Scripture:

Psalm 27:13

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the Lord
In the land of the living.

When you and I are amidst a difficult time or circumstance, it takes all of our focus, all of our time, all of our energy; in fact, it attempts to distract us from the truth of today's portion.   This is David speaking to his soul, to his very self, declaring that God is still good amidst his circumstances.   I believe the enemy, the world, would try to convince you that God is doing this to you; in fact, many times I have heard people say, "I don't know why God is doing this?"   But David is saying that, amidst his circumstances, he is looking for the goodness of God, which means that God is still good even when things are bad.   God is not the author of your bad day or your circumstances. He is, however, the one who is with you. He is the one who will provide strength in your weakness.  He is righteous, and merciful, and gracious, and He is GOOD. 

This one is personal for me as "I too have seen the goodness of God in the land of the living."

The application here is to keep your focus, to not lose sight of the goodness of God, even when everything else is bad; God is still good.   If you are struggling right now, look for His goodness, look for His strength, look for His grace and mercy to get you through.   You too will find it!

Lord, I thank you that in all things you are good, that your mercy endures forever, that you are our shield, our shelter, you are the place that we run in and are saved, you have everything we need to make it through the good, the bad and the uglies of life, and we know that we will see your goodness in our lives, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

1 Samuel 24:20

20 And now I know indeed that you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand.

"Nothing Can Stop the Plan of God"

It is not that the enemy will not try to stop it, or create havoc; we see that in Saul's pursuit of David.   The word of God tells us that "The Spirit of the Lord departed Saul."  Samuel told Saul you have this day rejected the Lord, now the Lord has rejected you.   

We really see the contrast here of those who pursue the Lord and those who reject Him, like C.S. Lewis said, in the end, there are only two types of people, those who say to the Lord, "thy will be done," and those whom the Lord says, "thy will be done."    This is to say that in Saul's free will, he rejected the Lord, and the Lord in turn said your will be done.  But notice the contrast, the Lord had established David, and David pursued the Lord, and the Lord established Him, and nothing could stop that plan. David's free will had led him to pursue the Lord, and because of it, He was the man that the Lord was looking for. 

That is true for our lives, for those who seek the Lord's will with all that is within them, who pursue the Lord, He will establish you, His plans for you will not be stopped.  His promises are yes and amen.

The application here is to guard our hearts, because our free will can draw us closer to the Lord, or take us away from Him.   The second takeaway is that what God has promised will be done, and nothing will stop the plan of the Lord

Lord, let us set our hearts on you, may our will be conformed to yours, our hearts may they belong to you, pursue you all the days of our lives, may we experience the power of your promises in our lives, may we guard our hearts and not allow anything to drag us away, establish us, make us all that you purposed in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

1 Samuel 18:14

And David behaved wisely in all his ways, and the Lord was with him.

Life hits differently when you are walking with the Lord, not that you don't have trouble or problems. David was righteous in his actions towards Saul, yet because Saul knew that the Lord was with him, he sought to kill David.    But, yet this verse says that David walked differently because the Lord was with him, wisely, carefully, in all his ways.   David wanted to please the Lord, and good, bad, and even ugly circumstances did not change that.   

Question:  Are you walking with wisdom and care before the Lord, seeking to please Him and not the world, not your desires, but His?

The application here today is to "walk wisely" before the Lord, considering His presence, walking so as not to disappoint Him.   Now that is not walking in perfection, or performance or that we could earn His favor, but rather because we love Him.  David, the bible says, was a man after God's heart; should we not be men/women after His heart? 

Lord, may we seek you while you may be found, may our hearts be fully devoted to you, may we walk in Godly wisdom, may we be fully committed to our walk with you, walking as to please you in all that we do, our work, our play, our serving, in all we do, may we too be people after your heart, in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

1 Samuel 17:8;36-37

8 Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, “Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me.

36 Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”

Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”

"Knowing Who You Are"

Today, in our portion, you see people who, in their circumstances, have lost their identity.   So much so that the enemy recognized it, notice Goliath's words: "and are you not the servants of Saul?"  Not: "are you not the servants of the most high God?   But then, in contrast, we have David's words in verses 36-37, notice that his identity is in the LORD his GOD, it is in his words: "because he has defied the armies of the living God.  The Lord who rescued me."  

Knowing who you are, and knowing whose you are, David served the Lord, and he knew that the LORD would be with him just as He always had been.  When you are in a relationship with the LORD, then nothing you face will be too big, because with the LORD, giants become grasshoppers, oceans become pathways to promise, mountains move, because with Him nothing is impossible.   

Don't measure your ability by the size of your problem; measure your problem by the size of your God for He is able to do in and through you greater things than you can imagine.  Knowing who you are is one of the greatest weapons in this life you can have, when you know that you are a child of God and what power, authority and favor that carries, nothing you face will be too big, because of the bigness of your God.

You are a child of the Most High God, "REMEMBER IT." 

Straighten Your Crown, You're a Child of the King!

Father, I pray that we would never lose our identity in our battles, our circumstances, that we would not face them with our strength, but rather in the strength you bring, that we would remember we are children of the King of Kings, Lord of Lords and we come favored, mighty because of who you are, we pray in Jesus' name, Amen!

Scripture:

1 Samuel 14:6

6 Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few.”

"Who You Take"

Today, the word reminds us that victory is not determined by our strength, our power, our ability, but rather the presence of God in our situation, our struggle, our battle.   Notice that Johnathan says to his armor bearer, "Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few."

Two things here, the first being that our victories are directly correlated to God's presence in our situation.  The second is that God can use us, no matter our size, no matter our skill, it is He who gives us the victory, the strength, the ability, the talent, the stamina to overcome, to get the victory.   

Never give up, invite the Lord into your situation, in your circumstances, into your life and not only will He bring the victories into the impossible places, but He will use you to bring it in other people's lives. He has what you need to accomplish all that has been set before you.

Go with Him

He will never disappoint.

Lord as we trust you with our lives, as we seek you, I pray that you strengthen us in our weak areas, that you would give us the ability to overcome any hurdle, that you would give us wisdom to accomplish any task, that you would give us understanding, and that we would see the victories in all that we face with you, in Jesus' name, Amen!