Deuteronomy is a book written to instruct the new generation of Israelites emerging from the wilderness.   In Deuteronomy 1:6, God tells His people, “you have dwelt long enough on this mountain:.  The children of Israel had wandered around for almost 38 years searching for the promised land. Now encamped on Mount Horeb, they receive this message.  What does it mean?  Why is it significant?  For 38 years, the blessing of the promised land never manifested.  Day after day, month after month, year after year, nothing but endless wandering came about. Each day ended like the one before it.  Have you ever felt that all your efforts in life were in vain? Have you ever felt like you were spinning your wheels and getting nowhere fast?  Though the Bible never actually describes what the children of Israel were thinking and experiencing during this 38 year journey, we can probably guess with accuracy as we could imagine ourselves in their shoes.  It’s not too hard to reenact what was going through their mind.  What we need to do though is look at the “why” of this whole thing.  Why were they experiencing all this?  To answer that question, we would have to turn back the hands of time, to the place this whole story began.

Close your eyes and paint a picture on the canvas of your mind.  The place is Egypt. The circumstance is slavery.  At this time, the children of Israel are slaves.   They are treated inhumanely and cruelty.  Life is hard.  Each day, life is more miserable than the day before.  Like a child screaming for the attention of their mother.  God’s children cry out to Him. Their  cries reach His ears.  His heart feels the pain and agony of His children.  Unbeknownst to His children, God already had a plan and it was about to unfold.  On the scene comes His man, Moses.  With God’s guidance and care, Moses leads the children out of bondage.  God show His power and mighty hand at work, and His children are eyewitnesses as the plot and plan unfolds before their very eyes.  The children are released into the able hand of their leader, Moses.  This is where the plight begins.

As the children make their way out of Egypt, they find that life has dealt them a number of challenges.  They that held them in bondage are now in hot pursuit for their return.  Without hesitation, the children forget all that happen and fear.  God moves, parts the sea, ensures their safe crossing, ensures their enemies’ death and provides for their needs.  They rejoice, but even that is short lived.  Every challenge that arose only brought about fear, doubt, unbelief, discontent and more.  Where was their faith in the God who brought them through the impossible?  Where were the memories?  Had they forgotten already?  Over and over God made a way. Over and over the children responded the same.  But when is enough, enough?  How many times did God have to prove Himself before the children believed, trusted, and had confidence in Him? God draws the ine and their journey begins.

By the time Moses delivers God message to the second generation, the unbelievers have all died off, that is all but Caleb and Joshua.  Moses must teach this new generation God’s commands.  He must show these people how the previous generation erred in their behavior and thinking.  How does He do that?  Moses reenacts the journey; he plays the movie in their minds and as they watch he points out where they went wrong.  Ok, what that have to do with us?

Have you ever felt that you have been stuck at a point in your life for too long?  Do you feel that life is racing by you and still your situation hasn’t changed much?  Well, that’s where the children of Israel were.  They encamped on a mountain waiting for God to take them to the next place, just as we are.  Our mountain is our challenges we face. Just as God led them from the mountain to the promised land, He has to lead us from our situations into our solutions.  Just as the children of Israel had to travel through the great and terrible wilderness, so we have to travel through some very trying times, tests and trials.  How long we stay depends on us. for the children of Israel, their attitudes determined the outcome.  Ten times trials came.  Ten times, they forgot. Ten times they complained, mumbled, grumbled, moaned, groaned, and provoked God to anger.  Finally God drew the line and withheld the promised land from the unbelieving generation.  God in His mercy, allowed the new generation, Joshua and Caleb to receive the covenant promise.  We are no different than the children of Israel.  How many times has God brought us through trying times? How many times has God made a way out of no way?  How many times has God provided, healed, taught, protected, guided, comforted, loved and forgiven us?  Yet at the first sign of trouble we panic, worry, lose faith and more.  We mumble, grumble, complain, moan and groan.  We question and even at times refuse to see past what our human minds can control and rationalize through.  Where is our faith?  Where is our trust?

We control our minds – what enters and what stays.  As long as we rest upon our human side, we have no hope of seeing anything but despair and failure.  We stay in our wilderness place, roaming from place to place in search of the promised land.  We allow the enemy to feed our mind with lies and deception, and we believe.  We allow these lies to take root and ultimately we choose to remain where we are instead of allowing ourselves to walk through the storm to the promise.  Are you wandering in the wilderness of life bogged down with fear, doubt, and unbelief?  Has your way of thinking kept you from being led into the promised land?  Every man has a choice of what to feed their mind. Will your choice be to walk out of your wilderness? Take the chance.  Allow God to lead you into all He promised, that is, your promised land.

How many times have we let our eyes gauge our situations?  How many times have we allowed our human mind to reason through our trials?  When we walked in the world without the knowledge of God, we often face challenges in our lives too overwhelming for us to handle.  As a result, we’d worry and stress over the possible outcomes and how we would fair.  We never knew what would happen from one moment to the next.  Our lives would be overcome with fear, doubt, negative thoughts and the like.  Then one day, God reveals Himself to us. We accept His invitation to be Lord over our life.  Over time, He proves Himself to us, bringing us out of our trials, providing four our every need, performing miracles and more. Things seem to be going well in the early stages our our relationship, but how many of you know that as we grow and mature in God, He expects us to exercise our faith more?  The trials increase. From our perspective, our life takes a turn for the worse.  Here is where we should look back upon our past and remember all God has done.  Here is where we should trust and believe.  Her is where we should stand confidently and firmly in the midst of our storms, yet, for most, here is where life falls apart.  We allow our human nature to take over our reasoning of our human hearts and minds.  Trust and faith take a leap out the proverbial window.  Struggles take hold.  We forget all we experience, all we witnessed, and all we learned and reach back into our nature and react accordingly.  Many of us give up long before the trials end, forgetting the truth of God’s promises and losing sight of the important fact of Who’s in control.

This is where our studies begin.  In Numbers 14, the children of Israel are right in this exact spot.  They had experienced miracle after miracle, received promise after promise, and lived with God like no other people, yet after all this, they still reverted back to unbelief and every situation arose.  Though God had brought them out of bondage, saved them from death and destruction, and provided for their every need, they still weren’t satisfied.  In Chapter 14, the people of Israel are responding to the news reports they had just received from the scouts.  It is said, that the initial response of a person is usually the most accurate indication of that person’s heart.

