David and Goliath
April 24th, 2006
Getting un-stuck.
That seems to be a theme of this story. Israel was stuck in an impasse with the Philistines. For forty days they had a daily standoff. Goliath and the other Philistines would come and taunt the Israelites.
I found it impressive that David (up to now, mainly a shepherd and musician) made the CHOICE to fight Goliath. Nobody asked him to. Everybody thought he was nuts for even trying. Yet David felt he MUST do this, and he had complete confidence that he could win.
So, WHY did David feel so compelled to take on this challenge? One thought is that this is the place where Israel was stuck. They were stuck as a nation. If they didn’t win this fight, they would be slaves to the Philistines. They FEARED the Philistines because of their size and strength. David saw this stuckness (is that a word) and could not stand it.
Where are YOU stuck? What is YOUR “Goliath?”
What helped David overcome Goliath?
- God was with him, and David relied on God.
- David was in the HABIT of relying on God.
- David was in the habit of rescuing his animals out of the mouths of wild animals. And large ones! Bears, Lions. Thus, David was in the habit of tackling (and killing) these large wild animals.
So basically, David used skills that he was familiar with, and that he had honed in his daily work. What things are you GOOD at, that you’re in the HABIT of doing? Maybe these can help you overcome your Goliath?
April 25th, 2006 at 10:02 pm
Excellent thought! Good blog too!
I thought it was pretty amazing too in the story that Saul was willing to let David, a mere boy, fight this giant. If David lost, his people would be slaves to the Philistines yet Saul allows him to fight and says to him “May God be with you.” Did Saul really believe in his heart what he said to David or was he just using a phrase that’s often said without deep meaning?
March 27th, 2008 at 1:49 pm
I think that a VERY important point was that as stated above, David was in the habit of trusting God, although I wouldn’t call it a habit. He desired to trust God. But it is still a good point to mention. David, being a shepherd, obviously had a lot of time on his hands. And as we see in his relationship as Saul’s servent he was a proficient musician. I believe it probable that David spent lots of time writing songs, praying, and singing to the LORD while he was in the fields w/ his father’s sheep. He had apparently faced and killed several large animals in his life. He rightly credited god w/ protecting him. David is called “a man after God’s own heart”. He was very close to God and I am sure that his faith was deep.He was ashamed for Isreal’s fear. In 1 Samual 17:36, David says that Goliath has “defied the armies of the living God.” I think that David in his heart was angry. But he was right to go(in the name of the LORD Almighty) when all the others backed down.
Also… I think that sauls reply, “Go, and the LORD be with you.”, was infact heart-felt. He was after all God’s anointed King, chosen by God out of the whole nation… I believe that he was ashamed when the youngest, and not even a soldier, dared to stand in the LORD’s name when he, God’s anounted King could not…