My devotional time this morning took me to familiar passages in 1 Samuel 17. That is the chapter in which David confronts and kills the Philistine champion Goliath.  In that section, David shows unusual courage and seems to declare the death of Goliath prophetically.  You will recall that both the Israeli and Philistine armies had camped across a valley from one another.  Every morning and evening for forty days, Goliath had stepped out and challenged the army of Israel, inviting anyone who had the courage to step up and fight him.  According to scripture, he was nine feet, nine inches tall.

The response each day had been the army of Israel, along with King Saul, cowering as he issued the challenge. David, still a young man, had come to check on his brothers who were camping with Saul and waiting for an actual battle to occur.  As he arrived, he heard the morning challenge from the Philistine and actually took offense.  He was not offended that Goliath had such disdain for Israel or for Saul, but that he would defy the armies of the living God with disdain. David considered God’s name as the one being slandered.  

David then offered to face this “giant” on behalf of his God and Saul took him up on it.  Saul then gave David his armor and his sword with which to face the enemy.   The text says. “’I cannot go in these…because I am not used to them.” So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine. David seemed an unlikely individual to face Israel’s enemy.  He was young, had no armor or weapons other than a shepherd’s sling.  We are unaware if he had any military experience at all. Saul assumed that David would have to emulate him in order to win the day so he dressed him in his own tunic and armor and gave him his tools for war.  If David had accepted Saul’s judgment of him and faced Goliath in Saul’s armor, the story would most likely have had a very different end.

There are times when God calls us to step up in the kingdom and face a situation or a problem for which, at least in our own eyes, we seem to be vastly unqualified.  We assume we must become like someone else we think would be better suited…the pastor, an elder, a more experienced believer, and so we back away from the call.  Maybe others see us in the same way. But sometimes, God chooses the unlikely because the “tried and true” ways of solving the problem will not work for that situation.  Different gifts and different experiences may be just what God is calling for.

David had no experience in war but he had experienced God’s deliverance from a lion and a bear.  He had no armor but he had a shepherd’s sling that he had mastered.  He also had faith and the Spirit of God working in his life.  We are told when Samuel anointed David to be the future king of Israel (I Kings 16:13), “and from that day on, the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David.”  I believe that the Spirit directed him to face Goliath with the experiences and skills he already had and David submitted to those promptings.  When confronted by Goliath who despised this boy – this non-warrior – David replied, “it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves, for the battle is the Lord’s’ (1 Sam. 17:47). With that in his heart, David charged the Philistine and killed him with a single stone…undoubtedly directed by the Lord.

Here is the lesson.  When God calls us to step up to lead a ministry, share the gospel, pray for someone’s healing, confront an injustice, etc. we do not have to become like someone else.  God called us, not the other person and we already have the experiences and gifts needed for the moment.  After all, the victory doesn’t come through our greatness but through the greatness of God.  The more unlikely we are, the more glory God receives.  The greatness of David was not in his abilities but in his faith in the ability of God.  When the moment comes and the Spirit is prompting us to step up, remember David and his “unlikely” victory over the “giant” from Gath.

One of the things I have consistently seen through the years in counseling, deliverance, and in my own life is Satan’s attempt to make us feel disqualified.  Let me explain.  The enemy’s first strategy ys is to keep us from receiving God’s grace though the sacrifice of his Son. In the Parable of the Sower, Jesus explained that, for many, the enemy simply takes the word of God from their hearts before they can believe.  He works hard to keep us from an encounter with God’s word and then works hard to keep us from opening our hearts to God.

Having failed at keeping a man or woman from being touched by God’s word and his Spirit, one of his standard strategies is to make the saved or those close to salvation feel disqualified.  Satan is referred to as the accuser of the brethren.  He accuses us before God, but he also accuses us in our own hearts and minds.  To those close to salvation, he whispers that they need to be better and do better before God will accept them.  They never surrender to Jesus because they don’t feel “good enough.” Perhaps, past sins haunt them and Satan whispers that  they are beyond God’s grace.  Of course, that is a total misunderstanding of grace.  We don’t clean ourselves up so we can come to Jesus, we come to Jesus so he can clean us up.  But in a world of highly conditional love, grace can be a difficult concept to grasp. Satan somehow seems to skew the message of grace so they don’t hear it clearly. Their sense of disqualification keeps them from moving ahead.