All but the last two of the scouts returned with a negative report.  As the people listened intent, they began to fear all that lay ahead.  Instinctively and immediately, they respond with complaints and accusations of their leaders.  Their reaction indicated that they had no memory of their freedom from Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, the events of the Egyptian pursuit, the provisions of water, manna and meat or anything else God had done for them.  Seeing their response and knowing God’s mind, Moses and Aaron fall on their faces on their behalf, interceding before God for  their lives.  While they are doing this, Caleb and Joshua stand to be recognized.  They top participated in scouting this land, but their report differed drastically from that of the scouting party.  They see the land through their eyes of faith and trust in God’s promises and past performances.  They remind the people of that very thing, though their report was disregarded.  Displeased, God’s wrath is about to be loosed upon this unbelieving race.  Fortunately, Moses comes to the rescue.  With humility and reverence, He intercedes before the Creator on behalf of the people, pointing out how God’s plan of destruction would be perceived to the surrounding nations who had already heard of His might.  As a result, God spares the people, but rescinds His promise to those in unbelief.  Only Joshua and Caleb would inherit the land.

What you see isn’t what you get! When we look through our human eyes we can only see failure, defeat, death, hopelessness and the like.  Without the Spirit of faith, without the provision of God, we can only reap the fruit of despair and all it brings.  What you see isn’t what you get when God is involved.  With God, we are given spiritual eyes to see our situations in a different light.  What was once impossible now becomes possible.  Our spiritual eyes accept that we are nothing apart from God.  The worst situations with no solutions, now become situations with possibles.  What you see isn’t what you get!

Instead of complaining, begin praying.  Humbling yourself, cast your problems upon the Lord, then look at the situation through your spiritual eyes as the result come about.  Had the people looked at the land through their spiritual eyes, they would have seen a land without the obstacles.  God would have done as before and opened up the door of opportunities and rained down blessings and provisions.

As I read and reread these verses, I notice that not much was said about Abraham prior to God telling him to go from the land, yet verse one says, “the Lord said to Abram”. That one statement started speaking to me almost immediately. Why? Well, as I look back at my life with God, I realized that I didn’t recognize God’s voice, much less understand what He was telling me, yet Abraham was spoken to and obeyed, that is, he recognized and understood God’s voice. This alone tells me that though he came from a pagan land, he had a relationship with God. Abraham had to have reached a deeper and fuller level of maturity and knowledge with God than most. He was no longer a baby in God. To receive a blessing of this magnitude, to be initially mentioned at this point in his life indicates that self sacrifice, obedience, submission, spiritual transformation had to take place some time over the previous 75 years of his life. Though God doesn’t reveal to us the life of Abraham prior to now, it isn’t too hard to see that a process had taken place and Abraham was now ready to fulfill God’s purpose for his life. This point was the start of that purpose and a test of his training.

There is alot said in these seven verses. God commanded, Abraham exercised in faith and chose. God promised, Abraham exercised faith and believed. God waited, Abraham exercised faith and obedience, and went. God appeared and promised, Abraham in faith responded with heart felt worship. As you can see, at no time did God reveal the entire plan to Abraham. It was a step-by-step revelation, with each step being the trigger point for the next, each step serving as the mechanism for growth in faith.

These verses also show me something about God. God told Abraham to move away from his relatives, yet he took his nephew, Lot, with him. Though Scripture tells us of all the challenges that arise as a result of this disobedience, God still speaks blessings upon Abraham. This shows the deep love God has for us. Even though God is a just and righteous God, He blessed Abraham in the midst of disobedience. He did not take away the repercussions or events that resulted from that disobedience. The seed that was sown in disobedience was the seed that was reaped in the challenges arising from his wrong choice. Abraham received the blessing God promised. Unselfishly and out of love, the first response showed Abraham’s true character and heart’s condition. Abraham humbled himself by recognizing God first and foremost in all he received. He put God first before anything and anyone. A true disciple recognizes his master before himself.

Let’s go back to Genesis 6:1-7 and see a similar trend by looking at the Lord’s call to Noah.

Again we another of God’s chosen brought to the forefront.  Before Noah is approached to build the ark, nothing is mentioned about him except his brief genealogy.  We don’t know anything about him prior to that time, however, the same thing can be said about Noah as was said about Abraham previously.  For God to have commissioned Noah to accomplish the great task of building an ark, he would have had to reach some level in the maturity in faith and intimacy in God.  Every Christian must be prepared for the task he has been called for.  Preparation takes time.  Over time, trials come to make us spiritually strong.  As we grow spiritually, we eventually reach a point where we are deemed ready to assume our position.  This is where Noah is.

From the time of the fall of Adam, the human race continued its downward spiral.  Every heart had reached the very pit of depravity, except that of Noah.  Evil has a tendency to contaminate and spread rapidly.  Spreading in epidemic proportions, all mankind became infected except one, Noah.  To be identified as righteous at this point was a feat that Noah reached.  From the Scriptures, I can see that life began with distinction.  This is shown by the Words, “the Sons of God” and “the daughters of man”.  This distinction is important in gaining insight to the condition of man’s heart and motives, and the condition of the world at that particular point in time.  It also shows us the effects that people can have upon one another.  The use of “the sons of God” and “the daughters of man” tells us that there were two kinds of hearts – those serving God and those serving Satan.  Alone, one group brought hope, that is, in its purest form they focused on One.  Like a deadly infectious disease, the complacent minds of the holy one subtly allowed themselves to be infected by the things of the world.  Like a lion on the prowl, their minds became prey and the purity of heart they had once possessed became polluted with the evil tendency of satan’s servants, attitudes and ways.  What once distinguished these groups from each other, now became the thing that identified them as one entity.  Evil had now taken root in the hearts of all except one, Noah.  Hope for the future lay in the heart of this man and through that one man, life was preserved.

As a christian, we must keep guard over our hearts. Our environment has a way of polluting all it touches, hence, your warning – keep guard, be alert.  As we grow in God, God will ask us to go away from this land, that is, go away from those of evil influence. Now I can see why God removed us like He did, only exposing us to what He knew we could handle without becoming contaminated, without becoming infected.

