There Are Giants in the Land

Today I was reading a story in the Bible that I have probably read a 100 times. The reason that I have read this particular story so many times is that it was the favorite of my youngest son, Zachary. When our children were little we read "fun" stories before naptime and Bible stories at night before bedtime. It was a different child's turn each night and they could choose whatever story they wanted. Zachary always chose "David and Goliath". I wanted him to choose something new and different but that was never the case. This morning when I was reading from I Samuel 17 the story was more vivid than ever. Only this time I read with a different viewpoint than I had seen through a child's eyes. The story was still the same one I was familiar with but I was different. Which is the point of today's writing.

David shows up at camp bringing supplies to his brothers from the folks back home. When he gets there he hears the commotion and finds out the news about Goliath. And...he also saw the Israelites running from him in fear. I love his question that follows what he witnesses. "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?" He simply cannot believe that everyone is quaking in their warrior attire. That in turn makes his brother mad and he gets a "tongue-lashing" from his as his reward.

At this point David has two choices. He can duck his head and no longer embarrass his brothers and go back home or he can claim who he is. David chooses to believe what he has been taught since infancy and tells King Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him." King Saul and many others recount all of the reasons why this is a bad idea and not possible. Granted all of the reasons were valid ones and sounded reasonable. David does a remarkable thing here though. Rather than listen to the "nay sayers" he chooses to remember all of the things that God has done for him in the past. Because of that he tells King Saul, "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."

David goes out to battle with the weapons that God has used his entire life and he slays the giant. Make special note here - David does not try to "kill the giant in his own strength" with his weapons of choice. He tells Goliath, "I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you defied. This day the Lord will hand you over to me...all those gathered here will know it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's..." David knew that God had made him skillfull with a sling and a stone but this battle was going to require more than what he had to offer. His "giant" was way bigger than he could handle.

This story caused me to look both inward and outward. So many questions come to mind. What battles are raging in my life and what weapons am I using to fight the war? Have I practiced enough with the tools that God has given me to be effective in the fight? Or worse, am I standing on the sidelines shaking in fear and not fighting at all? Make no mistake - if we are believers we are at war. If Satan cannot prevent us from becoming Christ-followers then he wants to destroy everything in our lives that could be used by God. We each have at least one giant - some of us have more than one. And we need to defeat them to become all that God has for us. How? Glad you asked!

First, we need to acknowledge the giant for who and what it is. David saw the giant just like everyone else but he saw him as someone who had come to defy God and his chosen ones. That one recognition alone changes the battle. Ultimately the "giant" is defying God so that means God is in the fight now - not just me. The second thing we can do is "sharpen" our spiritual weapons. Prayer, scripture, other believers - all of these things make us more effective warriors. Next, we need to actually go out to do battle. So many times I stand on the sideline and wring my hands and fret over how bad things are but do nothing. David went to war - but not in his own strength. He refused to believe that he could kill a giant but he knew that God could so he went to war in God's strength and power. Last - he KILLED the giant. David did not just wound him and then send him back to camp to come out again the next day. David cut off his head and paraded the victory for all to see. Sometimes, I love my giant too much to kill it. I give it lots of time, attention, and lip service but never really kill it DEAD. (That is a topic worthy of it's own blog!)

I hope your day is filled with some victories. However, there is no victory on the bench. Kill some giants today! It will thrill you and encourage the rest of us too!

Good Friday

Have you ever read a book or watched a movie that the title was the exact opposite of what the movie was about. The name of today "Good Friday" is a great example of that very thought. It seems to be an odd name for a very horrible series of events. Over the years I have read accounts of the actual crucifixion process. Some illustrate various aspects of either Roman adeptness at corporal punishment or the many medical things that happen to a person who is being crucified. I even saw the movie The Passion of the Christ. All of it points to something more gruesome and horrific than we can even get our minds to comprehend. Yet, we call this day "Good Friday". If there was ever an oxymoron this would be it.

I included a picture of a place that I visited in Jerusalem that could be the place of the crucifixion - often known also as Calvary, Golgotha, or The Place of the Skull. Even if it is not the site - it lends itself to a powerful image of how it might have looked. Skulls create all kinds of illusions of death and evil. This picture certainly exudes that kind of feeling as well. Again, knowing the history of what took place there - an innocent man dying a terrible death - we celebrate today. The only way to explain that is in Paul Harvey's words "and now to the rest of the story".

Yes, Jesus did die and it was painful and it was horrible. But we can celebrate because He became that which we could never be - perfect. As a result, once and for all Jesus paid the debt owed on behalf of all mankind. At the time of his death, the curtain in the temple was torn completely in two exposing the "Holy of Holy's" - where God dwelt. That it happened at all was a miracle because of the thickness of the curtain - but the fact that it was torn in the direction from top to bottom signified that God was now accessible to all people. No more mediation by a priest and no more sacrifices would be needed. Jesus became our High Priest and mediator and was the perfect sacrifice.

That my friends is why we have Good Friday. We now have our debt paid and can enter the presence of God at any time. There are no more barriers and death and sin have been defeated once and for all time! And...Sunday is coming!