There is nothing so bad that cannot get worse, but there is nothing so worse that the Lord cannot fix

INTRO

We all know the phrase “There is nothing so bad that it couldn’t get worse”...

Illustration “The Soldier and the General’s wife”

It is said that there was a soldier in bad luck: He was last in his military academy, lost his girlfriend, his car broke down, he had just lost a promotion in the Army, and to top it off, the General hated him and he hated the General as well. BUT, he finally was invited to a reception, a party… when he got there, he started telling all his problems to a lady, including all the bad things about his General.

- The lady listened to everything and then asked him: “Do you know who you are talking to?”

- He answered: “Not really… who are you?”

- She said: “I’m the General’s wife!!”

- All confused and embarrassed, he asked: “And do you know who I am??”

- She answered: “No!”

- He said: “Thank God!!”

Main Lesson: Things can always get worse!

David is one of the most loved and known characters in the whole Bible: He was a pastor, musician, poet, warrior, a king, a man of God.

After being anointed by the prophet Samuel, and even after defeating the giant Goliath, when he was only a teenager, David was now a fugitive, running from king Saul, to save his life.

The context here is David living in the Land of the Philistines. The situation was not good:

His wife had been given to another man;

He was persecuted and chased by his own king him every day, trying to kill him;

His brothers hated him and He was living hidden in caverns;

In resume, David was a king without a crown, he was a monarch without subjects, he was an emperor without a land;

But the worst was still to come… let’s read from our MAIN TEXT:

1 Samuel 30:1–3 NKJV

1 Now it happened, when David and his men came to Ziklag, on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the South and Ziklag, attacked Ziklag and burned it with fire, 2 and had taken captive the women and those who were there, from small to great; they did not kill anyone, but carried them away and went their way. 3 So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive.

1 Samuel 30:1–3 RVR95BTO

1 Cuando David y sus hombres llegaron al tercer día a Siclag, los de Amalec habían invadido el Neguev y Siclag, habían asolado a Siclag y le habían prendido fuego. 2 Se habían llevado cautivas a las mujeres y a todos los que estaban allí, del menor hasta el mayor, pero a nadie habían dado muerte, sino que se los llevaron y siguieron su camino. 3 Llegó, pues, David con los suyos a la ciudad, y se encontró que estaba quemada, y que sus mujeres, sus hijos e hijas, habían sido llevados cautivos.

Based upon these episodes, our theme for today’s message will be:

There is nothing so bad that cannot get worse, but there is nothing so worse that the Lord cannot fix

(No hay nada tan malo que no pueda empeorar, y no hay nada empeorado que el Señor no pueda arreglar)

When everything seemed lost, David had to take action, and we will see some of his practical steps in order to get things back to normal:

1. EMBRACE BROKENNESS

(ABRAZA EL QUEBRANTAMIENTO)

1 Samuel 30:4 NKJV

4 Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep.

1 Samuel 30:4 RVR95BTO

4 Entonces David y la gente que lo acompañaba lloraron a voz en cuello, hasta que les faltaron las fuerzas para llorar.

David wept, he cried a lot. The Bible says that “God does not despise a contrite heart”. Crying is the washing of the soul, being broken is the key to the favor of God. Jesus Himself said that “Blessed are those who cry”;

David did not cry out of desperation, he cried because besides things going really bad, he had failed his family and friends.

Nevertheless, deep inside, David knew that that situation was just a phase. He wrote in one of his psalms:

Psalm 30:5 NKJV

5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.

Psalm 30:5 RVR95BTO

5 porque por un momento será su ira, pero su favor dura toda la vida. Por la noche durará el lloro y a la mañana vendrá la alegría.

Being known as a great warrior, David weeping could appear as weakness for some, but he was more interested in what the Lord could do for him;

Great men of God like Ezekiah, Peter, Paul, all cried.

Is everything difficult right now? Try crying unto the Lord!

Brokenness was the beginning for David, and it has to be for us as well. When was the last time you “cried before the Lord?”