Abraham and Noah were pregnant with a purpose.  Just as a fetus grows in the womb of a woman, developing into a distinct unique individual, so also does a Christian.  The fetus begins with a single egg merging with a sperm.  The joining of the two bring about creation.  With each minute of time that passes, development and growth take place.  The organism begins to take on a life of its own.  The essential elements of development form.  The organism now becomes an individual.  Development continues up to the point where the fetus can survive outside the protected environment.  All the vital elements required to survive have basically developed.  At this point, the mother gives birth and the process of maturity begins.

We Christians develop much the same way.  We are the egg, God is the sperm. We were released into society and through the unction of the spirit, we were joined or united with God.  As God merges His DNA with ours, spiritual development occurs.  God’s DNA determines or sets our purpose.  As development takes place, our vital organs are brought to maturity – our hearts and minds accept in faith, our eyes spiritually see, our ears spiritually hear, the Spirit of God within us begins to beat harmoniously with ours.  We begin to take on a life, that is, we begin to walk in the image of our Creator.  When we have reached full term, we are birthed into our purpose, that is, the purpose we were predestined to by God.

It has always been God’s intent for man to have an intimate relationship with Him. This relationship began with Adam and Eve. Though the Bible does not tell us how long Adam communed with God before Satan slithered his way into the lives of God’s first man and woman, we know that they spiritually died to God resulting in all men sharing that same separation. Hope wasn’t lost however. God sent, Jesus, the second Adam who knew no sin. 2 Corinthians 5:18, says that through Him we were given the opportunity to be reconciled to God, who knew that He was not only going to give Jesus for us, but knew He was going to be able to reach and change us through this reconciliation.

2 Corinthians 5:17 tells is that if we be risen in Christ Jesus, we rose as a different person then when we died, that is, different in quality. We are not who we use to be. Through an act of faith, we were saved by grace, putting to death the old nature in order that we might allow Jesus to live within us. To reap the full benefits of our salvation however, we must put on our new nature, allowing our minds to be transformed by the Word of God (Romans 12:2). How do we do that? We find out who we are in Christ by studying and meditating on God’s Word and then changing the way we think and speak in relationship to who we are. The more we allow the Spirit of the Word to manifest in our lives, the more we become the byproduct of our thoughts, words and actions. This however, is not a one time process, it is a daily commitment. By transforming our minds daily, we are enabled to walk in our heavenly authority. As our hearts are illuminated by God’s Word, we will learn what kind of access we have to Him.

When we died and were raised with Jesus, we became a new man. That new man took on the image of Jesus in every way. The old person we were died to Him. That means we have the same power and authority Jesus has, but most of us fail to realize that because the enemy has made it his mission to ensure we never fully understand or receive that point. He blinds us with thoughts of inadequacy, fills our minds with lies, condemnation, fear and doubt, tells us what we can’t do. In this state, our faith is weakened. In this weakened state of faith, we struggle to keep the enemy at bay. We must learn to silence the enemy the minute the onslaught of negative thoughts arise in our mind. Speak the promises of God out loud. As we do, we become what we speak, “for our mouth speaks out of the abundance of the heart”.

2 Corinthians 5:20 tells us “we are therefore Christ’s ambassadors”. For this reason, it is important for us to have the new qualities and nature living in us so as to bring us to spiritual maturity, the place where only the Word of God exists in us. To do this, we must rid ourselves of views contrary to God’s Word. In taking on the new nature, we must recognize that we are no longer sinners. 2 Peter 1:3-4 tells us that God’s divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness. It adds that God gives us the precious promise to pardon our sin. Sin is alive and was given right to enter the world by Adam, but the same sin was broken and defeated by Jesus. Jesus is the Word. By always walking in agreement with God’s Word, in faith, we open our heart up to Jesus (Ephesians 3:17), allowing the power of God to flow through us while giving us the ability to enforce his every Word.

It is this faith that gives us confidence that we are the righteous and holy ones of God. As we earnestly seek Him, He promises to reward us as we walk into the purpose to which He has called us. As we grow in mind and soul with Jesus, we will begin to see the awesome power of God manifest right before our eyes and the eyes of the world. God has called each of us to go into all the world and preach the good new to all creation (Mark 16:15). As we serve and grow, God will entrust us with more, taking us to new dimensions.

Any soldier knows that to be successful in any battle, they must know their enemy in and out. What we as Christians fail to see, is that we are all soldiers for God. It is important to know who our enemy is, for without that knowledge how can we fight against him? The Bible tells us that the devil is prowling like a lion seeking who he may devour. I don’t know about you, but everyday is a challenge and those challenges take on many forms. For this reason, I decided it’s high time to get to know our enemy and his fallen angels. 

Let’s turn to 1 Timothy 4:1, “Now the Spirit says expressly that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, following after misleading spirits and doctrines of devils.”

We live in the latter times where devils and demons are battling for control of our souls.  What most of fail to realize is what position we have in Christ, making it easier for us to be misled by the enemy. 

We all know the story of Adam, but there is so much to his story that we overlook.  God created Adam in his image, after His own likeness.  The Bible says, that God is Spirit and we must worship Him in Spirit and in truth.  So that means we are Spirit also.  Deep within us we have a spirit man that Christ occupies when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior.  Have you ever wondered why it is that we have so many struggles to walk like Him?    The Bible tells us that upon man’s creation, God gave him dominion over the earth, the fish of the sea, the fowl of the air, the cattle, and the wild beasts that move upon it.  That means that God gave a man made of flesh to have dominion.  When Adam sinned against God by eating the forbidden fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil, he became spiritually separated from God, impacting mankind forever.  That, however, wasn’t the only impact Adam’s sin had upon man.  When the enemy lured God’s first creation to sin, he wrested man dominion over all that God had ordained.  Through one man’s sin, all mankind was condemned and through one man’s obedience, all were made righteous.  This is important to our study, as this one point is the key to fighting the devil and his fallen angels.

When man was created by God, he was created in a physical body.  Man is made up of three parts: the body, the soul and the spirit.  That physical body contains the spirit man and soul.  The Spirit and the Soul are housed within our hearts.  When we accept Christ, God’s Spirit immediately inhabits the Spirit of our bodies.  There we are the image of Christ.  So what’s the problem?  We are made up of more than a Spirit, we are also made up of a soul which possesses the mind, will and emotions.  This soul is the rational thinking man within us, the part the devil seeks to destroy.  This part is not instantly holy and righteous, as it has to be allowed to be influenced by the Spirit man inside us. 

