Today, we continue our series entitled “Laser Focus,” emphasizing living with a Laser Focus on the Fixed Purpose God established for us before the world began.
Scriptures we have been looking at all year:
(Proverbs 4:25 TPT)
Set your gaze on the path before you. With fixed purpose, looking straight ahead, ignore life’s distractions.
(James 1:2-4 TPT)
2 My fellow believers, when it seems as though you are facing nothing but difficulties, see it as an invaluable opportunity to experience the greatest joy that you can!
3 For you know that when your faith is tested, it stirs up power within you to endure all things.
4 And then as your endurance grows even stronger it will release perfection into every part of your being until there is nothing missing and nothing lacking.
(Ecc 3:1 ERV)
There is a right time for everything, and everything on earth will happen at the right time.
Focus for today:
Setting the Stage. (From 1 Samuel 30:1-6)
Although David was seemingly fighting with Achish to be allowed into the fight with Israel, Achish was firm, and David and his men had to make the three-day journey back home. Things had not turned out the way they expected, and they were traveling back home disappointed, even though they never should have been fighting the Israelites in the first place. And as is often the case when you are out of place, things went from bad to worse.
After the three-day journey, the men made it back to their home in Ziklag. With all the stress of the previous six days — from going to and from a battle they were forbidden from participating in — I am sure the men were simply looking forward to a hot meal, a warm bed, and a loving hug from their wives and kids. However, what they received was completely unexpected.
While David and his men were gone, the Amalekites raided Ziklag, hauled off all the women and children as slaves, and burned the town to the ground. When the men looked around, seeing their homes destroyed and their families gone, the Bible says that they wept until they could not weep anymore. They shed tears until they literally ran out of tears. David’s two wives, Ahinoam from Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal from Carmel, were among those captured.
David was mourning the loss, just like his men were, but David had additional pressure. The Bible says his men “began to turn on David.” While they were mourning, they got angry at David for putting them in the situation. Although David’s men had come to him as a band of misfits, and although he had turned their lives around and forged them into an elite fighting force, all they could think about at the time was their loss. In the midst of their pain, the finger of blame was directed towards David, and they spoke of stoning him.
So there David was. He knew he was destined for greatness, but the pain of the situation clouded any hope for his future. David was in a foreign land, he had joined forces with his enemies, he had been living a lie for years, he was waiting for the day to come when he would be King of Israel, but his breakthrough had not yet come, and he had hit a new all-time low.
His family was gone, and so were the families of his men. His village was burned to the ground, and so was everything he and his men owned. His ally denied him the opportunity to fight alongside the men of Philistine. And now his men — the same men who had been there for him, through thick-and-thin — were speaking of stoning him. All David had left was God and the Bible says, “David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.” Another translation says, “David found strength in the LORD his God.”
So what does this mean to you today? A few things:
1. Rock Bottom Is Real And Painful.
I am not saying that God did this to David, but what I am saying is that we sometimes open the door to the enemy when we make poor decisions. There is a level of divine protection associated with being in God’s will. When you choose to live outside of God’s will, you run the risk of also being outside His protection.
How this applies to you:
— When we step outside of God’s will, we often remove ourselves from His covering of protection.
— While God doesn’t cause bad things to happen to teach us a lesson, our choices can create vulnerabilities that the enemy can exploit.
— Regularly evaluate whether your current position aligns with God’s will.
— Remember that divine protection operates most effectively within divine parameters.
— Recognize that some battles we face are self-induced by poor positioning.
— Take immediate action to realign yourself when you realize you’re out of position.
— Trust that God’s grace can restore you even when you’ve mispositioned yourself.
— Accept that hitting bottom can be part of your comeback story.
2. People May Leave When You Need Them Most.
What I am about to say is not an indictment against people but rather an acknowledgment of the frailty of humanity. David had significantly invested in these men, and they were ready to stone him to death because the pain of the situation clouded their judgment. People are like that sometimes because we are human.
