Life Of David - Lesson 9

Saul's Pendulum - 1 Samuel 19

Prayer:

Lord, we each will face things that will shake us up.  We may get hurt or betrayed, we may be threatened, or we may face a difficult loss.  Help us Lord to prepare ourselves now for those difficult times, help us to be people that have ourselves firmly grounded in you, help us to look to you as our only source of security in this ever changing world.

Saul has gone from appreciating David to being envious of him, and has already tried to skewer him twice...  Saul has tried to manipulate the situation in a variety of ways, to either undermine David or get him killed off... Saul continues to feel more & more threatened by David.  If you've not already noticed Saul has some pretty extreme mood swings, caused by his own deeply rooted sin, and his moods appear to be amplified by the evil spirit that is tormenting him.  Unfortunately for David he is going to bear most of the brunt of Saul's wrath; however, God is still training David for the throne - so we need to try to see how God is using the situation for His purposes.

Quickly Form Groups and answer these Questions:

1. God has placed authorities over us, and asks us to be submissive and obedient to those authorities.  Is it ever ok to be disobedient?  (If yes, give examples)

2. What do you think would happen if you, like David, were to deliberately chose to love and serve someone you were at odds with?

3. What are the consequences of choosing sin, and of choosing to remain in that sin?

<have groups share answers... some thoughts:> (1) Human authority has limits, we should always be obedient to God as our ultimate authority over any other authority that might present itself.  (2) I have done this, in doing so both I and the other were blessed - but this can't be our expectation.  We should expect to be blessed in some way by loving (personal growth), but should not expect the other to respond well (as we'll see Saul doesn't respond well to the blessing from David being in his court). (3)  When we choose sin there are consequences, and choosing to remain in that sin cause the sin to grow (snowball) - in the case of Saul we will see how his sin of envy has grown into hatred, and the consequences are just going to keep getting worse!

1 Samuel 19 v1-3: As we learned at the end of chapter 18, David has continued to be successful in battle against the Philistines, and he's becoming increasingly popular with the people.  Saul can't stand this, his jealousy has peaked again and he's got his sights set on David, so he orders Jonathan and all of his attendants to kill David.  Jonathan does the right thing in disobeying his father the King, and warns David about the danger to his life.  Jonathan arranges a way to speak to Saul on David's behalf, somewhere near where David would be hidden & possibly within David's hearing, so that David can get a clear picture of the situation.  Jonathan made himself an intercessor on David's behalf.

v4-7: Jonathan reminds Saul of the blessings that David brings, and that David has not wronged Saul.  Jonathan reminds Saul about Goliath, and how Saul had been glad at what God had accomplished through David.  Saul listens and agrees with Jonathan, and makes an oath before the Lord that David will not be killed.  Jonathan's love and care reunite David and Saul, and all is well... the pendulum has swung back... at least for the moment... 

v8-10: Once again David has gone out to war against the Philistines, once again he is successful, and once again Saul's envy is aroused.  David is back from the battlefield, attempting once again to sooth Saul as he's being tormented by an evil spirit, and once again becomes Saul's target... and we're told that it was this very night that David made his escape.

Saul sees David as a threat to him.  Rebecca Manley Pippert in her book A Heart Like His, likens Saul's position to one of a CEO who is being forced to step down, she describes it like this:

"In the best of circumstances, it is extremely difficult for a CEO to step down.  But imagine the terror that would strike you if you were fired from a job that gave you a sense of being and power and prestige.  That was Saul's situation.  Samuel had just given him his 'termination papers,' due to a negative performance evaluation from Saul's 'Boss.'  The choice before Saul was probably the same choice that all CEOs have when their time is up.  Will they behave with humility and dignity during their remaining days in office?  Will they determine to face squarely the flaws that brought the termination?  Will they blame the boss or even their successor for their woes?  When the time comes, will they exit as statesmen, with behavior worthy of the office, or will they embarrass everyone by clinging to the last vestige of power?"

Saul could have repented, could have been the good guy, could have been looking out more for Israel than himself, but that's not what Saul chose... Saul had time to leave a good legacy, one source I was reading indicated that he ruled at least 10 years after Samuel told him he was rejected by God, but Saul didn't make the right choices, Saul left behind an embarrassing legacy.

v11-13: Here we get some additional details of what happened that day.  Saul has sent men to watch David's house, with the intent of killing him in the morning.  David's wife Michal doesn't want him killed, she encourages him to escape & helps him escape through a window - this was likely a window of a house that was built into external wall of a city (similar to the ones in Joshua 2:15 & Acts 9:25).  Then we're told Michal takes an idol and places it in the bed, covered with a garment, and with goats hair at the head.  Its possible this isn't an idol in the normal use of the term, but we don't know... at the very least its the equivalent of putting a dummy with a wig on into the bed.

v14-17: Saul's men come to David's house to "collect" him, and Michal tells them he's sick.  Saul won't have that excuse, orders him to bring David back in the bed if necessary so that he can kill him... the men go back and discover the dummy.  Saul is furious at his daughter, he's irate that she'd deceive him (notice he doesn't give a thought to her feelings in the matter), and questions her loyalty.  Out of fear and a sense of self-preservation Michal lies to her father, indicating that David would have killed her if she hadn't let him get away.

We're going to read through Psalm 59.  Though the exact timing of the writing of this psalm is not known, the notes that are placed in the ancient texts of scripture indicate that David wrote this psalm regarding this particular time of his life.  At this time of David's life he had been fighting the enemies of Israel (enemy nations), and is concerned about Israel; in addition, David is facing his own personal enemies in the form of Saul and his henchmen.  With those things in mind let's read Psalm 59.

We've just crossed into the next phase of David's life, David living on the run.  David hasn't done anything wrong but he's become the #1 fugitive on Saul's most wanted list, and Saul is obsessed with having David killed.  David has, in very short order, lost two good jobs (military & musical), his home, and his wife.  God has in essence removed all his worldly support system...

I was thinking about this during the week, and I was wondering how I would respond if life were to suddenly throw me a major curve... and wouldn't you know, a curve got thrown into my life.  I don't think we have any idea how we might react until something happens... I will admit, I was doing a bit of the "poor me", but I also found myself crying out in prayer, and eventually I decided (yes, I made a choice) to praise God despite my circumstances - I wish that would have been my first response, but God isn't finished with me yet!