Most of us don’t fully relinquish our minds to the Spirit of the Word of God.  We hold on to its every thought, not knowing or being aware that many of the thoughts we hold on to are implanted there by the enemy.  If the enemy can get us to dwell upon those thoughts, he is able to direct our word and actions.  If we dwell upon those thoughts long enough, we become what we think as evidenced by the words that come from our mouth.  Now the mouth has power to create, so what we speak out, is what we reap in our life.  When we speak out our negative thoughts, we unknowingly invite the enemy into our lives to wreak havoc.  The key to our overcoming the enemy is allow the spirit man within us to align our thoughts up with the Word of God.  Our thoughts will then carry over to our words.  When we speak the words of God, they will affect our soul and reach through us to the outside and affect our surroundings.  Let me say this one more time – the spirit and the soul must be aligned for us to reap the benefits of our Salvation to the fullest and to be empowered to overcome the enemy seeking to kill, steal and destroy.

So what significance did Jesus have for us?  When Jesus died upon the cross, we died with him.  Just as Adam experience a spiritual separation from God, so Jesus experienced the same separation as God turned his face from Him.  When Jesus was buried in the grave, we also were buried in the grave.  Just as Adam experienced a physical death, Jesus also experienced the same kind of death.  When Jesus went to hell for three days, He took upon  Himself the penalty we would pay in the day of judgment.  The good news though, is Jesus didn’t stay down for long.  In three days, He was raised to the right hand of the throne, where the Bible says we also were raised and now sit.

So what does that mean to us?  When we died and were raised with Jesus, we became a new man.  That new man took on the image of Jesus in every way.  The old person we were died to Him.  That means we have the same power and authority Jesus has, but most of us fail to realize that because the enemy has made it his mission to ensure we never fully understand or receive that point.  He blinds us with thoughts of inadequacy, fills our minds with lies, tells us what we can’t do, fills our minds with condemnation, fear, doubt and more. In this state, our faith is weakened.  In the weakened state, we struggle to keep the enemy at bay.  We must learn to silence the enemy the minute the onslaught of negative thoughts arise in our mind.  Speak the promises of God out loud.  As we do, we become what we speak, “for the mouth speaks out of the abundance of the heart”.   Remember the heart is where the spirit and soul dwell.

This means that we are going to come into a confrontation; we are going to run into opposition of the devil when we live for God. The Bible tells us to fight the good fight of faith. We are living in the last days and the devil has intensified his power. As a result of seducing spirits, men are departing from the faith. God gave the faith of the gospel to be kept by us. He gave the doctrines of the gospel to be guarded by us. It’s easy to identify evil when it’s coming from a mosque, but it’s not so easy to identify the doctrine of devils when it is taught from a pulpit in the church.

The key point to remember is that the enemy has no power, except that which we give Him.  He doesn’t want us to know that and as long as we stay blinded, he is empowered to bring havoc upon our lives. We are duped to believe that he has a god given right to operate the way he is operating. 

So who is this enemy, where did he come from?

Let’s read Ezekial 28:13-19 and find out who it is we are fighting against and  what the devil gains by lying?  To get to the root of the answers to these questions, we must build our doctrines and thoughts upon the Word of God.  So let’s see what God’s Word has to say…

“You have been in Eden, the garden of God; you were decked with every precious stone, the sardius, the topaz, and the emerald, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire and the pearls; and you have filled your treasuries with gold and your chests with precious stones; you had all of these things from the day you were created.  You were with the anointed cherub that shelters; and I have set you on the holy mountain of God; and you were safe in the midst of the stones of fire.  You were perfect in your ways, from the day that you were created till iniquity was found in you. By the multitude of your merchandise you have filled the land with iniquity and you have sinned; therefore I will cast you from this mountain of God; and I will destroy you, O sheltering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.  Since your heart was lifted up because of your beauty, now your wisdom and your beauty are corrupted; I will cast you to the ground before kings, that you may be a spectacle before them.  By the multitude of your frauds, by the iniquity of your traffic, you have defiled your sanctuary; therfore I will bring forth a fire from the midst of you, and it shall devour you, and I will reduce you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all those who see you.”

Though the opinions of man vary as to who created the devil, the Bible is quite clear.  GOD DID NOT CREATE SATAN!!  God creates only that which is good.  These verses tell us that God created a high, beautiful, brilliant, powerful, angelic being full of holiness, full of the nature that belongs to the people of God.  The book of Job tells us that when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, Satan also came.  It is pretty clear that Satan was not classified as a “son of God”, indicating that he had fallen from God’s grace.  It is also clear in these verses, that God is putting the blame on the devil for being what the devil has become and done.  God is exempt from and takes no responsibility for what His enemy has become.

Ezekial 28:14 tells us this cherub was perfect in all his ways.  John 8:44 says that the devil did not continue to dwell in the truth.  In the beginning, Lucifer was an angel of truth, but he did not continue in truth; he fell from the truth.  That is why he so good at lying.  He was perfect until iniquity was found in him.  The  next verse tells us that the devil was filled with violence and sinned.  God has nothing to do with sin! In this holy place and in the holy angels, something happened to Lucifer to cause him to be filled with violence and to sin, for iniquity to be found in him.  This verse tells us that it was because of the multitude of his merchandise.  Evidently the enemy before he was the enemy had a high ranking place in the heavenly realm and was involved in some kind of trade/order giving.  He was one of the three archangels of God.  He had angelic hosts under his rulership and dominion (Rev 12:4).  He’s an orator.  Because of the abundance that he had, the Bible says he was filled with violence.  He plotted to take spiritual, violent action against God and his angels for this reason.  Obviously he was not satisfied with what he had and felt that what God had belonged to Him (Isaiah 14).

When Lucifer lifted his heart up and corrupted his wisdom, many things happened.  Iniquity was found in him.  He was filled with violence,  and his heart was corrupted.  The Bible further tells us that Lucifer defiled his own sanctuaries indicating there were many sanctuaries.  For this to be, had had to be high ranking.  How did he defile it?  “By the multitudes of his iniquities of thy traffic”.  Obviously, angels were going in and out of his sanctuaries, meetings were being held, sermons were probably being preached to get these angels to get involved with him and follow him to overthrow God.  Up to now, God is not involved, but believe me judgment is justified.  The fall of Lucifer did not come when God cast him out of heaven, it came when Satan’s heart went astray and became rebellious.  When he fell, he fell from the purpose God created him for.

