Note: I will be traveling early tomorrow morning. So I will not send out the Word tomorrow. I will be back on Thursday morning.
(1 Samuel 16:21 NLT) So David went to Saul and began serving him. Saul loved David very much, and David became his armor-bearer.
Today I will continue with “Faith and Patience Volume 5 – Greater is Coming!” We are studying the life of David. David’s story is impressive and inspirational. I trust you are enjoying it thus far. Let’s pick up where we left off.
After the shepherd boy was summoned to the palace, he was told what would be expected of him. The King was being tormented by an evil spirit and David’s job was to play the harp whenever the King needed peace. Although David knew that Samuel, the same prophet who had anointed Saul to be King, had recently anointed him to be Saul’s successor, David never brought it up. David did not get out ahead of God. This is key. There are things that God calls us to, that WILL NOT HAPPEN until He makes them happen. This is why we require faith and patience.
David was young, about 17 years old, but he exhibited maturity beyond his years. Whenever the tormenting spirit troubled Saul, David played the harp, the spirit would withdraw, and Saul would be at peace. Saul sent word to Jesse, asKing for David to remain in the palace. The messenger from the King said to Jesse: “Please let David remain in my service, for I am very pleased with him.”
Our text says that “Saul loved David very much.” Saul loved him so much that he appointed David to be his armor-bearer. In Scripture, an armor-bearer was a servant who carried additional weapons for commanders. Abimelech (Judges 9:54), Saul (1 Samuel 16:12), Jonathan (1 Samuel 14:6-17), and Joab (2 Samuel 18:15) all had armor-bearers. Armor-bearers were also responsible for killing enemies wounded by their masters. After javelins or arrows wounded enemy soldiers, armor-bearers finished the job with clubs or swords. Since Saul never entered combat while David was his armor-bearer, David’s non-combat duties were more like an adjutant or assistant. This meant that David was around the King all the time. He was exposed to the throne and the ins-and-outs of the monarchy. This is very important because someday David would be King and needed to know how to rule as a monarch. David learned things in the presence of Saul that he would have never learned in the field with his sheep. David could have been upset because he was not King yet, even though the prophet clearly anointed him to be King. But David had to learn to make the most of the season he was in, so God could usher him into the next season.
So what does this mean for you today? A few things:
1. You must trust the fact that God is always at work in your life.
a) David was minding his own business when God sent a prophet to anoint him to be the next King of Israel. I am sure David felt like he did not know anything about being a King. He didn’t. But he had learned some life-lessons out in the fields, tending sheep, that would later serve him well as a leader of men. My point here is that God is always preparing you, in your today, for your tomorrow. You may not understand it, but like Mr. Miyagi and the Karate Kid, the seemingly mundane (wax-on, wax-off), will pay off when you least expect it.
b) When God promoted him in front of his family, David went back to tending sheep. He had no earthly idea how God would usher him into the palace. Earlier in his life he had learned to play the harp. This seems like a random fact until David was summoned by the King to play the harp. Since David did well as the King’s musician, David was promoted to armor-bearer. This meant that David would be around the King all the time. He was learning how to be a King by being in the proximity of one. When you are around someone, what is on them can be transferred to you (Prov 13:20). Some things are taught, but many things are just caught by being in the presence of great people. While God rejected Saul, he did know many things David could learn, so God saw to it that David spent time with the man he was destined to replace. So while David was playing a harp and running errands for Saul, God was preparing him to be King.
c) Notice that David did none of this on his own. God was the one moving pieces on the chessboard of David’s life. What was true for David is true for you. God is always working, even if seemingly behind the scenes, setting you up for your destiny. Your job is the make the most of the season you are in, so God can release you into the next.
2. It takes humility to focus on today when you know you are called to greater.
a) I have been walking with God for 25 years now (August 27 will be 25 years exactly). Over this span, the Lord has transitioned me through many times and seasons, levels and stages. Every time God spoke to me about the next season, level or stage, I was always quick to get excited, but then I had to learn to temper that excitement with the reality of God’s timing. Just because God was revealing it, it did not mean it was supposed to happen right away. One of the hardest lessons I have had to learn (and believe me, it is still hard to this day), is not to get out ahead of God. When David got to the palace, his youthful exuberance could have led him to say, “He Saul, God anointed me to be your replacement. God even sent the same man who anointed you to anoint me!” But he didn’t. That would have been a mistake. David did not get out ahead of God. David was simply waiting for God to open doors, and he walked through them as God did. I can tell you that I have not always been as patient as the young David. I have said things before I was supposed to. I have done things before God released me to. I have made my fair share of mistakes. Some of them because of excitement. Some of them simply because of pride.
b) When you know you are called to do something, it takes humility to submit to God’s timing and His process. Although God called you to do it and you did not earn it, once you accept God’s calling and you start seeing yourself the way God does, if you are not careful, pride can cause you to FORCE the issue and try to MAKE IT HAPPEN before it’s time. Don’t let pride cause you to get out ahead of God. I have made this mistake many times and it has been painful and/or embarrassing. Learn from me. Remain humble and WAIT!
c) Your gift (God’s grace on your life) will make room for you and bring you before great men (Prov 18:16). But when it does, please remain humble and grow into your assignment. Don’t rush what God is doing. When you are ready, God will release it.
d) The Lord will expose you to people today who will help develop you into the person He needs you to be tomorrow. But in order to make the most of the opportunity, you must be humble and focused. Unfortunately, many believers get so fixated on the BIG THING they believe God called them to do, that they fail to honor the seemingly LITTLE THING they are charged with right now. This is a big problem because if you are not faithful over little, you cannot be trusted with much (Luke 16:10). David was faithful in the fields when no one was watching but God, so he was ready to be promoted. When David got to the palace he was asked to play the harp. He did. Although he was called to be King, he focused on being the best harp player, because that is the season he was in. Later he was asked to be Saul’s armorbearer. He served in this capacity with a spirit of excellence. My point is that you must be humble enough to focus on the thing in front of you. It may not be THE THING God called you to. But it is the thing that will lead you to THE THING, in God’s timing. Now, take this to heart, because if you are not faithful over your TODAY, you will delay your TOMORROW!
Declaration of Faith:
Father, You have opened doors for me that I could never open for myself. You bring me before great men and women in order to prepare me for what You destined me for. I will maximize these moments. I will be ready to observe and receive all You want to deposit in my life. Wisdom is transferred by association. As You bless me to associate with great people, greatness is deposited in me. I know You are preparing me today for my tomorrow, and I declare that I will maximize this season of my life, so I am ready for the next, in Your timing. I remain humble and focused. Every day Father, I get incrementally closer to Your desired destination for my life. Forward ever, backward never! The best is yet to come! GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
