Category Archives: Truths for Life

Truths about God’s character as revealed in the Bible and how these truths can strengthen our faith and help us through life.

About Giants, God and You – Part 1

When I was a child I never read or heard the Biblical account of David and Goliath. I began reading the Bible in my early 20’s and was in wonder at this story. I was intrigued at the absolute loyalty that a young man, perhaps still in the teens, had towards God. The words that David spoke to the giant, Goliath inspired me.

David stands up for the honor of God. He shows little to no fear only true loyalty to God:

  • David asked the men … “who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” . . .  Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” 1 Samuel 17:26 and 45

God Prepared David
As I read the account of David’s life (1 Samuel 16 to 1 Kings 2; 1 Chronicles 2-29), and see his heart for God revealed in the Psalms, I have come to realize that God prepared David to meet and overcome the giant, Goliath.

David is known by the people as a man “who the Lord is with.” He is characterized as someone who walks with God. I don’t know how people in those days knew of the faith of a shepherd out in the countryside, but they did! David’s faith impressed and influenced people. People knew of his faith, even before he took a public stand to battle Goliath.

  • “I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the lyre. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man, and the Lord is with him.” 1 Samuel 16:18

The Preparation Process
God prepared David to meet the giant Goliath, and that may have been just one step in preparing David to meet the “giant” of the jealousy of King Saul.

God will prepare us in similar ways to face the giants in our life. Giants in our life may take the form of: difficult relationships; financial struggles; physical and mental health issues; various addictions (power, pride, reputation, anxieties, alcohol, or drugs); marital issues; parenting difficulties; character weaknesses, or any seemingly insurmountable problem that harasses us or overwhelms us. Such are the giants in our life.

Preparing to meet a giant is not an event of the moment, but it is a process that occurs overtime in our walk with God. Let’s look at some of the ways God prepared David to meet Goliath.

Worshiping God prepares us to meet our giants. Worship implies priority and value. What or who we worship becomes the center of our life – taking first place whether we realize it or not.

David was a true “worshiper” of God. He ascribed great value to God. David’s heart continually longed for God. His heart was focused on being close to God. David loved God with his whole heart. He freely praised God and expressed his longing to be with God.

Reverence, adoration, esteem, devotion, absolute passion, praise, and treasure, are words that characterize David’s relationship with God. What words describe your relationship with God?

David longed to be in association with God, in God’s presence. He yearned after God, even after his sin, David sought to renew his closeness with God, Psalm 51.

The passages below exemplify David as a faithful worshiper of God.

  • You are my God. Earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You. My body yearns for You in a dry and weary land without water.  Psalm 63:1 BSB
  • One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple. Psalm 27:4
  • I stretch out my hands to You; my soul thirsts for You, as in a parched land. Psalm 143:6
  • Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Psalm 103:1
  • I will fervently thank the Lord with my mouth; I will praise Him in the presence of many. Psalm 109:30
  • Cast me not away from Your presence, and take not Your Holy Spirit from me. Psalm 51:11

Dependence on God prepares us to meet our giants. When we believe that God is near and that He answers when we call on Him, we will be prepared to meet the giants in our lives.

David’s prayer life reveals his continual dependence on God. He cries out to God concerning his relationships and all of the circumstances that distress him. He hides in God and uses his faith in God as a shield. He is not too proud to cry out to God.  We see him regularly praying to God and calling out to God in all circumstances.

  • But You, LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, and the One who lifts up my head. I cry aloud to the LORD, and He answers me from His holy mountain. Psalm 3:3-4
  • This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. Psalm 34:6
  • Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer.From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:1-2
  • Listen to my prayer, O God, do not ignore my plea; hear me and answer me. My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught. Psalm 55:1-2
  • I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy. I pour out before him my complaint; before him I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way. Psalm 142:1-3a

As you read verses in the various Psalms of David, you get a sense of authentic passionate expressions of dependence on God.

David was close to God, believed God was with him, and depended on God. So, when the time came David could stand boldly before the giant.

A Pause to Reflect
Worshiping God and depending on God are two of the avenues through which God prepares us to face the giants in our life. This process that prepares us to face giants is born of a living relationship with God, and has a cyclical effect.