David is the "man after God's own heart", David isn't so concerned with position & prestige.  Make no mistake about it - David is running for his life!  But David is running in the right direction...  David's response to being cut down is not to sin, but rather to seek God's help - so lets see what he does...

1 Samuel 19 v18-21: David knows right where to turn, he makes a bee line straight to Samuel - God's chosen prophet, and Samuel immediately moves them both to Naioth.  

<Some notes about Naioth:> Naioth may very well have been a colony of Prophets (indicated loosely in vs 20).  Chuck Swindoll, in his study on the life of David, tells that archaeologists found remains in that area that were houses built in a maze-like arrangement that would have made it an ideal place to hide out from Saul and his men.

In any case Saul learns where David is hiding and starts sending his men to capture him.  Three times he sends out men to capture David, three times the men encountered the prophets and started prophesying.  Saul's men aren't able to capture David, God is hindering them in following the King's commands.

v22-24: Finally Saul, frustrated at the failure of his men, goes after David himself... but his results aren't any better, in fact Saul is so blown over by the power of God working through him that he strips himself & lays down, unable to control himself.  Once again Saul's attempts to undermine & eliminate David have failed.

<Clarification: 1 Samuel 15:35 said Samuel never goes to see Saul again - and I think this means they are never face to face again during Samuel's life (which is what I taught when we covered that passage); however, its possible that Saul & Samuel saw each other in this instance, but notice its Saul coming to Samuel - not the other way around.  Another possibility is this: that when it says Saul is "in Samuel's presence" it may mean that he is in the presence of (or under the influence of) the same spirit that is influencing Samuel.>

Closing Prayer:  Thank you Lord for David's example which shows us to run to you for help when trouble strikes.  Lord the scriptures teach us that you are our Rock, our Fortress, our Firm Foundation.  As we face troubles of various kinds help us to turn to you first as our best source of help, of strength, of security.  Amen!

Quickly Form Groups Again, and answer the following questions:

4. What's your first response when trouble strikes?  How might you change your response to be one that glorifies God instead?

5. What scriptures do you turn to when facing trouble?  (suggestions: Jeremiah 29:11-13; Romans 8:28, 31; Psalm 143)  Share your favorites with the group.

Life Of David - Lesson 8

What's your response? Envy or Appreciation - 1 Samuel 18

Prayer:

Lord help us to cultivate love toward each other as you would have us do.  Help us to heed the warnings that we get from studying Saul's behavior, and help us to live like lives more like Jonathan - lives marked with self-sacrifice, lives committed to your purposes rather than to our own.

To remind us where we left off: Goliath is dead, killed by the young David, the Philistines have been routed, and now its time for the King to return home.

Quickly Form Groups and answer these Questions:  BE HONEST!!

1. Who do you envy and why?

2. Who would you like to have envy you?

3. Why is envy a dangerous thing?

<have groups share answers... some thoughts:> I envy people with all kinds of musical and artistic talent, I wish I had the talent that they have.  As a child growing up I was quite envious of my brother, he had tons of natural talent & was well liked by everyone.  Sometimes I catch myself wanting my brother or my friends to envy me, my situation, what I can do that they can't.  Envy is a form of Jealousy and has its roots in a Discontented Spirit.  When we envy we are telling God we're not satisfied with the beautiful and unique way He's gifted us, we want something else or someone else's gifts instead.  Envy is also a sin that offers no pleasure - it harms both the giver & receiver.

In the Bible we see several examples of the destructiveness of envy: Lucifer's revolt from heaven, Cain's murder of Abel, Herod's massacre of the innocent children in Bethlehem, and more... today's passage introduces another case of envy - Saul's envy of David, and Saul's envy is horribly destructive.  That said, this passage starts on a more beautiful note, on a very different response to David, on the response of Jonathan - Jonathan, in contrast to his father Saul appreciates rather than envies David.

1 Samuel 18 v1-4:  Jonathan could have been envious of David, David had just killed Goliath, David was Israel's champion, David was clearly being used by God.  But Jonathan chose a better way, instead of questioning why God hadn't used him, he appreciated the one that God had chosen to use.  Jonathan goes beyond simple appreciation, he entered into a covenant with God's chosen. In Beth Moore's study on David she notes that this covenant was based on Jonathan's love and no mention is made whether David reciprocates.  Jonathan's behavior was unexpected and self-sacrificial, a response like Jonathan's is precious & rare - we should strive to respond more like Jonathan.

Rebecca Manley Pippert in her book A Heart Like His says the following about Jonathan:  "Jonathan's life is a testimony to the freedom that comes when we see ourselves accurately before God, and when we humbly submit to his sovereignty.  Now we are free to accept our neighbor's blessing without envy.  For if God is sovereign, then what is it to us if he chooses to bless our neighbor with abundant gifts?"

She goes on to say: "Once we understand that our future, our blessings, our reputation, and our success are all in the hands and under the control of a loving God, we can sit back and rest.  God's plans for his children are plans of 'hope and not despair.'"

Jonathan's heart was obviously in line with God's where David was concerned.  Jonathan and David are a picture of a beautiful friendship: over time Jonathan demonstrated his love for David, defended David's honor, and provided David protection from his own father King Saul.  David was going to need this friend, especially as he came under attack from the King, and God was providing for David's needs.

<Side note from Chronological Study Bible, paraphrased:> When David accepted the gifts from Jonathan David took Jonathan's position, this action caused David to be positionally the heir apparent to the throne of Israel.  Jonathan was a seasoned military leader, David was a young man who hadn't even served in the army, but from this point forward it is David who gets sent out to lead Israel in battle rather than Saul or Jonathan.

v5-9: In verse 5 we get a quick summary of David's skill as a warrior -  David does such a good job that he gets promoted to a high rank, and the people and the King's officers are impressed.  But back to the main story of David, they're heading home from the war with the Philistines, Goliath has been killed, and the people are rejoicing.  The women are coming out of the towns to  greet the King and his champion with songs & dances, a joyful celebration!!  But then there's this song, a song that credits Saul with 1,000s and David with 10,000s.

<NIV Notes on Poetry of the time, paraphrased:> In normal conventions of Hebrew poetry the women were in essence saying "look what Saul & David have done, they've conquered 1000s".  10,000 would have been simply a parallel of 1,000, with no implication that David was better than Saul.  It is Saul's jealousy, perhaps maybe even that they were recognizing anyone in addition to him, that colors his thinking and causes him to be offended.