Knowing your enemy is a key to your successful walk with God.  Changing your thought patterns by saturating your mind with the Word of God is your weapon.  Be a doer and a hearer of the Word, and faithfully stand upon the promises of God, knowing you have the power and authority to overcome the wiles of the devil when your spirit, body and soul are aligned in the Word of God.

The most famous battle in the Old Testament was not fought between two armies, but between two people.  It was the battle in the Valley of Elah between David and Goliath.  Before however, we look at this battle, let’s look at something that occurred prior to that battle (1 Samuel 16:7) when the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as a man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

We are just like Samuel, looking at the surface appearance of a person when making judgment to what kind of person one is.  If God’s statement ever applied, it applied in the story of this battle, as Goliath had all the things that would normally impress and intimidate.  But don’t underestimate David.  In this instance, David had been given the ability to see as God always sees, and was neither impressed or intimidated by the mountain of a man standing before him.

Now let’s take a look at the battleground (1 Samuel 17:1-3). The valley of Elah was not a narrow ravine, but more like a vast canyon.  The area was probably about a mile wide, opening wider toward the mouth of the canyon.  At the bottom of the ravine between the slopes, was the streambed where David found the stones for his sling.  To one side there was a great slope a half mile or more in size,  Opposite was another vast slope of another half mile, stretching a full mile across.  Camped on one slope was the army of Israel and on the other, the army of the Philistines.

Now let’s consider the major players of this story.  First, there was Goliath, whose size and appearance were so impressive that the Bible describes him in detail as (1 Samuel 17:4), “then a champion came out from the armies of the Philistines named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.” Goliath was somewhere near 9′ 9″ tall…an enormous man.  But is wasn’t just his size.

1 Samuel 17:5-7 says that Goliath was wearing a coat of mail.  Underneath was a heavy canvaslike undergarment interlaced with overlapping ringlets of bronze.  This coat of mail went from shoulder to kneww, covering and protecting against the enemy’s weapons.  Body armor of such material and size weighed five thousand shekels of bronze or between 175-200 pounds.  That was the armor alone, but Goliath also wore a bronze helmet and leggings (greaves) to protect his shins, not to mention, he carrieda bronze javelin slung between his shoulders.  The head of his spear alone weighed six hundred shekels of iron or about 20-25 pounds.  The written account also says that he had a “shield carrier” who walked before him.  This shield carrier was designed to protect his body from the enemy’s arrows and was the size of a full grown man.  So in addition to the body armor, Goliath had a man running in front of him, carrying a man-size shield as double protection.  Pause a moment and allow your mind to picture such an imposing sight.  Imagine how frightening it would be to take on a giant of this size protected by this amount of armor.  Clearly, the odds are stacked against anyone foolish enough to face him in battle.

Notice what this mountain of a giant did.  1 Samuel 17:8-9, “He stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel and said to them, “Why do you come out to draw up in battle array?  Am I not the Philistine and you servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves and let him come down to me.  If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will become your servants but if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall become our servants and serve us.” What Goliath did was common in those days, that is, a representative battle, one-on-one fight.  He would represent the Philistines and whoever Israel chose would represent the Israelite army.  Whoever won, his army won.  Goliath didnt issue the challenge one time, his challenge went on for forty days, both morning and evening.  Each time, he flaunted his size and strength, spewing challenges to anyone who would take him on. Isn’t that how the giants of our circumstances and emotions attack us.  They don’t just come once, they attack repeatedly and consistently day after day, relentlessly trying to intimidate.  They come in all forms – people, pressures, worry, fear and more.   Some hammer on your heart, some yelling across the ravine in your own personal valley.  What are you to do?  The story of David will set a pattern for us to follow, so let’s go back to where we left off and see what happened as the battle unfolds before our very eyes.

About 10-15 miles away, David is out keeping sheep.  He’s too young to fight in the army.  What did he know?  David’s father, concerned about his three oldest sons who now fought in Saul’s army.  Unable to make the trip for himself, Jesse sends David to check on them (1 Samuel 17:17-18).  David arises early and sets out to do as his father had asked.  Try to imagine what must have been going through David’s mind as he came over the top of the last rise and saw the enemy spread out below him.  Then as he gets to the edge of the Israelite camp, he sees the troops heading out for battle and hears the war cry. You can tell he is excited and wants to watch, wouldn’t anyone?

(1 Samuel 17:22-23) Picture this for a moment… David is standing there talking to his three brothers, when all of a sudden he hears this loud cry from across the ravine.  Suddenly everyone around him is rushing to the rear and climbing into their tents (1 Samuel 17:24)”.  As he looks across the ravine, he sees Goliath fully girded in armor, cursing the God of Israel.  He must have been livid.  Can you imagine the thoughts running through his mind?

Unlike any other, David saw the present through seeing the hindsight and he wasn’t impressed or intimidated.  1 Samuel 17:26-27 tells us that David asks the men standing by him, what will be done for the man who kills Goliath and takes away the reproach of Israel?  Remember, Saul had given the men an incentive for killing Goliath, but the problem was no one, but himself, was qualified to fight.  Can you see Saul now?  Standing head and shoulder above everybody else, he, their leader, cowers away, but not without a plan for someone else to do his dirty work.

The incentives were more than any one man could imagine, but I want you to notice something – Goliath’s position on this particular day. The Bible tells us that he stood shouting to the ranks of Israel, but look at what is said on the day David arrives, (1 Samuel 17:25), “have you seen this man who is coming up?” That’s right, Goliath has now crossed the ravine at the base of the vally and is coming up Israel’s side.  You see, if you tolerate a Goliath, he’ll take over your territory.  He’ll move into your camp.  He’ll take over your thoughts that normally ought to be on God.  That’s why you can’t affort to tolerate giants, you kill them.

Now let’s look at what happens next.  It’s what Christians often go through during a time of standing by faith, they get flak and it often comes from members of their own family, in this case, David’s brother, Eliab (1 Samuel 27:28).  Don’t forget who Eliab is – he is the son of Jesse who first walked into the house and Samuel thought was king.  Eliab couldn’t have been too happy to see his younger brother chosen to be king, much less be blessed above him, the oldest.  Taken that, he attacks David’s motives and proceeds to humiliate David. Now an average person probably would have punched his brother’s lights out, but instead David ignores him and continues his line of questioning. David knew who to fight and who to leave alone.  Like David we need to choose our battles wisely.  Know who your real enemy is.