The more we worship and reverence God, the more we experience His power and loving care in our life which leads us to increased trust and dependence on God which leads us to a deeper intention to honor God. These interactions with God form the foundation of being able to face the giants in our life. Part 2 of this article will explore truth and experience as part of the preparation process.

Here are some final questions to help you to reflect on your status as a worshiper of God and one who depends on God:

  • Am I a true worshiper of God, or a “good” church member?
  • What would my daily life look like if I truly worshiped God?
  • Would my friends characterize my relationship with God by the words “yearning and longing for” or “hungering” for God and His righteousness?
  • How do I use my “relationship” with God, or my “practice of religion” to honor myself?
  • How has my worship of God increased my faith?
  • Do I depend on God at all times or only when I am in a situation that I cannot handle?
  • What is a time that I depended on God in prayer and the result lead me to worship God?

Faithful

Just when things seemed to be turning around in her life, she was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. It was aggressive! The outlook was bleak. I had an underlying fear that she would be despaired and or blame God. We talked about the difficulty of trusting God when it seemed like life was composed of a series of harder and harder trials.

We asked ourselves, “What does faithfulness look like and sound like, especially in times of significant difficulty? What are some examples in the scriptures?” We came up with numerous examples, but were significantly impressed by one in the book of Daniel.

Jaw-dropping Faithfulness
Three young Hebrew men demonstrate “jaw-dropping faithfulness” in the book of Daniel in chapter 3. These Hebrew men who worshiped God were commanded to bow down to an idol representing the king and his power.

Such bowing proclaimed that they honored this image, the sovereignty of this king, above all. It proclaimed that they gave him ultimate value in their life and pledged their allegiance and obedience to him above all others. The king boldly challenged the God of these men when he said, “what god can deliver you from my hand, Dan. 3:15.” The consequence for refusing to bow was to be thrown into a fiery furnace.

When confronted by the king their response was a declaration of their faithfulness, their loyalty and their value of the living God. They said:
“O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” Daniel 3:16-18

Such a response is amazing! They had no foreknowledge that God would actually save them from being burned alive! These men believed in the power of God to miraculously save them, but more importantly, they knew the wonder and of the living God through their covenant relationship with Him.  As a result, honoring their God was of greater value than any suffering or even loss of life. That is faithfulness to God.

Faithfulness Is
Faithfulness is loving God with your whole heart, soul, mind and body even when God does not make everything “better” in your life. In the account in Daniel 3, faithfulness sounded like proclaiming that the God who created the heavens and earth is the only God, and it looked like stepping forward into the fire with a heart filled with faith in God.

Faithfulness is steadfast faith in the power of God to do anything; to change a situation, a heart, a mind or an outcome; to heal; to mend; to restore/to resurrect a life, a spirit or a heart. Faith is belief in the supreme power of God and the absolute love of God.

Faithfulness Comes From…
Faithfulness is trust and loyalty that comes from knowing the truth about God’s character, and from having experienced the presence of His character, love and power in your life.

Such faith enables one to see beyond the current situation and its consequences, and trust God in them, as these three young men did. They had no definitive guarantee that they would be delivered from being burned alive, yet they knew God deeply enough to take a stand and be faithfully devoted to Him.

After the fact, we know God delivered them, but also that He walked in the fire with them. The king was amazed!
“Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God,” (or a son of the gods) Dan. 3:25.

It is an important fact that before their deliverance was a reality, these three young men choose to be faithful to God. They made a faith filled declaration about the character and nature of their God and acted on it.

What Does Your Faith Say About God?
After reflecting on this account of faithfulness in Daniel with my friend, I needed to ask myself some questions. Perhaps you will find these questions helpful to you, also.

  • What does my faith say about my relationship with God?
  • Do my words and actions proclaim that I personally know God’s character?
  • Do I believe God will help me, that He will deliver me, that He will change my circumstances, or that He will “presto chango” change my character?
  • What do I proclaim about God when He does not answer me the way I think He should? Do I fault Him? Do I no longer trust in His goodness and His righteous character? Do I accuse Him of a lack of love?
  • Do I stomp my foot and say “No” and miss seeing Him in the fire with me?
  • Am I genuinely faithful, or do I merely “wear my faith on the surface”?

These three young men showed me and my friend how do go deeper with God. Sometimes it takes the fire to help me see God.