2. FIND STRENGTH IN THE LORD

(FORTALEZCASE EN EL SENOR)

1 Samuel 30:6 NKJV

6 Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

1 Samuel 30:6 RVR95BTO

6 David se angustió mucho, porque el pueblo hablaba de apedrearlo, pues el alma de todo el pueblo estaba llena de amargura, cada uno por sus hijos y por sus hijas. Pero David halló fortaleza en Jehová, su Dios,

The Bible says that “the Lord is our strength in the day of tribulation”, it says that the Lord Himself tells us: “I will help you, I will strength you!

The expression “strengthened himself in the Lord” here means that he got “reanimated again”;

The Lord is able to recuperate those who have “no strength” at all:

Isaiah 40:29 NKJV

29 He gives power to the weak, And to those who have no might He increases strength.

Isaiah 40:29 RVR95BTO

29 Él da esfuerzo al cansado y multiplica las fuerzas al que no tiene ningunas.

To go to the Lord is like to recharge the batteries of our body, soul and spirit. The moment we connect, we get “recharged”;

The apostle Paul understood this concept when he said:

Philippians 4:13 NKJV

13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13 RVR95BTO

13 Todo lo puedo en Cristo que me fortalece.

3. CONSULT THE LORD

(CONSULTA AL SENOR)

1 Samuel 30:8 NKJV

8 So David inquired of the Lord, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”

1 Samuel 30:8 RVR95BTO

8 y David consultó a Jehová diciendo: —¿Perseguiré a esta banda de salteadores? ¿Los podré alcanzar? Él le dijo: —Síguelos, porque ciertamente los alcanzarás, y de cierto librarás a los cautivos.

Consulting the Lord was something very usual in David’s life; but in our own lives, many times the Lord is our “last” option, our last resort;

The Lord created us, and He knows our past, present and future;

We do not need a priest today, because we have the Lord Jesus as our High Priest, and also as our Advocate

Today we do not need Urim and Tumim, we have the Bible!

4. COUNT ON FRIENDS

(CUENTA CON AMIGOS)

1 Samuel 30:9 NKJV

9 So David went, he and the six hundred men who were with him, and came to the Brook Besor, where those stayed who were left behind.

1 Samuel 30:9 RVR95BTO

9 Partió, pues, David, junto a los seiscientos hombres que lo acompañaron, y llegaron hasta el torrente del Besor, donde se quedaron algunos.

Even after his friends talking about stoning David at first because of their desperation, David knew that he needed allies in that moment; and those friends are the same men that later became the great and mighty heroes in his kingdom;

The Bible affirms that 2 is better than 1;

It’s impossible to fight alone; we need friends.

5. UNDERSTAND THAT NOT EVERYONE WILL GO UNTIL THE END WITH YOU

(ENTIENDA QUE NI TODOS TUS AMIGOS ESTARAN CONTIGO HASTA EL FINAL)

1 Samuel 30:10 NKJV

10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so weary that they could not cross the Brook Besor.

1 Samuel 30:10 RVR95BTO

10 David siguió adelante con cuatrocientos hombres; pues se quedaron atrás doscientos que, cansados, no pudieron pasar el torrente del Besor.

If some of your friends give up because of tiredness, don’t let that discourage you, keep going!

It’s interesting that David had moments in his life where close friends betrayed him, one time his own son (Absalom) incited a rebellion to take the throne, but David never gave up!

When Jesus went to the cross, the Bible says that “everyone of His disciples fled”. All of them!!

Not everyone will be with you always, even good friends, we need to learn that if we want to live in victory, we will have to learn how to cope with disappointments, setbacks, and even betrayals.

6. BE READY TO FEED YOUR ENEMY

(ESTÉ LISTO PARA ALIMENTAR A TU ENEMIGO)

1 Samuel 30:11 NKJV

11 Then they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David; and they gave him bread and he ate, and they let him drink water.