Even if a person surrenders to Jesus, Satan continue the accusations.  He will whisper continually that even though we are saved, we are still disqualified from God’s further blessings or from serving him in any significant way.  He reminds of past sins and suggests that we were not sorry enough, did not repent enough, or did not hate the sin enough for God to forgive that sin.  We live as if God is still holding something against us.  The enemy always implies that the blood of Christ is not really sufficient…for us. Feeling as if God is holding something against us, we have little faith that he will answer our prayers, bless us by meeting our greatest needs or deepest desire, or that all the promises in scripture are available to us.  When asked to serve in any significant capacity in the kingdom, we retreat, feeling that we simply don’t measure up.  We may even feel as if God would be angry if we took such a “presumptuous” step.

The truth is that none of us measure up, are “good enough,” or are worthy of His promises based on our own merit and righteousness.  It is only by the blood of Jesus that we can stand in the presence of God and be confident that he will answer our prayers.  Jesus gives us a position in heaven long before our condition matches that.  When we can accept our position as sons and daughters who are seen by God through the lens of his Son’s righteousness, we can then begin to pray with faith and expectation that God will care for us and use us in his kingdom in ways that we could not anticipate.

Faith is certainly based on our view of God and his character, but Satan uses our own doubts, insecurities, and self-image issues to cloud our view of the Father and the complete adequacy of his son’s blood to make us totally acceptable to our Father.  This, I believe, is the primary area in which we must take every thought captive and align our thoughts with the Father’s truth.

Most of us can stand a healthy dose of what God says about us on a daily basis by speaking the things that God has said about those who belong to him.  You can probably Google “Our identity in Christ” and get a great list of scriptures that declare what God has said about his children. When other thoughts enter our minds regarding our standing with God, we need to rebuke those thoughts as lies and speak God’s truth over ourselves.  Old ways of thinking are engrained in our brains and it takes an intentional season of declaring God’s truth over the old thoughts before God’s truth becomes our primary way of viewing ourselves…especially when the enemy keeps whispering our disqualifications to us. 

Sometimes we assume that what we think about the Father, Son and Holy Spirit is all that matters. But, all of His truth matters and what he has done for us through the cross is just as significant because our righteousness in Christ and our state of being “new creations” also reflects on God.  The quality of a sculptor’s work reflects on him as a person and God is sculpting us through Christ.  

So…when the accuser of the brethren comes around, recognize him, reject him, and silence him by declaring God’s truth about you in response to the lies he whispers.  Part of our transformation comes from the renewing of our minds and that renewing comes from saturating our thoughts and words with God’s truth.  You are not disqualified but made totally acceptable in Jesus Christ for salvation, blessing and even challenging assignments.

Questions are important and if you don’t ask the right questions you will miss much of what is most important in life. There are four essential questions in life. How you answer them determines almost everything else.
1. Does God exist?

2. Is God powerful?

3. Is God good?

4. Does God truly love me?

You may want to consider what you really believe regarding those questions.  If God doesn’t exist, all bets are off. You (and everyone else) are on your own in a dangerous world.  If God is powerful but doesn’t love you, you are still on your own and must protect yourself  at all costs…perhaps even from  God. If God is not good all the time, then he may abandon you or even hurt you on any given day on a whim.. And if God loves you but has no power, then you are  gratified but must still protect and provide for yourself.

All of us as Christians would probably answer “Yes” to all four of those questions if they were asked in a group of fellow believers.  But would we be expressing our aspirational beliefs or our actual beliefs?  Aspirational beliefs are those we aspire to have because we know we should believe certain things or want to believe certain things.  Actual beliefs can be different (and often are) and are revealed not by what we say, but how we consistently act.

To say God exists, he is good, he truly loves me, and he is unimaginably powerful answers the most important questions of life: Do I matter? Am I safe? Am I loved? Will I have enough? Can I face the future? To the extent that can honestly say I believe those things, I can live with peace and joy because I believe good is always coming my way, even in troubling circumstances.

Jesus believed that about the Father. I know he did because he slept through storms while others cried out. With small prayers he confidently took a few scraps of bread and fish and fed thousands. He walked on stormy seas and faced hostile leaders with the confidence that God would send a legion of angels to defend Him if requested. He walked confidently through crowds bent on his destruction because he knew that his appointed hour to suffer had not come and the Father would allow no harm to come to him until then. In the midst of a world in war and turmoil, he possessed peace.