Dear Reader,
I encourage you to pause and reflect on the depth and veracity of your faith in God in times when things are “going your way,” and in times when your character, your pride, your security, your well- being are challenged.

Wonder of Wonders

Have you ever been “stuck” in your faith, in trusting God during a rough season, one of those dips or pits in life? Struggles of a physical, spiritual, emotional or relational nature show up in our life on a regular basis, at least they do in mine.

These are the times when we question God about: His love, His good will towards us, His power, His truth and even His presence in our life. It seems odd that we should question the very character and nature of God, but when overwhelmed with turmoil or suffering, our perspective is often blurred and confused.

Psalm 77 describes a dark time in the life of the psalmist. During this time he wrestles with some strong feelings about God and asks seemingly  accusatory questions.

  • He asks where God is and if He (God) has rejected/abandoned him in verse 7- “Will the Lord reject forever?”
  • The psalmist goes on questioning, asking God if He cares about him and if He loves him in verse 7b and 8 – “And will He never be favorable again? Has His loving-kindness ceased forever?”
  • He even questions the faithfulness of God in keeping His promises in verse 8b – “Has His promise come to an end forever?”
  • The psalmist continues his lament and asks God if He has forgotten to bless him or has forgotten about him in verse 9a – “Has God forgotten to be gracious?”
  • He asks if God is mad at him, verse 9b – “Has he in anger withheld his compassion?”

The psalmist is so discouraged that he could not sleep (notice he blames God) and he could not even speak about it, “You have held my eyelids open; I am so troubled that I cannot speak.” He asked God some of the same questions I have and perhaps you have asked at some time in your life.

What to Do in a Faith Funk?
The psalmist knew where to go, and was able to drag himself to that source even in the midst of his turmoil. The psalmist decides he will remember the truths he already knows about God. He makes a decision to “recount the wonders of God.”

“I shall remember the deeds of the LORD; surely I will remember (recount)Your wonders of old. I will meditate on all Your work and muse on Your deeds.” Psalm 77:11-12

The psalmist did not look inward to himself, or outward to others, but interestingly enough he looked back at the great deeds of God for help. As he reviewed these deeds, he fanned the flame of his faith because he remembered how great, powerful and loving God is.

What Are the “Wonders?”
The word “wonders” as written by this psalmist comes from a root meaning something wonderful, admirable; extraordinary; astonishing and hard to grasp. It often refers to the wondrous acts of God’s redemption towards man. Words like miracles, marvelous things and mighty deeds are used to define “wonders.”

However, we should note that this word “wonders”  not only refers to God’s might deeds, but it can also refer to His counsel (Isaiah 9:5), and His interaction with man (Isaiah 29:14).

Wonder About the Wonders!
In Psalm 77:13-20, the psalmist details some of these wondrous works that God did for Israel as he delivered them from Egypt.

I like wonder at the wonders of God by scanning through the Bible and recounting the wonders of God. When I do this, I come away renewed in my faith. When read one right after the other it takes my breath away.

I stand in awe of God, who He is, and how intricately and complexly He wove His love and power through the history of His people to bring about the salvation of mankind. Then I remember that this God, I am reading about, is the same God who walks in a relationship with me through my faith today. This renews my faith. Keeping a ready reference of these wonders close by me has lifted my soul out of despondence and doubt many times.

Reminiscing
Here are few of my favorite wonders of God from the scriptures.

  • God spoke things into existence, Genesis 1-2.
    “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.” Hebrews 11:3
  • God made man in His image and gave him dominion over all the earth, Gen. 1:26.
  • God enabled a100 year old man and a 90 year old woman to give birth to the child from whom would descend the Messiah, the Son of God, Romans 4:19.
  • God divided the waters of the Red Sea and Israel walked across on dry land, Ex.14:21-22.
  • The Lord delivered 3 young men from a fiery death, in fact He walked within the fire with them, Daniel 3:23, 25.
  • God let fire fall from heaven in answer to a prophet’s prayer in order to show Israel that He is God and there is no other,1 Kings 18:30-39.
  • The Almighty God who creates and sustains all life became flesh and dwelt among us full of grace and truth, John 1:14;Philippians 2:6-8.
  • In compassion, Jesus healed a leper, Mark 1:40-45.
  • Jesus raised a young girl from death, Mark 5:35-42.
  • Jesus calmed the storm and the sea, Matthew 8:23-27.
  • Jesus, God in the flesh, became the sacrifice for my sins so that I might become the righteousness of God, 1 Peter2:24; 2 Cor. 5:21.