When Saul hears about the questions David is asking and the comments he is making, he sends for David (1 Samuel 17:32-33).  Now remember, King Saul is the guy who doesn’t want to fight, but he won’t admit it.  Looking at this small puny child standing before him, he proceeds to tell David that he had bit off more than he could chew, but how many of you know that when God is on your side, size and experience play no role in successfully bringing down any giant.

David is not phased by Saul’s doubt.  Before him, he sees no situation to huge for the Lord to deliver him from.  David didn’t focus on the defeats and failures of his life, he looked at the successes that God had brought him through.  Saul finally accepts David’s request and proceeds to prepare him for battle.  Must have been a funny site to see Saul dressing little David in his armor.  David, however is unable to handle the weapons made for Saul.  What may have worked for Saul, in this case, wouldn’t have worked for David.  Have you ever noticed how we always try to put our armor on someone else or put someone else’s armor on ourselves?  That’s not the way to do battle. God provides each of us our own unique armor to overcome the battles of life.

So here’s David, stripped down to his own simple garments and armed with his own simple shepherd weapons – his sling and his staff – ready to do battle. The beautiful thing about this story is that it’s a perfect example of how God operates.  He magnifies His name when we are weak.  We don’t have to be eloquent, strong or handsome.  We don’t have to be brilliant or have all the answers to be blessed of God.  He honors our faith.  All He asks is that we trust Him, stand before Him in integrity and faith, and He’ll win the battles.  God is just waiting for his moment.

The odds were against David. After picking up the stones, he approaches the giant Philistine warrior with a smile (1 Samuel 17:41-46).  Just imagine it – David stood before this mountain size rock of a man, unintimidated!

Intimidation is one of our major battles in life when we face the giants before us.  We get tongue tied, confused and even forget to pray.  We focus on the odds against us, forgetting who we represent, standing there with our knees knocking.  David’s eyes weren’t on the giant.  Intimidation played no part in his life,  His eyes were on God.  With invincible confidence, he turns the battle over to God.  David lived by a very simple rule – “nothing to prove, nothing to lose”.  He didn’t try to impress anyone, he just ran to meet Goliath.  In the final moments, he readies his sling and with a whoosh, it’s all over.  The stone flies through the air and lodges in the skull of the giant, and there he falls to his death.  The Philistines didn’t wait around after that, their champion was dead.   Out of this battle, the real truth emerged, evident to the troops on both sides of the valley – Goliath was the dwarf and David was the giant.

Winning victories is extremely significant.  Remember them! God doesn’t waste victories.  When He pulls something off that only He can do, He tells us to not forget them.  Four lessons emerge from this battle between David and Goliath.

1) Facing giants is an intimidating experience.  We can look at David’s bravery and victory with perfect hindsight, knowing that God is greater than any giant we face.

2) Doing battle is a lonely experience.  No one can fight for you.  It is on the lonely battlefield that you learn to trust God.

3) Trusting God is a stabilizing experience.  David brought down Goliath with the first stone.  His aim was true and didn’t miss the mark.  He was stabilized by his trust in God.  If you try to tackle your giants in the flesh, you cannot get it done; you’ll lose.

4) Winning victories is a memorable experience.

I dont know what your intimidating giant is today, but God is saying to you right now, “All I ask of you is five small stones and a sling of faith.  I’ll take it from there.  You don’t have to wear somebody else’s armor.  You just trust Me and I’ll strip you down to nothing but faith, accomplishing a victory where I’ll get the glory.  But as for you…trust Me.”  It is God’s love for us that causes Him to bring us to an end of our own strength.  He sees our need to trust Him and His love is so great that He will not let us live another day without turning over our arms to Him, our fears, our worries, even our confusion, so that nothing becomes more significant to us than our Father.  Never, ever forget it: THE BATTLE IS THE LORDS!!!

Regardless of who we are, music seems to be the very thing that soothes the soul.  Music dates back to the times of Jubal (Genesis 4:21) and is spoken of throughout the book of Psalms.

The Bible says that “the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evil spirit from the Lord terrorized him (1 Samuel 16:14-15)”.  The Bible doesn’t tell us why God allowed the evil spirit to terrorize Saul, but we can assume that God wasn’t too pleased that he had walked against His will.  Can you imagine Saul’s struggle?  Saul only struggled with an inward feeling of depression at the rejection announced to him, but he felt melancholy, insane and without peace.  The evil spirit stirred up feelings, ideas, imaginations, and thoughts within his soul that drove him to the point of madness.  No one around Saul knew what was happening within Saul’s soul, but they realized he needed help and boldly suggested that to him (1 Samuel 16:16-17).

In Biblical times, music was thought to soothe passions, heal mental diseases and even hold riots in check.  It is interesting how God used these beliefs to set the stage for David.  Someone happens to hear that Saul is looking for a musician and the door now opens for David to come on scene (1 Samuel 16:18).  Wow! what a resume! This verse describes David as a skillful musician, a mighty man of valor, a warrior, prudent at speech, handsome and the Lord was with him.

David didn’t know it, but he was getting ready to enter boot camp on the road to becoming a king.  David had to be all God said he was as he never once pulled rank on Saul, never one became jealous or envious of the king’s position, he was truly anointed to let the Lord open all the doors to his future.  David was a man after God’s own heart.  When David walked into the king’s presence, Saul had no idea that he would someday replace him on the throne.  David did what God had called him to do.  With a servant’s heart, he tended to Saul, becoming his armor bearer.  The Bible tells us that Saul came to love David because “it came about whenever the evil spirit from God came to Saul, David would take the harp and play it with his hands; and Saul would be refreshed and be well, and the evil spirit would depart from him (1 Samuel 16:23)”. Can you picture Saul lying on his bed or pacing like a caged animal, writhing from the madness raging within him and there in the corner David sits playing his harp, maybe even singing?

God was definitely with David whose music would not only soothe the soul of a king, but would someday fill the pages of Scripture in the written Word.  The king not  only found relief from his torment, but he found love in his heart for the young shepherd boy whose music touched his soul.

Like David, a spirit filled saint is a song-filled saint.  God’s antenna is always attuned to the praises of his saints.  Never mind how beautiful or pitiful you may sound. Sing out! Sing Loud!, making melodies with your heart to the King of Kings, the Lord your God. If you listen closely, you may even hear the angelic hosts answering back.