Saul's response to David completely opposite of Jonathan.  Saul was angry, he was galled by the songs of praise, he was suspicious and jealous of David.  The word used for Saul's anger is "charah": to burn, be kindled, glow with anger, be incensed, grow indignant; to be zealous, act zealously.

v10-11: The very next day the evil spirit is back, and Saul is "prophesying" - perhaps being controlled by the evil spirit, and it is assumed that Saul was behaving in an uncontrolled and erratic manner.  Enter David, the only one who could bring Saul comfort when tormented by the evil spirit.  Yet Saul's envy of David was the very source of Saul's discomfort - by attempting to sooth Saul with music David served to fuel Saul's rage.  David remains in obedient submission, and Saul attempts to kill him - twice.  Saul's envy has led him into a murderous rage. 

v12-16:  Saul's paranoia is now rearing its ugly head, he's well aware that not only is he not God's chosen, but David obviously is.  He isn't able to deal with his jealousy so he sends David away, giving him command over troops & responsibility as their leader.  Saul secretly hoped that David would get killed in battle, after all he's just a young & inexperienced warrior, but Saul's plans backfired - God gave david success.  Saul continues to become increasingly paranoid concerning David, but the people continue to grow in their love and appreciation for David & all that he is doing to defend them.

v17-19:  Saul continues to try to manipulate the situation, he promises his daughter Merab in marriage to David in exchange for David's continued service.  Its interesting to note that Saul's daughter was promised to the one who killed Goliath, and yet wasn't given, Saul didn't keep his word.  Of the 3 promises made to Goliath's killed the first has been broken.  But that's not all Saul is up to, he's trying to force David to continue in the army indefinitely, hoping that the Philistines will succeed in killing him.  David responds in humility, who is he that he should become the son-in-law of Saul?  So Saul gives her to another instead.

v20-22: Saul again tries to entrap David through marriage to a daughter, this time its Michal - one who is in love with David.  Its interesting that Merab was not mentioned as loving David, so her feelings weren't even considered, but with Michal her feelings are being manipulated by Saul for his own purposes.  Saul's callousness toward his daughters is disturbing, he obviously doesn't care about them but only about what they can do for him.  On top of that there must have been something about Michal that Saul figured would undermine David, and Saul wants to take advantage of it.

v23-25:  Again David responds in humility to the offer of a daughter of the king, and I thought it was interesting that he mentions he's poor.  Remember the promises made to the one who killed Goliath?  One of the promises was riches, yet David is poor, so now we know a second of the 3 promises made for Goliath's killer has been broken.  What about that third promise, a promise to not tax David's family... we don't know, but I'm guessing that Saul didn't bother to keep that either.  But Saul already has a plan, a way David can provide a dowry, and he has an agenda with that plan - he's hoping David gets killed in the process of trying to collect the dowry.  What is the dowry? 100 foreskins from their Philistine enemies - and I guarantee the Philistines didn't give them willingly.

<Side note from Chronological Study Bible, paraphrased:> A Dowry is a bride-price common in David's time, and common in some cultures still today.  Sometimes its the bride's father who supplies a dowry, and other times the prospective husband must pay the bride-price to the bride's father.  In this case Saul requires that David provide tokens of a victory against their national enemy, the Philistines.

v26-27: David likes Saul's plan, and in true David fashion overachieves... I'm guessing he liked Michal since he brings back double the dowry price required by Saul, and David is married to Michal.

v28-30: God was with David, Michal loved David, David is continuing to be successful in all that he does, and Saul decides that David is his enemy.  

Saul's envy has led him into foolish behavior, self-destructive behavior.  Instead of benefiting from David's success Saul chooses to resent David's success.  Saul's anger, envy, & insisting on his own way continued to backfire... no matter how powerful he was as King he could not overrule the providence of God.  Women sang songs of appreciation of David, the people adored David, Jonathan was devoted to David, Michal loved David... and Saul is becoming increasingly desperate.

Closing Prayer:  Lord please help us, like Jonathan, to appreciate the blessings you have placed upon others, and keep us from envy.  Help us to be slow to anger, and to have only anger that is based on things that offend and anger You. Help us to not mimic Saul by having an uncontrolled & bursting "charah" type of anger.  Amen!

Quickly Form Groups Again, and answer the following questions:

4. In the past, what damage has been done because of one of your outbursts?

5. When you have an outburst what is your focus?  What should your focus be instead?

6. What have you learned to do in order to prevent responding to people or circumstances with envy or anger?

Life Of David - Lesson 7

Who's The Real Giant? - 1 Samuel 17:31-58

Prayer:

Lord as we take a look at this very lopsided contest between David & Goliath please help us to look beyond the externals in the passage, then help us in our own lives to also look beyond the externals... to see beyond mere personalities & the physical world & our own circumstances... to see you at work in the world.

Who's the Real Giant? Last week we got introduced to Goliath, a man of extreme proportions, believed to be as much as 9'9" tall during a time in history when the average height was only 5'.  Not only was he recorded as being quite tall, he was also incredibly physically strong, a proven champion amongst warriors, and he had no respect for God or God's people.  Goliath may have looked like a giant, frightening all of Israel's army including King Saul, but he was a spiritual midget in comparison with David.

David is on God's side that doesn't mean God's people are going to cheer him on... in last week's passage his brother attacked him for his interest in the situation, and in this week's passage he'll face others who attempt to discourage him.

Quickly Form Groups and answer these Questions:

1. Have you ever had a time when others tried to discourage you from doing what you felt God had called you to do?  Share your experiences.

2. Who are the people most likely to discourage you?

3. What situations cause you to become discouraged?

4. Where can you find courage in the face of discouragement?

<have groups share answers... some thoughts:> People most likely to discourage: friends, family, co-workers, bosses... people close to you.  Situations most likely to discourage: working hard & not accomplishing much, working hard & not feeling appreciated, bored, can't solve a problem.  Where to find courage: with God, with God's Word / truths, with what God has done in your life, and possibly with fellow believers (but use caution).

