Fresh Manna
by Pastor Tim Burt
One morning, my granddaughter Madeline who was on a sleepover, came into my bedroom early and said, “Grampa, will you get up an read me a Bible story?” I got up and first read her a book about a little boy who was scared of getting a shot at the doctor’s office. Then I read her the story about another boy who should have been afraid but wasn’t. We read the story of David and Goliath.
When you read the story of David and Goliath you can see that David was different from every other soldier. When he heard the voice of the enemy mocking God, righteous indignation rose up on the inside of him and out came the words, “Who is this pagan Philistine anyway, that he is allowed to defy the armies of the living God?”(1 Samuel 17:26) His indignation and words led him to action. He wanted to go defeat Goliath in battle. David responded, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord Almighty—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. Today the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! And everyone will know that the Lord does not need weapons to rescue his people. It is his battle, not ours. The Lord will give you to us!” 1 Samuel 17:45-47
David was fearless and zealous, but because he was a boy, he didn’t get a lot of support. 1 Samuel 17:33 says, “Don’t be ridiculous!” Saul replied. “There is no way you can go against this Philistine. You are only a boy, and he has been in the army since he was a boy!”
David explained to Saul; “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.”
We have all faced fears and Goliaths over the course of our life. They seem to come too often and try to overwhelm way too many moments. Those fears try to grow and terrorize us!
Fears can be complicated or we can uncomplicate them. In prayer, we can simply state what they are and lay them at the Lord’s feet. We can ask Him to show us how to defeat them and let the Lord speak to us through His Word. Over time our faith and trust will grow strong and we will also defeat the Goliaths that surface in our life.
Fears will always attempt to invade our life. It would be good to truly defeat them in the faith and trust of the Lord!
2 Samuel 22:31-34 “As for God, his way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to Him for protection. For who is God except the Lord? Who but our God is a solid rock? God is my strong fortress; He has made my way safe. He makes me as surefooted as a deer, leading me safely along the mountain heights.”
In His Love,
Pastor Tim Burt
Published by Pastor Tim Burt
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