1 Samuel 30:11 RVR95BTO

11 Hallaron en el campo a un egipcio, al cual trajeron ante David, le dieron pan y comió, y le dieron a beber agua.

Who was this Egyptian man? He was among the kidnappers of David’s family!

But David was a war expert, he had dealt with many enemies before, like king Saul, Nabal, the Philistines themselves and until the end of his life, that was his lifestyle;

The prophet Elisha also did that with the Syrians, he also fed his enemies.

The question is: WHY DOING THAT?? Why feeding the enemy?? The answer is:

Because your enemy can be the way to your victory!!

The apostle Paul said to the Church in Rome:

Romans 12:20 NKJV

20 Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.”

Remember: feeding your enemy is a big component of your victory!

7. PLAN YOUR STRATEGY

(PLANEA UNA ESTRATEGIA)

1 Samuel 30:15 NKJV

15 And David said to him, “Can you take me down to this troop?” So he said, “Swear to me by God that you will neither kill me nor deliver me into the hands of my master, and I will take you down to this troop.”

1 Samuel 30:15 RVR95BTO

15 —¿Me llevarás tú adonde está esa tropa?—le preguntó David. —Júrame por Dios que no me matarás, ni me entregarás en manos de mi amo, y te llevaré adonde está esa gente—dijo él.

David was a strategist, he had been one for his whole life;

The time of crying was gone, now it was time of strategy! (There is a time for everything...”)

So many times we loose battles because of the lack of strategy, and even intelligence! Jesus said that “the sons of darkness sometimes outsmart us”.

As far as having strategy, the apostle Paul says:

2 Corinthians 2:11 NKJV

11 lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.

2 Corinthians 2:11 RVR95BTO

11 para que Satanás no saque ventaja alguna sobre nosotros, pues no ignoramos sus maquinaciones.

In strategy, we may use the same methods as David did:

Ask questions;

Control yourself; (David wanted him dead!)

Negotiate; if necessary

There has to be an element of strategy in our battle with our enemy.

And finally...

8. FIGHT TO GET BACK WHAT IS YOURS

(LUCHE Y CONQUISTA DE VUELTA LO QUE ES TUYO)

1 Samuel 30:17–18 NKJV

17 Then David attacked them from twilight until the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled. 18 So David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away, and David rescued his two wives.

1 Samuel 30:17–18 RVR95BTO

17 Y David los batió desde aquella mañana hasta la tarde del día siguiente. Ninguno de ellos escapó, salvo cuatrocientos jóvenes que montaron sobre los camellos y huyeron. 18 Rescató David todo lo que los amalecitas habían tomado, y libró asimismo a sus dos mujeres.

David fought with what he had (same as Gideon, “go in this strength of yours”, and in so many battles throughout the OT), that is a very important concept, because the Lord doesn’t need us to win battles, even being very and weary and tired, the Lord granted David the victory once again!

David conquered everything back!! Do not let go of what is yours!!

Weeping was replaced by joy, and desperation gave space to hope, everything changed!!

FINAL APPLICATIONS

It took more than 20 years for David to reign over all Israel, since the day he was anointed;

Abraham waited for 25 years for the promise of his son;

Joseph waited for 17 years since he was sold as slave until the throne of Egypt; all these men have to fight for what belonged to them;

David was not called “a man according to God’s own heart” because he was perfect, but because of his relationship with the Lord, because of his resilience, because he was a warrior, he never gave up;

It doesn’t matter the situation you are facing today, God can change it!

It’s noteworthy that right after this battle, David was taken to the throne. That was his last test! That might be your situation right now, hang in there, the Lord is with you!!

In summary:

1. Cry unto the Lord, 2. Find strength in Him, 3. Consult with Him, 4. Count on friends, 5. Understand that maybe not everyone will go until the end of the battle with you, 6. if necessary, Be ready to feed your enemy, 7. Plan your strategy, and finally, 8. Fight to get back what belongs to you!

Keep going, because yes,

“There is nothing so bad that cannot get worse...

but there is nothing so worse that the Lord cannot fix.”

Let’s pray.