1 Samuel 17 v31-33:  David is again with Saul, but this time he's not there to play the harp - he's there to take on Goliath.  Saul doesn't even seem to hesitate, but immediately tells David he doesn't have a chance against this guy... Saul is attempting to discourage the only guy willing to try to take out the Giant.

v34-37: David refuses to let Saul discourage him, and he does so by remembering God & what God has done in and through his life.  This "boy" (using Saul's term) has chased after lions & bears, struck them & taken sheep out of their mouths - but wait, there's more - on occasions when the lion/bear turned on him he seized & killed them.  From David's description it sounds like this may have happened several times.  David is convinced that God was with him each of those time, and that God delivered him, and David is rock-solid in his convictions.  Something about the way David told this to Saul apparently caused Saul to have confidence in David, since he is willing to let David act as Israel's champion (remember, if he looses they loose the war).  We can learn from David's courage: David faced this potentially discouraging situation with Goliath and chose to focus on God, on the victories of God in his life, rather than on his own human failings.  David very well may have been afraid, courage doesn't mean that you don't feel fear, instead courage faces fear and says "I may be afraid, but God..." 

v38-39: Saul may have had confidence in David, but I don't think he had confidence in God... why do I think that?  Because Saul tries to offer David the protection of his own armor, as if human armor is going to be of any help against this brute Goliath.  David is obedient to the King & tries on the armor, but quickly realizes this isn't going to work...   What works for one of us isn't necessarily what's going to work for another, God works in unique ways with each of His unique creation.  

<Side note from Chronological Study Bible, paraphrased:> When Saul offered David his armor it would have been understood by the culture of that day that he was transferring his own status of King on to David.  Saul's clothing & armor & weapons would have held the King's insignia, whoever possessed these would be seen as the legitimate ruler.   David wasn't prepared yet for this transfer, he wasn't ready to wear these things, and even though he was chosen by God to replace Saul he was still being prepared for his future position.  As we go through the coming passages we'll see additional times when David chooses to remain committed to the King that God has put in place until God calls him to that position.  In next week's passage we'll see another interesting transfer of clothing & armor & weapons, but not from Saul.

v40: So instead of using Saul's armor & weapons David takes his weapon of choice, his sling, and picks up some smooth stones from the stream (which we remember is running through the middle of this mile-wide valley).  And David approaches Goliath, David doesn't have size, he doesn't have Goliath's strength, but what he does have is God - God chose to use David, considered weak in the eyes of the world at that time, to defeat the one that the world considered strong.  God did this in order to display His strength, in order to magnify His name.  Consider this for a moment: where might God be trying to work through you, through your weaknesses, to display His strength?

<Ok, now for a bit of trivia: Anyone have any idea why David picked up 5 stones?>  

I'll be honest up front that we don't have a clear answer, but here's something to consider.  David would fell Goliath with one of these stones, but there were at least 4 others like him among the Philistine warriors, all descendants of Rapha (Raphaites) & believed to be Nephilim: 2 Samuel 21:15-22; 1 Chronicles 20:4-8.

v41-44: Goliath was insulted!!  Not only is he being approached by a guy with a sling, this is a youth, one too young to be considered for the army (probably not even shaving yet)... So he insults David, curses David by his gods, and threatens him.  Goliath is attempting to intimidate & discourage the only guy willing to come against him, he's trying to discourage David from doing what God has called him to do.

v45-47: If I were looking at this on the surface, it looks like Goliath said the equivalent of "I dare you" and David responded with "I triple dog dare you"... but David is aware of God's presence and God's power, so we shouldn't look at his words as a hopeful threat, but as rock-solid knowledge God had given to him as he faced this giant.  David testifies about God Almighty, challenging all around him to have faith in the One True God, prophesying the results of the battle so that from that time forward people would remember and recognize God as the one who is the deliverer of His people.  David is focused on the unseen, and clearly determined to bring glory to God.  In verse 47 we read that David knew the secret to victory over his Giant: "the battle is the Lord's".

v48-50:  The two approach each other, and the outcome (on the surface) seems hopeless for Israel... Goliath is covered with the whole armor of man, David wears no  armor at all, and the difference must have been extreme; however, God is on Israel's side, God is able to protect David far beyond human armor.  So God gave David good aim, God gave David the spot to aim at (probably the only vulnerable spot not covered with armor), and God gave David the victory over Goliath.  God could have slain Goliath without David, but God chose to use this one "after His own heart" to see His will done.  God's will is going to move forward wether or not any of His children get involved, but God loves to involve His chosen in His work.

v51-54:  David is tougher than anyone expects him to be!  He kills Goliath but doesn't stop there, he goes & removes his sword & cuts off Goliath's head - this isn't easy to do, but remember that this is the guy who's fought lions & bears, and He's got God's strength behind him.  The Philistine army freaks, they leave everything behind and run away in panic, and they are killed just as David prophesied.  After the Philistines have been dealt with the Israelites come back & collect plunder from the Philistine camp, and David takes up a unique collection of his own.  David didn't have any real use for these things (weapons too large, head would just rot), but they were reminders of God's power and faithfulness.

v55-58:  Meanwhile back in the King's tent, Saul is asking about David's family.  I am struck by how David is the one whose music soothes Saul, but Saul is so self-absorbed he's never gotten to know David well enough to know what family he comes from - and in Israelite culture family is everything!  After David has defeated Goliath he's brought back to Saul's tent so that Saul can find out his family & settle his account - David is supposed to get wealth, he's supposed to get Saul's daughter as wife, and his family is supposed to be tax exempt... but we'll see going forward that Saul isn't necessarily a man of his word, and David may not have received any of this.

<So who's the real Giant in this passage?>

In human terms David is a Spiritual Giant as compared to everyone else around him, but the real Giant is God... it wasn't David who defeated Goliath it was God who defeated Goliath.  As we look at our lives and what we've accomplished we should be humbled - it is God that gives the ability, God that gives the strength, we are nothing without God but giants with Him.

Closing Prayer:  God help us to see the truth about who you are, and the truth about who we are.  Help us to remember that without you we are nothing, but with you we are your instrument in this world.  Help us to call to you when we face people and circumstances that cause us to fear, help us to take courage in You and to fear only You.  Amen!

Quickly Form Groups Again, and answer the following questions:

5. Where are you tempted to take credit for your own accomplishments without giving God the glory for granting you the ability to succeed? 

6. What "armor of man" do you reach for when you're feeling unable to face the Giants in your life? (examples: finances, skills, friends)

7. In what circumstances are you feeling like you're in the battle all alone, struggling to trust God?

8. After sharing on the above 3 questions, take a few minutes to pray for each other about these things.

9. What are some victories from your past?  How has God worked in and through your life?  Encourage each other with these things.

Life Of David - Lesson 6

Who's The Giant? - 1 Samuel 17:1-30

Prayer:

Lord as we get to know David better help use to learn from his example, help us learn to align our hearts more with yours, help us learn to trust in you, help us to increasingly get our focus off of ourselves & on to you.