But what about us?  How often do we worry day after day about having enough because we are not certain God will provide?  How many of us are “high on control” in our life and relationships as a means of self-protection because we doubt that God will protect us?  How many of us are plagued by anxiety and persistent fears of abandonment?  How many of us believe in our heads that we are children of the King, but believe in our hearts that we are orphans living on our own, left to meet our own needs, and always on the brink of disaster…about to lose whatever is precious to us?

Knowing who we are in Christ and believing it in our hearts is critical in every circumstance.  If we could answer “Yes” to each of those questions at a heart level, then peace would rule our emotions.  Paul prayed that God would give the church at Ephesus the Spirit of wisdom and revelation that they might know God better.  Many of us have aspirational faith in the character and promises of God but our actual faith lags behind. How do we know? Just look at what we do and feel consistently rather than what we say. We need these essential truths revealed to our hearts more than we need them deposited in our heads.  That is the work of the Spirit who reveals truth to God’s people.

Why did Adam and Eve eat forbidden fruit in the Garden? Satan convinced them that God wasn’t always good and didn’t always love them completely. Convinced that God was withholding good things, they took and they ate. How often do we too disregard God’s commands and go our own way in an effort to meet our desire for love, our need for security or our hunger for significance? We do that while we claim to love God and trust him completely. I’m not exempt from failing to fully trust God for all things at all times either. It is the human condition but one for which faith is the cure.

What we need is a daily revelation of God’s presence, his power, his love, and his goodness toward us. Ask the Holy Spirit every day to write “yes” on your heart to each of those three questions so that you can live with the peace and confidence of Jesus. Ask him to give you eyes to see God’s goodness and faithfulness in your life each day. And as Paul prayed, may the Lord give you His Spirit of wisdom and revelation today and everyday so that you may know Him better (Eph.1:17).

If you grew up in church, you probably know the Old Testament story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. These three young Hebrew men were deported from Judea to Babylon after an invasion by King Nebuchadnezzar, and pressed into his service. Part of the Babylonian strategy of conquest was to take the young nobles, the best and the brightest, from a nation that had just been conquered and simply absorb them into Babylonian culture through education and training. They were actually given positions of significance in Babylon in an attempt to make them willing “citizens” rather than insurgents.

In Daniel 3, we are told that Nebuchadnezzar made a huge image of gold and required every person in Babylon to worship the statue at certain times. Of course, Jews who believed in only one God could not do so with good conscience and so the three young men refused to worship. They were reported and brought before the king who threatened to burn them alive in a furnace if they would not worship. Their response was, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” 

You know the rest of the story. Nebuchadnezzar was infuriated that these young Jews would dare to defy him. In a rage, he had the furnace stroked seven times hotter than normal and they were, indeed, cast into the furnace. However, Nebuchadnezzar saw them strolling around in the fire, unconcerned and unharmed, with a fourth party that was described as looking like “a son of the gods.” The astonished king called them out of the furnace. They had not been touched by the fire and even the smell of burning wood was not on their clothing. The king recognized that an angel had protected them from him, and was so amazed that he gave each of them promotions in his government and prohibited anyone in his kingdom from saying anything against their God.

There are dramatic moments like this throughout scripture in which men and women stood in faith against overwhelming odds. The obvious lesson is that, in many cases, the expression of faith will put us in a position that, if God doesn’t show up, we are toast. Think about it. Most of us pray for lives that are so ordered that we are never at risk, but where there is no risk, there is little opportunity to grow in our faith. If we do walk in faith, we will have moments when we will have to choose to trust God for good outcomes.

There are amazing moments like the one above recorded throughout scripture where faith clearly placed men and women in life-threatening situations. If God didn’t come through, they would be lost, destroyed, or cast out. What if it hadn’t rained after Noah spent years building an ark? What if God didn’t show up for Moses after he returned to Egypt where he had been a wanted man for forty years? What if fire had not come down on Mt. Carmel in response to Elijah’s prayer as he stated against the prophets of Baal?

