called ‘Confident people know their God’; I shared 4 confidence characteristics
of David…
1. David served like God was with him
1 Samuel 17:17-28
“Now Jesse said to his son David, "Take
this ephah [a]
of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry
to
their camp. Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their
unit…”
David was already anointed to be king but when asked by his dad to carry
some cheese, he did so enthusiastically. I love that God used cheese to promote David from shepherd boy to king! What is the cheese God is asking you to carry?
Often people miss their God purpose because they are concerned with being noticed by others, rather than pleasing God. Confident people serve like God is with them, they serve with enthusiasm, joy and passion because they know they are on a God mission!
2. David reasoned that God was with him
1 Samuel 17:37
“The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion
and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."
David interpreted set backs and obstacles as opportunities for miracles and deliverance rather than proof God had left him.
Five frogs were taking a walk in a forest, when suddenly two of them fell into a deep pit. As the two frogs, Albert & Tony tried frantically to jump out the others yelled from the top ‘give up you losers – you’ll never make it out alive.’ Tony concluded his sadistic friends were right and took
their advice, giving up he sits at the bottom of the pit and dies; however, Albert began to jump all the more. Eventually that little frog hopped right out of the hole. How is this possible? Well, it turns out Albert was deaf; while the other frogs were yelling to give up he reasoned that they were screaming encouragement.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud
of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so
easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith…”
(Hebrews 12:1-2)
The writer of Hebrews gives us some great keys to creating Godly
reasoning in our own life.
- Our surroundings
Let’s ensure we surround our life with God’s Word!
- Our thoughts
Our thoughts can propel us or hinder us, throw out the stinking thinking!
- Our focus
David kept his focus on God, not the giant!
3. David spoke like God was with him
1 Samuel 17:45-47
“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. 46 This day the
LORD will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head.
Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air
and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God
in Israel. 47 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."
There was no hint of fear or confusion in David’s words. He sounded so incredibly confident, he sounded as if he knew His God and he knew his power! What David lacked in stature he made up for in speech and poetic prowess! David lifted the intensity of the situation with his words. In these three verses David makes reference to God six times, describes in detail how he will kill Goliath and declares not only to possess the ability to defeat him but also the entire philistine army!
Our words have the ability to inspire, to lift people’s faith and to inject courage into a situation. We don't have to pray wussy prayers, we can pray confidently and pray in faith thanking God in advance for the victory because we know our God will deliver. I want to be someone who always lifts the intensity of a situation with my words!
4. David responded knowing God was with him
1 Samuel 17:48-49
“As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell
facedown on the ground.”
I love the line that says ‘David ran quickly toward the battle line’. As Christians, God is with us, we should RUN to the battle line confidently knowing that we are about to enter into an incredible victory!
I recently heard a story, that although is fictional, illustrates this point quite perfectly. The story is set in London as a tour guide takes a group through an art gallery. The group stops in front of a painting entitled Checkmate. The guide talked about the painting, the style and texture, and then moved on. But one of the group stayed behind, staring at the chess pieces on the chessboard in the painting. The chess game was between the devil and a young man, who had sold his soul to the devil. It appears as if the devil has won.
The young man has only the king, the queen, and a weak pawn left. The devil has a smirk on his face, as if waiting for the final verdict, Checkmate! The young man who stayed to study the painting was an international chess champion. When the tour group was two corridors away, they suddenly heard their stray
member running down the marble hallway to catch up, shouting, "Wait! It’s a lie!
The king still has one more move. The King has one more move!"
There may be times in our life when it looks as if we have hit ‘checkmate’. The giant may
appear to be undefeatable and immovable! However, let’s never forget our God, our King, He still has one more move! God is with us, let’s live like it!
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