Last week we saw how God set up a divine appointment between David & Saul, placing David in Saul's throne-room.   David was called by Saul to the throne to soothe him when he was tormented by an evil spirit; however, David was called by God to the throne in order to begin training him to be the next king.  In any case David went to the throne room, and acted as a musician for King Saul.  Now we continue David's story, but first...

Quickly Form Groups and answer these Questions:

1. Discuss the differences between Healthy Fear & Unhealthy Fear.  How do they impact us?

2. When facing a fearful situation what actions can you take & what attitudes can you adapt that will help you face your fears in a productive manner?

Example scenario: you're in line at the bank & someone comes in waving a gun.

<have groups share answers... some thoughts:>  I sometimes get "stuck" in fear.

  Unhealthy Fears - insecurities, things out-of-balance, forgetting that God is in control.

  Healthy Fears - God given impulses that protect you from harm, fear of God.

  Impact - build or undermine courage.

  Actions - PRAY!!! Think & if possible speak the truth.  Get your focus off yourself & on

    to what God is trying to do in the situation.

1 Samuel 17 v1-3: The forces have been gathered, the battle lines drawn.  The Philistines on one side, Israel on the other.  The army's are located on opposite sides of a large valley.  The Valley of Elah was more like a vast canyon than what we might think of as a valley.  This valley had a stream bed running through the bottom (where David later picks up his stones), with slopes on each side.  The slopes of this valley are said to be about 1/2 mile wide on each side, with the valley as a whole being about a mile wide,  from the terminology we can assume the camps of these two armies were on the valley edges, making them approximately a mile apart.  So getting from one camp to the other would take a little time by foot, and the distance would provide a buffer of security.

v4-7: Here comes the Philistine's champion, estimated to be 9'9" tall, gigantic by today's standards but even more so during David's time when archeological evidence shows that the average adult was about 5' tall.  There are some sources that claim that the height given was incorrect, caused by a copying error in the ancient texts, but when we read about the weight of his armor I think we won't have so much trouble with the record of his height.  Its possible that Goliath was a post-flood Nephilim, but I'm not going to side track us on that subject again, I just want to mention that it is a possibility.  His coat of scale armor weighed Five Thousand Shekels (2 sources: 125 pounds, 175-200 pounds), in addition he wore bronze leg coverings, a bronze helmet, carried a bronze javelin on his back, and had a spear with a shaft like a weaver's rod with a tip weighing Six Hundred Shekels (2 sources: 15 pounds, 20-25 pounds).  We also know, from later verses, that he was also carrying a sword.  It would take quite a bit of strength just to walk close to a mile in all that armor, but to be able to engage in hand-to-hand combat with all that on would have been a great feat of strength.  We also learn from these verses that he was protected by a shield carried in front of him by his shield carrier, a shield from that era would have been a large man-sized shield.

v8-9: What Goliath was proposing was representative battle, a tactic commonly used in that part of the world in his day.  Instead of risking injury & death to many each side would pick a champion to fight on their behalf, each representing the strength of their army.

v10-11: Goliath was defying Israel, and in doing so defying God... how does the Israelite army respond?  With fear, they were dismayed, they were terrified... they were experiencing Unhealthy Fear - a fear that was destructive rather than productive.

v12-15: Jesse's 3 oldest sons were with Saul, facing the Philistines.  David was going back and forth to tend to Saul when needed (supposedly at Saul's home & not on the battlefield), and then would return to tend to the sheep.  At this point he's at home with Dad (Jesse) & his beloved sheep.

v16: Goliath had been going to taunt the Israelites every morning & every evening for Forty Days!!  The Israelite army was paralyzed by their fear of this Giant.

v17-19: Meanwhile back at the ranch, Jesse is getting concerned for his sons that are at war & decides to send David to check on them & bring them & their commander some provisions.  Back in verse 12 it told us Jesse was well advanced in years, thus his need to send young David.  Where are David's other 4 brothers?  We don't know, but its possible that they are married off & have their own families & flocks to tend to - where as David is not married at this time & is still under his father's roof.  Jesse is concerned about his three oldest sons, and takes practical steps to deal with his concerns - taking practical action instead of being stuck in his fears.  I think its interesting that Jesse has to tell David where to find the war, apparently David wasn't interested in making a name for himself as a warrior; otherwise, he'd have probably been trying to keep up with all the town news of the war with the Philistines (my opinion).

v20-22: David says goodbye to his sheep, leaving them in the care of another shepherd, and heads out to take provisions to his brothers.  Just as David arrives the army is going out with a war cry, getting in position, with both the Israelites & Philistines drawing up their lines facing each other.  He arrived just as things were getting interesting that day, and as his brothers were heading out to battle.  So he drops his things with the supply clerk & hurries out to catch his brothers before the battle starts - after all, he's going with a purpose as directed by Jesse.

v23-24: Just as he's talking to his brothers, Goliath comes out & shouts out his defiance, and David hears him.  How do the Israelites respond?  The same way they have for the last 40 days, they run away.

v25-26: How does David respond to Goliath's shouts of defiance?  He is livid!!  He can't believe that nobody is taking up Saul's offer!!  And David, the one too young to be in the battle, is the only one that sees the truth in their situation... that a pagan is defying the armies of the living God... that this pagan, in behaving this way, is defying God.  Saul & all his warriors saw only the physical war, where David saw the spiritual war.  David wasn't looking at the situation with the eyes of man, he was looking at the situation through the eyes of God.  I think its interesting that Saul has created an incentive plan, to try to entice someone (anyone other than him) to take on this giant... interesting when we remember that he's the biggest guy in Israel, and Israel's leader to boot, apparently he didn't understand the concept of leading by example, and clearly he's showing his own cowardice.

v27-28:  As David is making inquiries we see Eliab's true colors come out, he does all in his power to put down & discourage David: told David he didn't belong, made fun of David's trade (shepherd's were outcasts within the society), and accused him of being conceited & wicked.  Amazing how cruel our siblings can be, and Eliab was a cruel older brother.  Eliab isn't just being cruel he's lying... and in doing so he's serving the father of lies.

v29-30: David doesn't seem to be too concerned with Eliab, "Now what have I done?" implies that Eliab had a habit of picking on David this way, so David simply turns away to talk to someone else.  David didn't let his brother's behavior impact his view of the situation, he wasn't distracted, he remained focused on the circumstances of greatest importance - that there was a Giant defying the Living God.

