COURAGE pt.1

by Rev. M.D. Rogers

GOLIATH WAS A GIANT WITH GREAT PHYSICAL STRENGTH . HE WAS A TRAINED WARRIOR WITH POWERFUL ARMOUR. IN CONTRAST DAVID WAS ONLY A YOUTH AND A SHEPHERD BOY WHO HAD NEVER BEEN IN BATTLE BEFORE. IT APPEARED A TOTAL MISMATCH IN WHICH DAVID HAD NO CHANCE OF DEFEATING GOLIATH. NO ONE BELIEVED THAT DAVID WOULD DEFEAT GOLIATH.

Even in our lives we may face challenges which appear so overwhelming and we may feel that we are no match against such great odds . But the victory of David over Goliath should inspire us and give us great confidence in the battles that we face. Remember , the greater the battle , the more glorious will be the victory.
DAVID’S COURAGE WAS AMAZING WHEN HE FACED GOLIATH . THE ENTIRE ISRAELI ARMY INCLUDING KING SAUL WERE TERRIFIED OF GOLIATH. EVEN WHEN HE WAS SURROUNDED BY FEARFUL PEOPLE, DAVID STOOD OUT WITH HIS TOTAL FEARLESSNESS. NOTHING INCLUDING GOLIATH’S APPEARANCE , STRENGTH , ARMOUR , EXPERIENCE OR THREATS COULD MAKE HIM AFRAID .

Even in our lives we should be bold and fearless when we face our Goliaths . None of those who were afraid of Goliath were able to defeat him . The only one who was able to defeat Goliath was the one who had no fear of him. Therefore we should be absolutely fearless when we face our challenges in order to get the victory.

DAVID HAD TOTAL CONFIDENCE THAT HE WOULD DEFEAT GOLIATH .
" Now the Israelites had been saying, "Do you see how this man keeps coming out? He comes out to defy Israel. The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage and will exempt his father’s family from taxes in Israel." David asked the men standing near him, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?" They repeated to him what they had been saying and told him, "This is what will be done for the man who kills him." I Samuel 17: 25-27

THERE WAS ABSOLUTELY NO DOUBT IN DAVID’S MIND ABOUT THE OUTCOME OF THE BATTLE. IN FACT THE FIRST WORDS THAT DAVID SPOKE AFTER SEEING AND HEARING GOLIATH WAS TO FIND OUT WHAT REWARD HE WOULD GET IF HE KILLED GOLIATH. DAVID SAW GOLIATH AS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO GET REWARDS IN HIS LIFE. HE DID NOT THINK OF GOLIATH AS A DANGER THREATENING TO DESTROY HIS LIFE BUT AS A GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY TO RECEIVE GREAT BLESSINGS IN HIS LIFE.

Even in our lives we should be strong in faith expecting the victory in our battles . We should not allow doubt and unbelief to rob us of our victory and destiny. We should consider our challenges as blessings in disguise . We should look forward to the blessings that we would receive as a result of overcoming these challenges instead of losing hope and getting discouraged when we face trials in our life.
DAVID DID NOT ALLOW THE NEGATIVE COMMENTS OF HIS BROTHER OR EVEN KING SAUL TO DISCOURAGE HIM.
" When Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, "Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the desert? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle." I Samuel 17 :28

" Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth." I Samuel 17: 33

DAVID DID NOT ALLOW PEOPLE TO ROB HIM OF HIS FAITH AND DESTINY THROUGH THEIR NEGATIVE COMMENTS . HIS ELDER BROTHER WAS ANGRY AND WISHED THAT DAVID HAD REMAINED WITH THE SHEEP . HE ACCUSED DAVID OF PRIDE AND WICKEDNESS . EVEN KING SAUL DISCOURAGED HIM BY SAYING THAT HE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO DEFEAT GOLIATH. BUT DAVID DID NOT ALLOW THESE NEGATIVE VOICES TO DISCOURAGE HIM.
Even in our own lives we should not allow other people to rob our blessings through their unbelief, jealousy and negative words . We should ignore the negative voices and press on to fulfill our destiny. We cannot expect everyone to rejoice in our progress and prosperity nor can we expect everyone to beleive in our vision and potential. Just as David faced Goliath without any encouragement from people , we should be willing to face our challenges alone with our faith in God and get the victory.