Again, what we learn from a quick overview of scripture is that an act of faith nearly always makes us vulnerable to harm or loss. We also need to recognize that It’s not always in big dramatic moments like the ones just listed. The “Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew 5-7 is full of directives that have the potential to place us in harm’s way on a daily basis. If we love our enemy and turn the other cheek, will our enemy not see that as weakness and take advantage of us or bully us all the more? If we forgive those who have betrayed us, won’t we simply be reinforcing their bad behavior because they experience no real consequence from us? If we lend to others without demanding that they return what they borrowed, won’t we end up with an empty bank account or a vacant garage? If we speak well of others while they are speaking evil of us at the office, will we not be damaged? Won’t they ruin our reputation and undermine our position, even though we are innocent? What if we step out of a love relationship that is causing us to compromise our faith? Will there be another one who loves us or will we inevitably face a life alone?

Even the basic teachings of Jesus, put us at risk if we truly follow what he says. The only way to follow these commands is to believe that God will bless us, uphold us, and provide for us when we are attacked or taken advantage of because of our obedience. That simple expectation takes faith. Maybe we are not facing a fiery furnace, but we can face hurt, humiliation, and loss on many levels. To follow Jesus, often means that we can’t act in ways to protect ourselves but will have to make ourselves vulnerable while trusting God to protect us, reimburse us, vindicate us, and so forth…and on his timeline. Even tithing when inflation is rampant and we worry about our budgets takes faith. To give to the Lord can make us feel financially at risk. What will we choose?

Sometimes we are disobedient out of our flesh’s propensity for rebellion and stubbornness. But more often, I think we are disobedient out of fear that God will not be there for us if we put ourselves in a risky position through our obedience. Sure, we would like to think we would have the courage and faith of Elijah or Moses or David running toward Goliath, if the moment arose. But it is in the smaller moments of loving an enemy or forgiving your betrayer or refusing to speak badly of the one who is slandering you at work, that we develop the faith to tackle our giants.

The lesson is that every time we feel afraid, vulnerable, or exposed, we probably have a chance to step out in faith to see what God will do in response to our submission. It is in those moments that we learn that God is our rock, our deliverer, our provision, and our vindication. I believe the time may be coming soon when we will need more faith than we ever imagined, as the world becomes more and more hostile toward followers of Jesus. We will feel more and more pressure to compromise or to deny the truth of scripture in order to maintain our friendships, jobs, or even family connections. Perhaps, I need to begin to choose vulnerability over self-protection now, in order to prepare for a moment when I cannot protect myself by any means, but will totally have to trust the Lord if I am not going to deny the faith.

The good news is that the same God who parted the Red Sea for Moses, who gave Elijah victory over 800 prophets of Baal, who guided the stone from David’s sling, and who delivered Daniel from the lion’s den is the same God who watches over you. Let’s begin to choose vulnerability and risk in expressing our faith in the little things now, so that when we face our giants in the days ahead, we can remember, like David, all the times that God delivered us from lesser risks and believe that he will be is there for us, when much more is on the line.

Few of us are ever aware of the provision and power that God offers us when we face impossible circumstances in our lives.  I admit that I am one who often misses it as well.

I love the story of Elisha when he was surrounded by the army of Aram in the small town of Dothan.  The king of Aram was at war with Israel. Each time he set an ambush for Israeli troops, Elisha would receive a word of knowledge from the Lord, warn the leaders of Israel, and the King of Aram’s plans would collapse. His initial thought was that a spy was leaking his battle plans to Israel but one of his captains convinced him that the prophet Elisha was the one informing on the King.

The King ordered a nationwide manhunt for the prophet who was to be found and captured.  Word got back to the king that Elisha had been seen in Dothan in northern Samaria and so he commanded his army to surround the settlement.  We’re told in 2 Kings 6, “When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots surrounded the city. ‘O my lord, what shall we do?’ the servant asked.  ‘Don’t be afraid,’ the prophet answered. ‘Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ And Elisha prayed, ’O Lord, open his eyes so he may see.’ Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”

Here is the lesson.  If God is for us, who can stand against us?  God is never taken by surprise.  When the King of Aram ordered the capture of Elisha, God had already made provision for Elisha’s victory. The servant was overcome by fear.  Given the chance he would have stolen away in the night and hidden in the hills. Elisha, having faith in both the power and the character of God, stood without fear and saw the provision of God that others could not see.

The Lord had already responded to the need of Elisha and his servant with the power of heaven poised to do battle on behalf of the man of God. The servant was terrified because he had no faith to believe that God would provide a way, even in the most impossible circumstances.  He could not see what God had already made available in this impossible moment.  Elisha, on the other hand, had faith that God would meet his greatest need and had simply been waiting t see how God would do that.  With that faith and anticipation, he could see the provision of God.  In this moment, it was the army of heaven poised to give Elisha victory.  