Quickly Form Groups Again, and answer the following questions:

3. What fearful (troubling, fretful) situation are you facing that you need to see through the eyes of God?  What positive steps can you take?

4. Think about the person in your life whose criticism causes you the most pain.  How do you deal with their criticism?  What can you learn from David's example about how to deal with criticism?

5. What things most distract you when you're trying to focus on God?  What practical steps can you take to keep from being distracted?  (Help each other with ideas.)

Closing Prayer: Teach us Lord to focus on your limitlessness rather than our limitations, on your strength rather than our weakness, help us to see the truth in the midst of the lies the enemy surrounds us with -- to see through your eyes.  Amen!

Life Of David - Lesson 5

Young David - 1 Samuel 16:14-23

Prayer:

Lord as we look into your word open our hearts to love you more deeply, to be a people after your heart as David was a man after your heart.  Help us to grow to know you better, to handle your word with confidence, and to care for others with the strength & tenderness of a Shepherd.  Amen!

Last week we were introduced to David as a young man, likely a teenager, in the first part 1 Samuel 16.  David was the youngest son that his dad Jesse hadn't bothered to bring in from the sheep pens to the sacrifice, even though all of Jesse's sons had been invited.  Samuel, under God's direction, was using this time of celebration as a means to discover the man God had chosen for his next King of Israel.  Samuel discovered that the one chosen by God was missing, and he had him brought in to join in the celebration.  God indicated David was His choice, and Samuel anointed him with oil in front of his father & brothers.  How much David & his family knew about the anointing we're not told in the passage, but according to Josephus (an ancient historian), Jewish custom held that Samuel leaned down and whispered in the ear of David that he would be Israel's next king.  Now we continue David's story, but first...

Quickly Form Groups and answer these Questions:

1. From your knowledge, what are the duties of a shepherd & how might those duties have been used by God to train David to be a King?

2. Have you ever had a "Divine Appointment", a time when you knew with certainty that God prepared you & then placed you in space & time to be His hands & feet for another?  Share this experience with the group.

David is a Shepherd, a dirty job, a solitary job, a job that requires hard physical labor, and a job that to be done well requires courage, compassion, and dedication.  A Shepherd needs to know his flock as individuals, know their particular needs / quirks / strengths / weaknesses.  A Shepherd can call individual members of the flock with unique names / whistles / calls -- and the sheep recognized the voice of their Shepherd.  A Shepherd has to lead the sheep to pasture, to water, to shelter -- they can't find their own way, they don't know how.  A Shepherd tends their wounds, carries them if sick / injured / weak, and delivers the lambs.  A Shepherd is alert, always on watch because sheep tend to wander off, and on the watch for predators.  A Shepherd puts his life on the line to protect his flock from predators, or to rescue sheep snatched by predators.  Sheep aren't terribly active or exciting, so a Shepherd has to be able to entertain himself.  Obviously not just anyone is cut out to be a Shepherd, but David was, and this was the first part of God's training to prepare him to become Israel's king.

God had another stage of training in mind for David as well, training that would provide him with first-hand knowledge of the duties / responsibilities / benefits / troubles involved with Shepherding God's people.  God was setting up a divine appointment for David, he was going to bring David into Saul's inner circle, God was going to see His will done in and through David, David was going to become very valuable to Saul - almost indispensable, and God was going to use Saul to train David.

1 Samuel 16 v14: Remember that when Saul had first been called by God to be King, God confirmed the call by a serious of odd events, and at that point God's Spirit was "assigned" to stick with Saul.  But now... after Saul has failed to be obedient to God, God is removing His Spirit & sending an evil spirit to torment Saul.

Two important things to point out from this verse:

First: We must remember, evil spirits are still under God's control and may only operate as God allows... there are times when they must do God's will even if they don't want to - but I'm guessing this evil spirit was more than happy to torment the leader of God's people.

Second: This is before Pentecost, before the church age in which the Holy Spirit is given as a Permanent Seal.  Don't be confused, during Old Testament times the Holy Spirit would be given for a specific time & purpose, there are only two pre-Pentecost individuals in which scripture indicates that the Holy Spirit stays - David & John the Baptist.  I want to make this clear because I don't want you to be concerned that the Holy Spirit might leave you, if you are a believer today the Holy Spirit is your Permanent Companion - you don't need to be concerned that He will ever leave you.

v15-16: Apparently the activity of the evil spirit was evident to both Saul & those around him, we don't know how it manifested but it was recognized.  In those days, as today, music was seen as a means to affect the emotions - in this case to sooth the disturbed king.  One thing that struck me about this, this human king - a man of high standing in human eyes - is made a subject to an evil spirit - a being with the lowest standing in God's eyes.  God is making it clear - He has no respect for human position, and He has had enough of Saul & his disobedience.

v17-18: Saul approves of the idea of bringing in a musician & who gets recommended but our young future king David.  David at this point is already known as a musician, a warrior, and a well spoken & handsome young man.  David has not yet joined Saul as one of his warriors (at least not as recorded in scripture) but somehow his skill is already known.  

How might his skills as a warrior have been known?  Some possibilities:

• Local problems with bandits who came against his flock or his family or his town.
• Small local wars/skirmishes where his skills would have been displayed.
• Local contests with others in his community.

v19-20: Saul sends for David, unwittingly bringing his replacement into the throne room.  But where is the future king when he is called?  He's back with the sheep, he's doing the job he's been given until God calls him into His service.  We should look to this as an example, when we are serving God - in whatever capacity we are serving, we should continue to serve faithfully - even if we expect God may have bigger plans in mind for us.  What's interesting is that David keeps going back to his sheep... when he wasn't on assignment with Saul he was back to his sheep.  This is not a lazy guy, this is not a guy seeking the limelight, this is a guy whose heart is focused on service - whatever form that service takes.

Jesse sends David along with gifts for the King, why do you think he sent the gifts?

• Perhaps he thought that the gifts were a means of winning Saul's favor.
• Perhaps he didn't dare send David without a gift that would indicate that they were respectful of the Saul's reign.
• Perhaps its just what was expected of anyone that is summoned to the throne.

v21-22: David impresses Saul, Saul likes him, and makes him one of his armor-bearers, and Saul makes a request from Jesse that David remain with him in his service.  We need to understand that these 2 verses & the one that follows are probably another one of those portions of scripture that is a summary - this didn't happen all at once... in fact in Chapter 17 we'll see that David is back home, and serving his father faithfully... but in time David will be a person that Saul finds indispensable.

v23: The evil spirit repeatedly came & left Saul, and its clear that the evil spirit would leave after David would come in & play his harp.  This is beyond the mere effect of music alone, it appears that the Spirit of God was at work through David's music to suppress the evil spirit & drive it away.  The Hebrew word indicating that Saul experienced relief is "ravach", which means "to be wide, to be spacious, to give space so as to bring relief" - we might say "to breath freely" or "room to breath".

