David and Goliath

I'll share with you the beginning this morning that Terry had a really good week. We were with the Sean and John is not Shawn Johnson and Elijah on Tuesday night, really was a special opportunity for her to be just almost back to normal. And so it was a it was a really, really nice eating I share that with you because at 7:30 this morning, my phone ring, it's the people who provide our caregivers and they said their caregivers had car trouble. And is it coming today? And we don't have a replacement. So I was like, well thanks for trying to work out, an alternate plan in and was able to do that, but that's kind of throws you off, you know, and you can kind of get up in two different places and at least two, fears one, is that I won't wake up on Sunday morning, like, I, I want to hear the alarm. So, I do several alarms, you know, but my OCD stuff the other I'll go off and leave my sermon at home. Can you tell guess which fear? I have manifested? A Yeah, I always put it on the thumb drive so that I would have it. I can just run it off here and of course when you leave your sir when you leave your thumb drive to and so all that stuff is sitting on the table at home, and what I have in my hand is some notes that I've thrown together as I've tried to remember what's their looks to me like about 6 minutes. So

I don't believe in creating false ho, but

We've been talking in terms of faith and how Faith intersects and certainly your amplifies. Our Victorious living in it is is one of the strategies that work in that direction of chapter 5. Verse 7 says, simply that we walk by faith and not by side and that's a hard thing that kind of wrap your mind around because we want to walk by that, something that we're just supposed to do and trained to do. And so turning loose of that and letting something else lead us. It's a difficult thing for us to do. I share with you on many occasions that I have a really good friend who says everything in life boils down to either Faith or fear. And you know sometimes I'll try to throw them a curve and say what about this. What about this and he'll say, build up to you to pick up, break it down and it really is, there's a lot of validity there and we're either going to live out of fear of what's going to happen next or we're going to live in face what God is providing and what God is leading us. Do we go to the Hebrews chapter 11? Now, Faith is confidence in what we hope for and the Assurance about what we do not see. That said differently in a multitude of versions. But we have this real confidence in what faith is in our lives. And we also know that without faith, it's impossible to please. It's something we have to have. We have to utilize, we have to rest upon it. So I was, I was thinking about examples of face, I thought You know, it's really hard to get past the example of David and Goliath. Will you start thinking about the miracle? The miracle is driven, totally completely by face. So many times when God performs a miracle, there may be circumstances that create motivation or particular movement in a certain direction when God talks to Moses, when he talks to Noah, when he talks to Abraham, he leaves them in a certain direction or maybe they're opening the Red Sea. Here's Israel. Camped on one side. Pharros, we could write down on them. God opens up to see, how much Faith did it take to go through that ocean? Well on the average day it would have taken a lot, but in this situation with your facing play a role in his army, it probably was fairly easy to motivate people to take that. The to take that step you. Look at the even Daniel and said, write me Shack in a Bendigo like how to get forced into a situation where they have to stand up and, and, and make a choice. But when you look at David and Goliath, You don't see any pressure except the pressure that David places on himself. David is offended for God and he is determined that he's going to do something about it. Because somebody is pushing him. It's not because the king is Big, he is legitimately concerned about what's taking place. At this particular point in time, that's always how old is David. And we could debate that for a very long. Of time. I think it's a few factors there that probably are useful to us. One is that it's fairly clear in the Old Testament that the fighting gauges H20. And so, you can assume I think safely that David is below the age of 20 and then how far is 12 / 14? The other thing that probably has to be figuring there is so you can tell from the the way David talks about being a shepherd and the fact that he's fought wild animals to protect a sheet, gets a level of trust, has David has been placed with. So it's he's an old enough young man, that they've let him stay and actually fight wild animals by himself. I don't know what age your children and grandchildren get to do that but it a time where it had to be done. There was a moment when they would allow that to take place. So there's no way to really guess completely. But I'm looking at fifteen or sixteen is probably what age is referred to as a youth at one point in time and in that might be consistent with that word. The reality is though the David is more mature than anybody else in God's Army? Because these other guys, including his own brother, haven't been offended by what was taking place or what was going on out there. David is there? Cuz his father wants him to take some food to his brothers, into their commanders, and he goes out to the valley of elah where this confrontation is taking place between the Israelites and the Felicity and you know, how it's going. You know, the story instead of going to war, they have a champion, the Philistines send out Goliath, who's almost 10 ft tall and he defies the armies of Israel. He defies the god of Israel and David. Thanks that very personally forgot. He hasn't been there any time at all before. He's very much concerned about who it is. It's going to take on this guy. Why hasn't somebody stepped out there? Why hasn't somebody manifest the face? To say God will help me do this and still even his brothers, are you doing? Why are you even here? What's going on and all those kinds of things it's been going on for 40 days according to verse 16,