Apparently, God left the fate of those soldiers in the hands of his prophet who could have called on the angelic army to destroy his enemies.  Instead, he asked the Lord to strike the army blind for a season while he led them to Samaria where they were eventually released. After a demonstration of God’s power on behalf of his people, the text says, “So the bands from Aram stopped raiding Israel’s territory” (2 Kings 6:23).

We will all face our impossible moments when no strength or resource of our own will provide the victory we need. Failing marriages, children bent on self-destruction, financial crisis, advanced cancer, or the overwhelming loss of a loved one. We all come to moments when we feel as if we are surrounded by an overpowering force that we cannot stand against. In the moment, pray Elijah’s prayer for yourself, “O Lord, open my eyes that I might see!  Lord, show me by faith and by your Spirit, the power and provision that you have already made available to me for this impossible moment. For with you nothing is impossible.” In the kingdom of God, those who are with us are always more than those who are with them.

The new year has crept in with all the threats from 2021 still hanging over us like a dark cloud.  Covid variants, runaway inflation, natural disasters, Russian empire building, Chinese economic threats along with their claims on Taiwan, a fiercely divided America, and so forth, still stand unresolved as we try to find hope in 2022.  

I believe this coming year is going to require that we truly keep our eyes on the Lord and stand firmly on the tenants of our faith on many issues.  I’m not sure that life in our time is more threatening or more complicated than in other epochs, but we are certainly more aware of every crisis in every corner of the world, , which certainly makes life more stressful and seemingly uncertain. Every issue we can imagine is in our face 24/7 because of the news on television, social media, and talk radio.  Every event, large or small, is dissected, analyzed, and “disasterized.”  Fear is a major component of media that seems to keep us glued to each station, hoping that the most recent crisis won’t get any worse and that solutions will arise.

On top of global crises, many of us have faced personal crises this past year as well.  The loss of loved ones, challenges to our own health, stressed marriages, increased crime, open boarders, economic loss because of covid restrictions, and so forth.  We wonder if this coming year will bring more of the same.

So…now that I have cheered you up, how do we face a world that seems so bent on self-destruction?  The only way to face such a world with any measure of joy and confidence is through faith in the one who created it, and his promises that the day will come when there will be no death, no war, no sickness, no hatred, no division, no natural disasters, and no lack for any need.

This may be the year to discipline ourselves to watch less news, be less politically charged, and less invested in this world.  I’m not suggesting that we bury our heads in the sand or ignore what may be coming our way, but I am suggesting that we need to believe that if we seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, God will meet every one of our essential needs.

Jesus lived in a world of poverty, famine, earthquakes, political unrest, religious upheaval and military oppression.  His solution was not to worry or be obsessed with the things we cannot affect except through prayer.  His solution was to seek God and believe in his care and protection in the midst of crisis.  Jesus never said we would not have trouble.  In fact, he said that in this world we would have trouble, so we need to keep our expectations biblical.  But in the face of that reality, he also promised that he would always be with us.  Just as the disciples, when crossing Galilee, encountered a storm that threatened their very lives, the presence of Jesus brought peace and safety.  

If you are like me, I often pray for a life that is trouble free, and yet, a trouble-free life requires no faith.  The truth is that faith is the currency of heaven and without faith it is impossible to please God.  Faith is that conviction, that in the midst of trouble, God will see me through…in spite of what appears to be a hopeless situation. I’m not saying to pray for trouble, but I am saying that when it comes, God is with us and the trouble itself, is not evidence that God has abandoned us.  

What if, in this year, we spent the lion’s share of our free time in the Word, in prayer, and in worship instead of on social media and listening to all the bad news the media can discover or even invent?  What if my great concern was in faithfully serving God rather than championing a political party?  Again, I believe we should vote and believe that Christians should be involved in bringing godliness to the political process, but we must always remember that our hope is in Jesus and no political leader, party, or movement. Any organization or movement led buy man will ultimately fail us.  Only God is faithful forever.  

If I am to navigate 2022 successfully, my primary focus will have to stay on heaven and not on earth. I need to know who Jesus is to me before the trouble comes so that my faith does not fail.  Maybe, that priority needs to be clearly stated in our New Year’s resolutions…more this year than ever before!