Psalm 23 is a familiar Psalm, written by David, and its called the Shepherd's Psalm (Psalm means Song or Hymn).  It is possible that this was one of the songs that David sang for Saul to sooth him.  Psalm 23

We don't know why but for some reason singing is tightly tied to worship of God.  

There is a passage about singing in Job where God is speaking about what was happening during the creation.  Job 38:4-7

We also know that there is & will be singing in heaven. Revelation 5:6-14

We are also encouraged to lift our voices, even if they aren't beautiful, in praise to God.   We find encouragement to sing in the "Joyful Noise" Psalm, not credited to David.  Psalm 98

The following is a quote from a devotional on David written by Beth Moore:

"We find that David had the tenderness and sensitivity of an artist.  He was a musician and a songwriter.  David did not simply have talent.  Talent alone could not have soothed the torment of Saul.  David plucked the strings of his harp with tenderness and sensitivity.  He chose melodies that ministered to the aching soul.  You may rightly imagine that many of your favorite psalms were first sung by the young voice of David, wavering and cracking somewhere between boyhood and manhood to the accompaniment of a well-worn and deeply loved harp.  Yet we are also told he was a warrior, brave and strong.  The fingers that gently plucked the strings of a harp could also wind fiercely around a sling or a sword.... I deeply desire to be a woman of tenderness and strength because my dearest role model possessed both."

From the context of her book its clear that Jesus is the ideal role model, though David is also a good role model.  In my life I was blessed with a role model that demonstrated these two traits in good balance - my Dad - he's with the Lord now but his influence continues & I hope someday to demonstrate these traits as well as he did.

Quickly Form Groups Again, and answer the following questions:

3. Would you describe yourself as more strong than tender or more tender than strong?

4. What are the dangers of getting out of balance (strength vs tenderness) in either direction?

5. Who do you have that can be a real-life role model for you of these traits?

Closing Prayer: Teach us Lord to be more like you, to demonstrate both tenderness & strength, to be your hands and feet to a world in need.  Amen!

Life Of David - Lesson 4

Setting The Stage - Part 4

&

Delving into David

This week we'll finish Setting the Stage for our study of David, and actually start getting into the meat of David's story... we pick up at Chapter 15, the final chapter that is focused primarily on Saul.

Before we turn to chapter 15 I want to quickly clear up something that wasn't clear to me & probably wasn't clear to you as well.

(1 Samuel 1:1) Samuel's father Elkanah is called an Ephriamite; however, the NIV Study Notes indicate he is probably a Levite of the Koathite clans that had been allotted towns in Ephriam. (Joshua 21:20-21; 1 Chronicles 6:16, 22-23, 28; 1 Samuel 8:2) Though the genealogy in Chronicles isn't crystal clear the coincidence would be pretty amazing if this were a different Samuel.  So though Samuel wasn't necessarily assigned duties of a priest, he was at least of the priestly line.

1 Samuel 15: War against the Amalekites.

(1-9) God has given the Amalekites into Saul's hands, all He asks for is obedience to His commands.  Did Saul do as God Commanded?

• No, he spared King Agag & some of the best of the cattle & sheep - he was supposed to destroy all the people & all the cattle & sheep.

(10-13) God is grieved, Samuel is so troubled that he is up all night crying out to the Lord.  What is Saul doing?

• Building a monument in his own honor.
• Acting like he's done just as God wanted.

One of the things I used to tell my HS & JrHS students was "partial obedience is disobedience" - they hated that!!

(14-15) When Samuel confronts Saul, what sort of response does Saul give?

• He's justifying himself again!!

(16-21) We see a repeat of the same, Samuel confronts & Saul seeks to justify.

(22-26) Samuel gets particularly brutal with Saul & lets him know just how dire his sin is "rebellion is like the sin of divination & arrogance like the evil of idolatry".  Samuel informs Saul that the Lord is rejecting him as king.  Saul finally admits his sinfulness, but starts making excuses "I was afraid of the people so I gave in to them"... this is the King, this is the guy that's a head taller than everyone else, this is a warrior, and he's more afraid of his image than of God?  Really ?!?  What does he ask Samuel to do & why?

• To forgive him, to come back & worship with him so that he can worship the Lord.

How does Samuel respond to Saul's request?

• Samuel says no!  God has rejected Saul & God's word is the last word as far as Samuel is concerned.

(27-29) What is the significance of the hem of Samuel's robe being torn?

• It is used by Samuel as an illustration of God tearing the kingdom of Israel away from Saul.
• Historical Significance: Symbol of authority (priests, kings, etc.) - the hem was special, it would be woven or embroidered in such a way as to symbolize the person's position (like bars on the shoulders of soldiers today), the hem could be pressed into wax on letters or documents to authenticate its source/authorship (like a signature or signet ring).

Saul's act damaged Samuel's hem, but it was Saul not Samuel whose authority was damaged.

(30-31) Saul again confesses & Samuel agrees to worship with him, but what is Saul really concerned about?

• His standing before the elders & the people.

(32-33) Samuel does Saul's job for him & dispatches Agag.

(34-35) Samuel & Saul part company, Samuel never goes to see Saul again, Samuel mourns for Saul, and God is grieved that Saul is king.

Two things I want you to keep tucked in your memory from this chapter:

• The significance of a Hem, because this is going to come up again with David & Saul.
• That Samuel & Saul don't see each other again during Samuel's lifetime, but they do see each other again - but its an odd passage in scripture that we won't get to for a while.

Lets get to David!!  Form 4 Groups for some questions - I'm going to have you go through the questions first & then I'll teach on this passage.

Read 1 Samuel 16:1-13 & answer the following questions:

1. Why do you think Samuel was mourning?  Who's life (be respectful & don't use actual names) do you mourn & why?

2. Under what circumstances is it wise to withhold information?  Are there times when it is ok to lie?

3. Why do you think God didn't just tell Samuel the name of the one He'd chosen?

4. What causes you to judge or be impressed by others (height / weight / clothing / race / fitness / possessions / personal style / ...)?  What should we look for instead?