Chronicle the Wonders
There are many “wonders” of God in the scriptures, as well as ones He has worked in your life. I encourage you to scan through the Bible and find the wonders of God.

  • Read them.
  • Meditate on them.
  • Paint pictures of them in your mind.
  • Journal about them.

Create a ready reference of them, then in times of discouragement, deep wrestling and doubt you can be restored by remembering the wonders of our great God!

Come and see the works of God, Who is awesome in His deeds toward the sons of men.
Psalm 66:5

A Call to God From the Pit

There are times in our life when we feel like we are going down for the third time; when we feel like we are in a slippery bog, or sinking in a muddy pit. There are times we feel despaired and don’t even know what to think. We don’t feel inspired, motivated or particularly spiritual. We feel overwhelmed with our life circumstances or disappointed in ourselves.  We may be in direct conscious rebellion against God, or we may have been subtly drawn into a pit of self, of discouragement, or of worldliness.

You may think this can’t be me! I have a relationship with God. I am not supposed to feel this way. You are not alone. Prophets of God, kings and even His Son have felt this way!

Voices from the Pit
Jonah was outright rebellious to God. He refused to obey God’s command to call the Ninevites to repentance. He found himself in the pit of a big fish’s belly. He says in Jonah 2:1: “From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry.”

Elijah, a prophet of God fell into despair and depression. This took place after he was a part of witnessing God bring fire from the sky to light a sacrifice in a spiritual contest with the worshipers of Baal. After this event Elijah collapsed in fear and depression. He literally asked God to take his life.

We read of his despair in 1 Kings 19:3-5, “Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.”

King David felt this way numerous times in his life. Many of the psalms attest to David’s times of deep discouragement.

In Psalm 13, David was so discouraged he charged God with forgetting him. He cried out: “How long O Lord, will you forget about me…”.

In Psalm 42, David recognizes and admits that his soul is troubled and downcast within him. He feels forgotten by God, and as if he is mourning all the time. He is depressed, discouraged and overwhelmed by life.

“I say to God, my rock: “Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go about mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? … Why are you cast down O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God. “Psalm 42:9-10

Again in Psalm 55, we see David feeling full of anguish, fear and feeling like he just wants to run away from it all.

“My heart is in anguish within me, and the terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror has overwhelmed me.  I said, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest… Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur, and He will hear my voice.  He will redeem my soul in peace from the battle which is against me…” Psalm 55: 4-6, 17-18

Even Jesus!
In the Garden of Gethsemane we see a very touching picture of Jesus wrestling with facing the burden of carrying the sins of the world and dying for them. The scriptures describe what he was feeling as anguish, distress, feeling like he was dying, and even so stressed he sweat drops of blood.  Jesus cried out to God in His time in the garden and on the cross as he bled out and died.

“Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and He told the disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” Taking along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed. Then He said to them, “My soul is swallowed up in sorrow —to the point of death. Remain here and stay awake with Me.”  Going a little farther, He fell facedown and prayed, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup pass from Me. Yet not as I will, but as You will.” Matthew 26:36-39 HCSB

“Being in anguish, He prayed more fervently, and His sweat became like drops of blood falling to the ground.” Luke 22:44

And in the final moments of Jesus’ life we hear the depth of the pain He felt from being separated from God.
“From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over the whole land. About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out with a loud voice, “Elí, Elí, lemá sabachtháni?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
Matthew 27:45-46

A Common Thread
We are all in the depths, the pit or the “slough of despond” at one time or numerous times in our lives. During those times it is important to be aware of two things: where you are and that God is near.  Self – awareness is important in our life. We may not figure it all out but to be in touch with what we are feeling is good. We, like the people in these passages of scripture, need to realize when we are in trouble, regardless of the cause, and speak out to God.

The common thread in these accounts is the believer’s innate movement toward God. Whether out of anguish, frustration, despair, or hope they cried out to God. And – He responded to them with power, mercy and love.

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But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the Lord’s praise, for he has been good to me. Psalm 13:5-6