Against All Odds

We've all heard the story of David vs. Goliath, right?

In short, David was the youngest of eight sons born unto Jesse, an Ephrathite from Bethlehem. He spent most of his days tending his father's sheep. David, per his father's instructions, had delivered some supplies to the Israelite soldiers (including three of his brothers) who were on the front lines of a confrontation with the Philistines.  The confrontation had been at a stalemate for forty days. Why? Goliath, the Philistines mightiest warrior, had essentially "called-out" the Israelites, challenging them to send out one man to take on Goliath himself. The winner of the two man fight would win the battle not only for himself, but also for his people. Those who backed the loser would become subjects and slaves to the people aligned with the winner.

Each morning, for forty days, Goliath had stood at the front line and challenged just one man from among all the Israelites to come out and face him; yet none had. Not one. You see, Goliath stood at nine feet nine inches tall! Because of his monstrous size, none in the Israeli camped dared to take him on.

That is, until David came along. David persuaded Saul, the leader and King of Israel, to let him go out and take on Goliath, armed only with his shepherd's staff, a slingshot, and five smooth stones tucked away in his shepherd's pouch. The battle didn't last long. As the Philistine approached, David reached into his pouch for a stone, loaded it into his sling, and let it fly. The stone buried itself into Goliath's brow, and the giant man fell to the ground; dead. The "battle" ended as quickly as it had begun. Against all odds, the young shepherd boy had defeated the mighty Philistine warrior.

David went on to fight many battles, more often than not greatly outnumbered, yet against all odds, won all of them. In today's passage from 1 Samuel, we're told of yet another of those victories, this time against the Amalekites. Facing an army greater in number than his own, David and his men fought from dusk until the next evening, emerging victorious.

Was this by chance? Was it by coincidence that David won all of these battles, including his first and most improbable victory against Goliath?

There's no such thing as coincidences, not when it comes to God. He doesn't leave things to chance.

So how do we explain David's "good fortune"? Here's a couple of things to consider:

•   Above all else, David was in God's favor, or grace. David loved God so much.  God was at the center of David's universe, and he was after God's heart. God knew this, and He both guided and protected David during his lifetime.

•   God NEVER sent David into battle unequipped. David always had everything that he needed to succeed.

What you need to remember.

David was in God's favor, but that doesn't mean that he was God's favorite. God doesn't play favorites; we're all His creations, and He put the same amount of His Love in creating each one of us. We received God's grace through the death of Jesus, but when we're after God's heart, when He is the center of our universe, and when we live to love and serve Him, we get an extra portion of that grace by being in His favor.

God will never call on you to do something without equipping you with everything that you need to do it. If you walk with the Holy Spirit, you will indeed be prepared for whatever comes your way. It may not be facing Goliath, but it may be something just as important to Him, like sharing His Word with others, or starting your own ministry, or even as simple as living your life to the fullest! God will provide you with everything you need to serve Him, at just the right time; even if it's just a slingshot.