And David says, in verse 32, let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine, your servant will go and fight him or sausage. You just a kid, David explains to solve some of the experiences that he's had. I try to put him in the installs armor and of course, it doesn't work at all up. So early David is out there as we all know with the swing and some rocks up against not just Goliath but his armor bearers. Well it's really two of these guys that he's going up against and just to make it a little bit more interesting I guess.

They have a verbal exchange, that's a little bit interesting. The Goliath says in verse 43, am I a dog that you come to me with sticks and the Philistines cursed David by his gods and Mary said and I'll give you your flesh to the birds in the wild animals. So it would feels the need to say something back and that's what he does. Some people quit all this trash talking but it's kind of effective preaching when you really think about it. They were said that the Philistines you come against me with the 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 this day, the Lord will deliver you into my hands and I strike you down and cut off your head. This very day, I will give the carcasses of the Philistines are me to the birds in the wild animals. In the whole world will know. There is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves for the battle, is the Lord and He will give all of you into our hands David says, with such confidence. Just something that makes him feel better, but something is actually true and honest. And write David says I'm going to succeed here because I'm doing what God wants me to do. And of course, we know it takes. One rocket is sling and he's successful. Now when I look at that story through so many different times that I was just kind of Twisted it and turned it a little bit, especially in thinking in terms of connecting it with Victorious living. And there were some things that kind of fell out for me. Number one, David is willing to show up. The second thing, is it David is willing to stand up? Ben David is willing to speak up and you see where this is going down to you. I had a horrible time finding the fourth thing, I knew what I wanted it to be and I kept thinking maybe swing up, you know, and it didn't work. And then just a couple nights ago I just hit me step up. That's exactly what day but does he goes through those stages? But finally there's this point in time we're supposed to rock in, he steps up and takes the risk. And I think we can learn from that because those are the things that we're going to have to do. Those are the ways that we put ourselves in a place where were consistent with that? Wants us to do, you know, we show up some comedian. I forgotten which one it was said that 80% of success in life is showing up. Sometimes we just got to do what we got to show up. In my neighborhood, we have this political problem going on, people, in our neighborhood didn't like the fact that our streets were getting kind of, we are you looking at? So, this is an election year and in the spring they went and kind of

I don't want to meet you. I want to say threatening, that's not the word I'm looking for it. I can explain it to the county, commissioner or something, they responded and we have blacktop roads that came out. What are down? And then for gravel on top, which is really not a good idea, especially for house, valuations for blacktop road to, to chat road. Is it not a good thing? It also the neighborhood is like, Got to get something going here. And we need you to be at the next meeting with 50 people at the meeting and then we want 75 people at the meeting. And the point I'm trying to make is it's not really that those people are passionate about it necessarily they may be but others understand that you just have people show up just to say there was 50 at the meeting or there was 75 at the meeting indicate that the kind of

