. He was a significant support to David during those early years.
Self-esteem – 1 Sam. 18:15 – David took pride in the life he lived and he knew how to carry himself before men. He probably placed a great deal of emphasis on doing the right thing. He had self-respect, self-control and self-esteem. This was a crucial part of his support system.
David’s support system was in place, but it was not going to last for very long. God allowed a series of events to take place in David’s life that destroyed and removed every single prop he had in his support system. One day David was on top of the world. The next day, he was on the bottom. David became a man hunted by his enemies; haunted by death and hounded by destruction. David’s own estimation of his troubles is found in 1 Sam. 20:3.
What was happening to David's support system?
Lost His Position – 1 Sam. 19:8-10 – The Captain of Israel’s army, the greatest battlefield hero in the nation’s history, has become a fugitive from justice.
Lost His Popularity – As one removed from the public eye, David was soon relegated to memory. People probably assumed that Saul would be successful in his attempts to take David’s life.
Michal Was Removed – 1 Sam. 19:11-17 – First Michal tells David of Saul’s plot and helps him escape; then she lies to her father and says that David had threatened to kill her unless she did. Their relationship will never be harmonious again.
Jonathan Was Removed – 1 Sam. 20:41-42 – Jonathan goes as far as he can to protect David, and in the end, Jonathan must send David away for his own safety.
Samuel Was Removed – 1 Sam. 19:18 - David went to his old friend and mentor, the prophet Samuel. But, eventually David had to flee from the presence of Samuel, because of the relentless pursuit of King Saul.
Lost His Self-esteem – 1 Sam. 21:10-15 - Here, David reaches the bottom. Here, the last support in his system is torn away and David reaches the lowest point in his life. He goes into the
Every person will at some point in their life feel like their support system is pulled from them. We all lean on someone or something to help us get through this life. We all have a well developed support system in place. We depend on the people and the things in our lives to help us make it through day by day. In fact, we are guilty of leaning on our support system more heavily and more often than we lean upon the Lord.
There was my "aha" moment. Could it be that David was leaning on the the people or things in his support system more than he was leaning on God? Although God gives us a support system, it is only meant to enhance His ability to help us, not lead us away from seeking Him FIRST. The thing about God is, when He sees His children leaning on everyone and everything but Him; we can count on Him to teach us the lessons we need to get us back on track.
Did David learn to lean on the Lord? I think the answer is yes. Psalm 34 records the change in David's behavior. He has learned to lean on the Lord's praise (vv 1-3) and the Lord's protection (vv 4-7). He knows the Lord will provide (vv 8-10) and will keep His promises (vv 11-17). He learns that the Lord is always with him (v 18) and that He preserves His people (vv 19-22).
When God begins to dismantle our support system, it can get quite painful. But, we should not fear what the Lord is doing in our lives. He is merely helping us grow and teaching us that He is all we need. He is all-sufficient; more than enough; He will never fail us, leave us or let us down. He wants us to learn this truth: When we have Him, we have all the support system that we will ever need!
No comments:
Post a Comment