Sometimes, good people make bad decisions, especially if they are overly emotional. Don’t ‘write people off’ just because they said something negative to you in the midst of a painful or overly emotional time. What if God did that to you? Just like God has forgiven you, be quick to forgive others. Understand that they are human and, therefore, not perfect. Be ready to forgive and move on.
How this applies to you:
— Even those closest to us can turn against us in moments of extreme pain or pressure.
— Guard against being devastated when people disappoint you.
— Remember that hurt people often hurt people, even unintentionally.
— Maintain perspective when others lash out from their pain.
— Learn to separate people’s temporary reactions from their true character.
— Practice forgiveness, remembering God’s patience with your own failures.
— Use moments of isolation as an opportunity to strengthen your dependency on God.
3. Your Personal Faith Becomes Your Lifeline.
David had a priest with him (Abiathar), but David did not rely on the priest to get a Word from God. When the pressure was on, David relied on his own personal relationship with the Father, and you must do the same. Thank God for your Pastor, and you must surely appreciate your brothers and sisters in Christ, but you must develop a relationship with God for yourself. You must know God personally and intimately!
How this applies to you:
— In critical moments, you need more than secondhand faith or borrowed belief.
— When everything else fails, your individual connection with God becomes your lifeline.
— Invest in developing your personal relationship with God daily.
— Don’t rely solely on others’ spiritual experiences or insights.
— Build your own prayer life and study habits.
— Learn to hear God’s voice for yourself.
— Maintain spiritual disciplines even when things are going well.
— Remember that your greatest spiritual growth often occurs in solitude.
4. Master the Art of Divine Self-Encouragement.
There will be times when you can’t get your Pastor on the phone. There will be times when even your closest friends are not there for you. There will be times when you feel all alone. You must learn to encourage yourself in the Lord your God during those times.
David did not have King Achish to support him or his men to back him, but David did have the God of his salvation. Even when all human hope is gone, if you have God, you are never hopeless because, in Him, you are never helpless. David called on His God, and he received the encouragement he needed to keep going. You must be able to do the same.
How this applies to you:
— When all human support systems fail, you must know how to tap into divine encouragement.
— David’s ability to encourage himself in the Lord wasn’t a skill he developed in that moment – it was the fruit of years walking with God.
— As you walk with God, He walks with you, and seek to develop habits of spiritual self-encouragement through meditating on the Word and prayer.
— Learn to speak God’s Word over your situation.
— Practice finding strength in God even when others are available.
— Keep a record of God’s faithfulness to reference in difficult times.
— Develop a resilient (warrior) spirit by learning to encourage yourself in the Lord.
5. Turn Your Setback Into Your Setup.
After encouraging himself in the Lord, David immediately sought divine direction and received a promise of complete recovery. This crisis became the catalyst for one of his greatest victories. God often uses our lowest moments as launching pads for our highest achievements. What looks like defeat can become the setup for unprecedented victory.
How this applies to you:
— View your crises through the lens of potential breakthroughs.
— Seek God’s direction immediately after stabilizing your faith. This means that once you settle down (after the initial blow), inquire of the Lord concerning what to do next.
— Expect total recovery when following God’s guidance. God is not a God of partial recovery.
— We serve a God who specializes in turning trials into triumphs.
— Remember that your lowest point can become your launching pad.
— Recognize that losing everything can position you for receiving something greater.
— Understand that with God, your bounce back can be higher than your setback.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I declare that no setback can keep me down because You are the lifter up of my head!
I refuse to be defined by what I’ve lost, knowing You are my source of all things.
When others walk away, I draw closer to You, resting in Your unfailing love and strength.
I choose to encourage myself in You!
Your Word becomes my anchor when everything else is stripped away.
I declare that every season of loss I endure is setting me up for supernatural restoration and restitution!
I stand firm, knowing my bounce back will be greater than my setback.
GREATER IS COMING FOR ME because You specialize in resurrection power!
I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it, and prosper!