Intensity that you have five often times. How many people show up? It's like that in the in a lot of things, you know? Hopefully it isn't like this at your school, but there are schools where the PTA, the PTO, whatever that group is called when they have a meeting there for a few people who show up. And that's very discouraging to the teachers and to the students and just a larger crowd to be encouraging. You've ever gone to a large Workshop. Crowd is, was it, we all describing it used to be fun to go to Tulsa where they be 10,000 people singing in, and sharing, and getting excited together. Or there was just something that was empowering, because there was that many people who would show up, And even though her own Services, we reinforce each other and we encourage each other, when we show up to be positive and to interact with other people, in those kind of situations as well. David's, dad said, pick this stuff up there. No medication did David Drive to about that, but he said, okay to do it. I'll show up, I'll be there. The next thing that they would does is affected. I mentioned earlier, he's offended. By the way, they're responding to to Goliath. He's wondering why somebody doesn't take a stand. My somebody doesn't stand up and say, or do the right thing and as I mentioned inverse 32, he says, I'll do it. I'll be the guy who will make that happen. In Ezekiel 22:30. Ezekiel their rides. I look for someone who would build up the wall and stand in the Gap. Then the last part of that verse says simply but I found no one. No one. One person to stand up. I was watching the show the other night after some political thing and and they had a group of undecided people. And so now they ask the big question, what have you decided? How many of you have decided this? And it was really interesting because you can see they all went.

And then one lady put her hand up and then I'm with Giardia people put their hand up the group of about 16 about 10, maybe more like you're never thinking but think what if she hadn't done that there was a long time there where nobody can really are? We really waiting standing back waiting for somebody to take a risk before will follow long, you been on an idea or thought it possible that our Christianity is so diluted to the place where we just, I just wish somebody would stand up there, sometimes just end up disappointed and he makes that point very very strongly. The other thing that David is willing to do is he's willing to speak up. You know, he's talked to his brothers and it was matter with you, guys. He talks to us all and that's what he's willing to State his point. He's willing to explain who he is God is and what his God is going to do, and what his guy that's going to accomplish. And, as I mentioned earlier, we talked about it being trash-talking, it's also prophecy. It's also the courage to say before it ever takes place, this is what we're going to do. There are some historians and I may have mentioned this before who believe that the Israelites in David's. Had a practice of seen Victory songs on the way into battle. Now, how unnerving would that be? Yeah, they're already celebrating the win as we come down here to five. Well, that was the face. That was being manifested, that situation and that could be certainly very powerful one. The last thing of course, is step up. There's a moment. When the boy, let's go to the Rock and it all changes at that point, everything is going to be different if he messes with the rock. That's going to be very different if he hits and is successful and kills his giant as he does. Everything Changes For David, for Israel, for multitude of people, literally because of what he's willing to do and they're all, there's all these moments while we debate back and forth. Should I or should not do I have the strength to carry it forward? Do I have the courage to take the action when we're waiting? And God saying take the step, step into it. See where it goes. Now. If you've ever thought about going out there and face and Goliath you ever put yourself in David shoes, probably most of us would go. I don't like it, it would do that. I don't know if I could actually be that person. And that's probably a blessing to us, because not many of us are going to find ourselves in that or even a similar type of situation where we are going to find ourselves in situations where we have the opportunity opportunity to show up. Speak Up Stand Up and step up. We are given those opportunities and that's when we show our face, that's what we're willing to do. But it doesn't have to be against the Giants. It can be against something as simple as as gossip. It could be something as simple as doing something that destroys our relationship or failing to do that, or not being willing to do that. And we can just make a list on and on and on those things where we choose what we're going to do. Tell weeks ago, we talked about Elijah. Elijah get this incredible demonstration of his face as he goes home to God in the Sky last week, you looked at it and Simeon, these average people that an older place in their life. They have any experience of coming in contact with and seeing the Messiah in David situation. We had this dramatic dramatic, Miracle be times when God needs somebody to do something very traumatic and it may be that that's an opportunity that he gives to you. And if he does, I hope you can manifest that and be the kind of person that David want you to be, but there are a multitude of things that run down from there. Opportunities that we have literally on a daily basis or we choose what we're going to do. And how, what kind of Ambassador we're going to be for our God. Would you value here with you? God. We thank you for the example of David. I thank you for his strength and his courage. I thank you that he was angry. That no one was responding to the challenge. Goliath is extending father, we pray that when our world challenges you and the things that you're teaching and leading Us in, it will have the strength that will have the wheel to be concerned in to be challenged by that. Father, we ask that you would be with us and guide us, forgive us and help us. We pray this to your precious son and Men. This morning, if there are things in your life that keep you from your God, we would encourage you to put those things aside and we could help you to do. That would be glad to always stay in this thing together.