5. Have you ever been the forgotten one, or the one who was left out or left behind?  How does that feel?  In what ways does it impact your outlook?

1 Samuel 16:1-13: David's anointing

v1: God announces to Samuel that the time for him to mourn over King Saul has ended, God has other plans, and God wants Samuel to get going.  God is very specific in his instructions, He says: "fill your horn with oil", "be on your way".  Then God tells Samuel that one of the sons of Jesse, who lives in Bethlehem, is His choice to be King.

I asked you to think about who you mourn & why - I mourn for a friend who's an atheist, he's destined for Hell (ouch!), I mourn for other friends & family members who claim to be Christians but whose lives scream otherwise (they're lost & think they're not), and I mourn for those in leadership who have moved our churches & our country in directions counter to the ways of God (they will be held accountable).  Mourning has a purpose - it inspires us to pray, and there is a time for it... and then we are to move on.

v2a: Samuel appears to be arguing with God when he says "How can I go? Saul will hear about it and kill me." but he's actually bringing up a valid concern.  From where Samuel lived (in Ramah) to get to Bethlehem he had to pass right through Gibeah (where Saul lived) - add to that the fact that Saul has already been told that God has rejected him... and there's an explosive situation brewing.  If you don't think Saul would have killed Samuel, if you think its not in his nature, just wait until we get further into this book & you'll see that Samuel's concerns were very real.

v2b: God knows about the potential problems & already has a plan in place, He instructs Samuel to take a heifer & go to Bethlehem to make a sacrifice - if anyone asks he's to say he's going to make a sacrifice.  In doing this he's not lying, but he's not giving away vital information about his actions.  In Beth Moore's Bible study materials on the life of David she makes an interesting point here: "when engaging in matters of espionage, it always pays to have a good cover story".

There are times when we are to withhold information, some I thought of:

• When asked by a friend to keep a secret, an example: I have a friend that had several miscarriages & shared with me that she was pregnant again, she asked me to pray & not to tell anyone until she was further along in her pregnancy.  It would have been wrong for me to give out this information even if asked directly about it.
• If someone inappropriately asks for private information, like intimate information or financial information, its perfectly valid not to answer them.
• When I did classified work for a Government Contractor, I was not allowed to speak about it... period!!

In the case here in this passage God in essence told Samuel "here's your mission, its classified, if asked this is what you're to say.  The cover story is a good one, Samuel was known to go & make sacrifices, so it worked.

3: God instructed Samuel to go find Jesse in Bethlehem & invite him to the sacrifice, and then God said "I'll show you what to do".  God could have told Samuel who He had chosen at this point, but He didn't.  God had an important lesson for Samuel to learn, one that's recorded in scripture for our sakes as well.

4: Samuel goes & does as God says, when he arrives the elders of the town are fearful & trembling.  Samuel was a powerful prophet, they may have feared that they had come under God's judgement.  They may have known of the time he prayed for rain (Chapter 12) & put the wheat harvest at risk.  They ask if he has come in peace.

5: Samuel assures the people that he has come in peace, and tells them he's come to sacrifice to the Lord.  He instructs them to consecrate themselves & come to the sacrifice with him, and we're told that Jesse & his sons are specifically invited.

Consecrate: "make holy", to Consecrate yourself in Samuel's day involved both preparing spiritually as well as going through the process of becoming ceremonially clean.

6: Samuel see's the oldest son & thinks this must be the guy... 

7: But God has an important lesson for Samuel as well as for us.  We are not to be impressed by outward appearances, what really matters is a person's heart.

I have to confess: in the past I have judged people with: tattoos, heavily pierced, scantily or suggestively dressed.... Where I grew up these things indicated that the person was involved in the local drug culture - a culture that nearly ruined my brother's life & cause my family horrible pain.  I also have to confess that I'm prone to admire people who are: smart, fit, strong, musically / artistically talented.  But I most appreciate those who demonstrate a great deal of love, compassion, and mercy.

We all have biases - a couple examples: I have a friend that won't wear sleeveless tops because she was taught that baring her whole arm was suggestive.  I've traveled to places where a woman wearing shorts would be assumed to be of questionable morals.

We must be careful!!  We must not judge!!  We must take the time to get to know the hearts of people... their hearts reveal their true nature.

8-10: Samuel continues to meet Jesse's sons one-by-one, until he's met all that Jesse brought, and God has not chosen any of them.

11: I can't help but imaging Samuel at this point scratching his head & wondering what is going on!!  So he asks Jesse "Are these all the sons you have?".  Remember Samuel specifically invited Jesse & his sons to come to the sacrifice, now Jesse admits that he didn't bring one of his sons... Woops!!  I can't help but wondering if this was intentional or not, but either way it shows that Jesse didn't consider David worth bothering to bring... he was just the youngest who was out tending the sheep.  I wonder if this is the treatment David was used to getting, being the youngest, being left out, being forgotten... Beth Moore said the following: "I believe his wisdom and meditative nature got their start in the loneliness of a little brother accustomed to being put down and ostracized.  Did he inherit the duties of keeping sheep, or where the woolly creatures preferable to the company of taunting brothers?"

We all have times when we feel like the one left behind, the forgotten one, the outsider, some of us have struggled more with this than others.... Its beautiful to see how God can take our pain & use it both to draw us near as well as to serve His purposes.

Anyway... Samuel insists that the entire even needs to wait for this youngest son - and he would need to be brought home & cleaned up first... I bet that got people wondering!!

12: David arrives & he's a healthy & handsome young man - the one God has picked!

13: So Samuel anoints David, and it says he does it in the presence of his brothers - remember that when we get to the Goliath passage - but it doesn't specifically say that he informed David he would be King, yet I would hazard a guess that David was told as much.  In any case it tells us "from that day forth the Spirit of the Lord come upon David in power".  Finally Samuel leaves & returns home.

(Time Permitting:) Psalm 78:70-72:

He chose David his servant

and took him from the sheep pens;

from tending the sheep he brought him

to be the shepherd of his people Jacob,

of Israel his inheritance.

And David shepherded them with integrity of heart;

with skillful hands he led them.

Pray: I thank you God that you can take the worst things in our lives, and turn them around... to make Your best come out of them.  Lord I pray that as we go through this next week, as we encounter difficult or painful circumstances, that we would remember that You can use our pain to Your glory.  Thank You for time in your word & in fellowship with each other.  Amen