Soft music for a hard heart is what David provided Saul.  That’s the soul music that Christ provides and that’s the place we must begin.  He died, was buried, rose from the dead and was resurrected that we may have life and a desire to live a positive, fulfilling life free from depression and despair.  He is our Shepherd and we are his sheep, needing the music of His Voice.  We can rejoice and exult in God together.

Who was this man Saul?  What did the people see in him?  This Saul was a real piece of work.  Shortly after becoming king, the people would see the real person Saul was inside.  His actions and decisions soon revealed that he was a selfish, angry, hateful, mean-spirited man.  Later in his rule, something snapped in his mind.  He lost touch with reality, proving himself unqualified for the throne.  So what happened?

Not long after Saul began his reign, Samuel caught him in three serious acts of disobedience: first Saul made a terrible decision (1 Samuel 13); then he made a rash vow against his own son (1 Samuel 14); and finally, he openly disobeyed God (1 Samuel 15).   Samuel confronts Saul and much to his dismay, Saul tries to rationalize his actions, later pleading his guilt.  Saul in attempts to maintain his image before the people, begs Samuel to return with him to worship the Lord.  Samuel not buying it for a minute, delivers a straight-from-the-shoulder jab that Saul would never forget (1 Samuel 15:26-30). Though Samuel finally agreed to return with Saul, he never saw him again after this (1 Samuel 15:35).  The tragedy is Saul never, ever fully repented of his sin.

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves though.  Samuel is beginning to feel the pressure.  The people have elected Saul, but he is no longer qualified for the throne.  What were the people to do?  Israel was surrounded by enemies, so they needed someone to lead the nation, but who?  No one knew but God.  How many of you know that long before the problem arises, God is already behind the scenes working it out.  Just because man fails, changes, or dies, does not mean that God fails, changes or dies.  Isaiah 65:24 tells us that before we call, He will answer, and while we are speaking, He will hear.  Nothing is a surprise to God.  He knows exactly what He’s going to do and nothing we do can restrain His bringing it to pass.

In 1 Samuel 16:1, God tells Samuel to go to Bethlehem to find the man He had chosen to replace Saul.  Unfortunately, Samuel in his shaken state, had taken his eyes off God and now appears to be panic-stricken as he realizes he is to return to the very place where the murderous Saul lived. Without answering Samuel’s question, God tells Samuel what to do (1 Samuel 16:2-3).  What of David? David knows nothing of God’s plan.  For him, it was just like any other morning.  Little did he know that his life would never be the same again, but the beautiful thing about this adventure called faith is that we can count on Him never to lead us astray.  God knows exactly where He is taking us.  Our only job is to obey, to live in close fellowship with God as we walk our earthly path.  In the process of that simple arrangement, God engages us in His eternal plan. So what happens next?

1 Samuel 16:4 tells us Samuel did what the Lord said.   Samuel takes the sacrifice to the house of Jesse.  The elders of the city see the prophet approaching and go to greet him in fear, their minds wondering why he has come.   In preparation of what was to come, Jesse and his sons are instructed to consecrate themselves in preparation of the sacrifice. Unaware of why Samuel was there, Jesse and his sons gather together before the prophet, each of them looking at him and he looking at them.  As he looked upon them, he must have wondered which of the sons would be chosen, as each looked fit for the throne.  The Lord tells Samuel to not judge the appearance of these men from the outside as mere mortal do, for all these before him were rejected. God tells him that it is the heart of the man that He uses to judge each man’s worthiness.  Unfortunately, we do not have the ability to see into a man’s heart and know what is there, so we have to look to Him to give us, with our limited focus, that kind of discernment.

Isn’t it ironic that Jesse didn’t even have his youngest son in the room.  Why not?  Like most parents, Jesse reveals two very common mistakes parents make. First, Jesse didn’t have an equal appreciation for all his children and second, he failed to cultivate a mutual self respect among them.  Jesse saw his youngest as nothing more than the one who tended the sheep.  Man forgets…God remembers.  You see, Samuel, with God’s help, now has the proper perspective and instructs Jesse to bring his youngest son to him.  Oh, how important it is to see beyond the obvious.  That’s the kind of vision that Samuel, with God’s help, finally demonstrates at this point. Now, remember David is out tending his father’s sheep when he is called to come before the prophet.  Can you imagine how he looked and smelled as the prophet hobbles to him and pours the oil upon his head?  What did David do afterwards? Humbly, David returns to his flock.

When you have a heart like David’s, that’s what you do. It made no difference that Samuel had anointed his head with oil.  He made no big to do about it.  He expected no special treatment.  He had a job and he was going to faithfully do it, always keeping his ear sensitive to the whisper of God’s voice.

There are three lessons to learn from this study.

First, God’s solutions are often strange and simple, so be open.  God is not complexed or complicated.  Stay open to His strange yet simple solutions.

Second, God’s promotions are usually sudden and surprising, so be ready.  When you least expect it, it will come.  God watches you as you faithfully carry out your tasks and will call you at a moment to carry out a job.

Third, God’s selections are always sovereign and sure, so be sensitive.

If you and I had been Jews living in the year 1020 BC, the same could have happened.  All of our attention would have been focused upon a man named Saul, the first king of Israel.  He was the focal point of the Jewish world at that time.  He was taking the country by storm.  Meanwhile, a “nobody” was keeping the sheep for his father on the Judean hillsides near the hamlet of Bethlehem.  A little boy named David whom nobody noticed..except God.

David is the only one in all of Scripture to be called “a man after God’s own heart”.  His name is mentioned more than any other Old Testament character in the pages of the New Testament. As a poet, musician, courageous warrior, and national statesment, David distinguished himself as one of God’s greatest men. In battle, he modeled invincible confidence. In decisions, he judged with wisdom and equity. In loneliness, he wrote with transparent vulnerability and quiet trust.  In friendship, he was loyal to the end. Whether a humble shepherd boy or an obscure musician before King Saul, he remained faithful and trustworthy. Even in his promotion to the highest position in the land, David modeled integrity and humility.  What a man of God! But, as we shall see, David (like us) was anything but perfect.  Having earned the public’s trust and respect, he forfeits it all a brief season of sensual pleasure.  Then, as the consequences kick in, we discover another side of the man’s makeup – lustfulness as a husband, weakness as a father, and partiality as a leader.  It’s all there, written for all to learn, preserved for all to remember.  A great man, though far from perfect, nevertheless lived a life with strength worth emulating.  Since our world is desperately in need of models worth following, here is one deserving of our time and attention: David, a man of passion and destiny.

