TODAY’S SIGNATURE VERSE ••• And that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand. (1 Samuel 17:47 ESV)
PRAISE & PRAYER PROMPT ••• When we look at the world around us and the circumstances we’re in with this pandemic, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the doom and gloom. To only see the problems. We watch helplessly as the economy tanks—jobs are lost, stocks plummet, savings and retirement funds are in jeopardy. Hospitals are overrun and people are sick and dying.
We are facing a giant.
Let’s go to 1 Samuel 17 this morning. David and Goliath. Little guy. Big giant. We know the story. It’s likely one of the first ones we ever heard in Sunday School (though we were given a very G-rated version of it—it’s quite gory, especially when you get to the decapitation part!)
The average man in those days was about 5 1/2 feet tall and David was still technically a teenager. It’s safe to assume he was probably around 5 feet tall. And Goliath’s height is debated. According to GotQuestions.org, scholars range Goliath’s height between 6’ 6” and 9’ 6”. So either way—Goliath was much bigger than our boy, David.
But David… what a faithful heart of a prayer warrior and champion! What he lacked in stature, he made up for in faith! He said, in what I imagine was a tone of disdainful incredulity, “For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (1 Samuel 17:26b).
And when he faced Goliath, David said, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand” (1 Samuel 17:45-47).
David’s focus wasn’t on Goliath’s size. His focus was on God’s.
We see this gigantic problem that the world is facing. We feel helpless but we have to remember that we’re not… Our living God is bigger than a pandemic! No giant can match the God we serve! So when we are overwhelmed by the loss and devastation, may we embrace the heart of David and boldly look into the face of our giant and proclaim, “My God is bigger and better!” If you want to throw in a “nanny-nanny-boo-boo” for good measure, go for it. Just make sure you’re seeing past the giant and looking into the face of our Redeemer who is still on the throne and still in control!
Today, as you pray, thank God for being bigger than any giant we face. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you have a heart like David’s—a heart that isn’t intimidated by the problems of the world, but recognizes that God’s greatness and might surpass it all!
SHARING ••• Please share with others! Visit www.MyGraceFullLife.com to read past blogs. Download a free Bible-In-A-Year Reading Plan when you subscribe! Join an online prayer group at www.facebook.com/groups/onlineandonourkneesprayergroup. ***Unless noted otherwise, all Scripture references are from the ESV translation.
