Scripture:

“And David said to Saul, ‘Let no man’s heart fail because of him. Your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.’ And Saul said to David, ‘You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for you are but a youth, and he has been a man of war from his youth.’

 

…When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine. And David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone and slung it and struck the Philistine on his forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the ground. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. There was no sword in the hand of David. Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled. And the men of Israel and Judah rose with a shout and pursued the Philistines as far as Gath and the gates of Ekron, so that the wounded Philistines fell on the way from Shaaraim as far as Gath and Ekron. And the people of Israel came back from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their camp.” 1 Samuel 17:32-33, 48-54 (ESV)

 

Perspective:

David was willing to face a battle that no one else in Israel would face. He said that he would go, but Saul, the king of Israel, saw his age as a disqualifying factor. David did not have all the military experience needed to prevail in this fight. Just looking at the size difference between David and Goliath would have caused Saul to fear that the battle had already been lost. Yet, David was not deterred by the most influential and powerful man in his country who didn’t believe in him. He wasn’t deterred by the giant that threatened his people’s safety. He didn’t let the reality that no one was fighting with him hold him back. He took his arsenal and fought Goliath in a different way than Goliath was expecting. Instead of fighting in close hand to hand combat, David used a different strategy. No one was standing behind or beside him as backup. However, after David had overcome Goliath, the men of Israel jumped to their feet to be part of the battle and victory.

 

What if David had waited to fight until someone stood beside him? We want the people to support us before we experience victory instead of people that are going to join us after the battle has already been won.  So, if we don’t have the support we feel like we need, we can often mirror all the other warriors in the Israelites’ camp – too afraid and intimidated by the size of the battle before us. Yet, God has not called us to fight haphazardly or shrink back in fear. God can deposit the same spirit of faith that was in David into your heart to rise to meet the challenge that you believe God has already given you victory over. The moments of rising create a reckoning of our faith and fear.  We cannot be a giant slayer if we are waiting for someone else to come to our aid. David understood that God outnumbered all the armies in the land, and he advanced confidently knowing that God was fighting with him. God is for you and has already given you victory, even if you feel outnumbered.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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About Hona Amer

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