GOD CONFIDENCE

David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” 1 Samuel 17:45-47 (New International Version)

During the service on one Sunday morning, we read the story of Davids encounter and his victory over goliath, and the congregation began to share lessons learnt from the story which can be found in 1 Samuel chapter 17, verses 1-11 and 31-51. One central theme which was profound in all the point raised, was the audacity and consistent confidence David had in the God he had personally come to know and trust.

David though accustomed to the fields, tending to his fathers’ flocks, he experienced God’s presence and help on a daily basis. God gave him victories over the lion and the bear that tried to devour his sheep. David held on to these victories. He kept them dear in his heart. Little by little, day by day, whilst in the field, he committed time to write hymns and psalms of his experiences and trust in God. He knew God was with him. He praised God. He worshiped Him. He became so accustomed and reliant on God, that he took his experiences of God with him everywhere every day and to every situation. When he turned up to a new grazing site with his father flocks, he had his God with him, and he was always confident in his God.

So, when he turned up at the valley of Elah, where goliath had terrified the whole nation, David still had his God with him. He never lost sight of who he was and whose he was. David knew that he was a child of God. He knew that God was always with him. He knew that God was in him. He knew that God was for him, and he knew that God will always fight for him. So irrespective of the situation and circumstance, national or local crisis, he knew who he was, and no external chaos or friendly effort of Saul, was strong enough to shift the confidence he already had in God. So, with that same confidence, he saw goliath as an easy feat for his God. He never idolised or magnified goliath in his heart. He belittled goliath and called him an uncircumcised philistine. He never called him a giant.

More so, when he came face to face with goliath, goliaths barking never scared him, rather, he released his confidence and spoke without fear or any shadow of doubt. He said: “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head.“

What great confidence and trust in God he exhibited.

A lot of lessons can be learnt from this story but I’ll like us to pause here and reflect on Davids words of confidence. He words meant “I am not trusting in manmade tools or solutions. My trust is in God”. Davids word meant, “goliath might be a giant for the whole nation but he is a defeated foe for my God”. Davids words meant, “others may see this situation as insurmountable, but I see God bringing it down for me”. Davids words meant a lot but they all stem from the fact that his confidence was in God, and he knew that he was never leaving that site as a victim but as a victor.

Today, Gods word to us is this: where is our confidence? Spear, swords, javelins or in Him and His precious promises? God wants us to know him more, to spend more time with him, reading his words and building a sound relationship with him, so that our confidence in Him can grow.

God is able to bring down and terminate every terrorising Goliath today, if only we can trust Him and have confidence in Him. For everyone who has Jesus and trusts in Him, their battles become His battles and victory is guaranteed. Trust God today.

A simple prayer:

Lord Jesus, thank you for showing me that you always turn up in my battles and I just need to trust you to fight. Help me to trust you more, help me to devote time to reading the bible and knowing you more. Please help me. In my weaknesses, please let your strength be seen. Help me and bring to an end any terrorising circumstance in my life. Things that have troubled me mentally, physically or spiritually, I give them all to you and ask that you take over the battle and win them for me in Jesus’ name, amen.