Over the next few weeks, we will study David’s life within the pages of God’s Word.  There the true man will be revealed.  Let’s begin.

On the surface there seemed to be nothing about David that would have impressed.  David looked like any other Jewish boy. Though the Bible describes David in 1 Samuel 16:12 as ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features, nothing about his outward appearance seemed to set him apart in any way.  How many of you know that the Lord did not look at the things men looked at, when choosing His man, David? To man, David was but a mere shepherd and young at that.  Not even his Father, Jesse, thought of David as the Bible tells us that even after seven of Jesse’s sons had passed before Samuel, he still asked, “Are these all the sons you have?” Can you picture this scene, as Jesse stood scratching his head when he suddenly remembers that there is still one sons remaining?  With that being said, Samuel requests David’s presence and suddenly a young nobody becomes a somebody, but before we get to David the king of Israel, we need to go back about forty years and get a sense of history and background, so we can appreciate the world he which he lived.

David lived during a time when the people’s hearts had drifted far from God.  Eli and his wicked were gone. Eli’s chosen successor, Samuel, the last of God’s judges, old in years, appoints his sons as judges over Israel.  What a mistake!  The Bible tells us in 1 Samuel 8:1-3 that his sons did not walk as their father, turning aside after dishonest gain, taking bribes and perversing justice. Disillusioned, desperate and wanting to be like their neighbors, the people demand a king (1 Samuel 8:5-8).  How many of your know that wanting to be like everyone else isn’t always the best thing.

Grieved by the people’s demand, Samuel takes it God in prayer and He gives them exactly what they wanted, but not without a warning.  Stubbornly they listen and against God’s desires they select a king.  The man they chose was Saul.  The Bible describes him as tall, dark, and handsome man.  He comes on the scene mightily, sweeping the people off their feet.  In the beginning stages of his reign, Saul was a humble man, with the ability to rally the people around any cause.  But guess what happened?  Before long, Saul became thin skinned, hot tempered and given to seasons of depression.  So much for the man who was suppose to be the people’s choice.

David was born ten years after Saul became king. Wow, what a time to be born! The people’s hearts had drifted away from God and to make matters worse, they were now disillusioned with the leader they had chosen.  What were they to do with the king they had chosen now that he wasn’t walking with God?  Can you imagine what they were feeling?  Yet, God in love, doesn’t abandon them.  Through Samuel, He intervenes. The Bible tells us (1 Samuel 13:13-14) that Samuel confronts Saul about it and tells him that God has appointed a new king who is a man after His own heart.

Have you ever asked yourself what kind of people does God choose to use?  To determine that we need to look first at 1 Corinthians 1.  This passage tells us that God also has chosen the world’s insignificant and despised people and nobodies in order to bring to nothing those who amount to something, so that nobody may boast in the presence of God (1 Corinthians 1:28-29).  That’s a principle we tend to forget.  When we look for people to admire, we usually choose them because of the they do to dazzle us.  We want the best and the brightest, but that’s not the way God makes His choices.  When God scans the earth for potential leaders, He is searching for men and women like you and me, and like David.  So what did He see in David, what qualities did this mere man have that caught God’s eye?

The first quality God saw in David was spirituality.  The Bible says that the sought our a man after His own heart.  What does that mean?  It seems to me that this is telling us that God wanted someone whose life was in harmony with God.  When you are deeply spiritual, your heart is sensitive to the things of God (2 Chronicles 16:9).  What is God looking for?  He is looking for a person whose heart is completely His, meaning there are no lock doors, nothing swept under the rug.

The second quality God saw in David was humility.  God saw David’s heart and knew that it completely belonged to Him.  David had a servant’s heart, the very thing God was looking for.  God didn’t want a person with a slick public image.  He wanted a man with character, humble and willing enough to assume His divine character. He didn’t need a man with charisma, size or even an impressive track record.  He wanted a person whose heart was spiritually walking with him in humility.  When you have a servant’s heart, you’re humble.  You do what you are told.  You don’t rebel, respecting those appointed over you.  A servant doesn’t care who gets the glory.  Their goal is to make the person he serves look better, ensuring they don’t fail.  Isnt that exactly how David was?

The third quality David had was integrity (Psalm 78:71-72).  God is not looking for magnificent specimens of humanity.  He is looking for deeply spiritual, genuinely humble and honest to the core servants who have integrity.   Integrity is what you are when nobody’s looking. It means bone deep honest.

How did God train David for the leadership role?  His training ground was lonely, obscure, monotonous, and real.  First God trained David in solitude.  He needed to learn life’s major lessons alone before he could be trusted with responsibilities and rewards before the public.  Solitude has nurturing qualities all its own.  Second, David grew up in obscurity.  Men and women of God, servant leaders in the making are first unknown, unseen, unappreciated and unapplauded.  In the relentless demands of obscurity, character is built.  Those who first accept the silence of obscurity are best qualified to handle the applause of popularity.  The third training ground is monotony.  That’s being faithful in the menial, insignificant, routine, regular, unexciting, uneventful, daily tasks of life.  Life without a break…without the wine and roses, just dull and plain. The fourth training ground is reality. Up until now you might have the feeling that despite the solitude, obscurity and monotony, David was just sitting out on some hilltop in a mystical haze, composing a great piece of music or relaxing in the pastures.  That is the farthest thing from the truth.  In 1 Samuel 17:34-35, David is standing by Saul, as the great giant Goliath spews his challenges to the Israel Army.  Remember Saul, that great big, tall guy?  Here he stands shaking in his boots and hiding from Goliath.  Without a moment of hesitation, David responds to Goliath’s threat.   Where did he get the courage?  He learned it during the times he was all alone with God. From David’s perspective, if he overcame the strength of a bear and lion, Goliath would be of no greater challenge as long as God was with Him.

There are so many things we can learn from David’s life.  First, it’s in the little things and in the lonely places that we prove ourselves capable of the big things.  To become a person with a large vision, you must cultivate the habit of doing the small things well.   The test of your life is how well you do when there’s nobody to check on you, when nobody is looking.  Second, when God develops our inner qualities, He’s never in a hurry.  The conversion of a soul is the miracle of a moment, the manufacture of a saint is the task of a lifetime.  When God develops character, He works on it throughout a life time.  He’s never in a hurry.

1. Aspirations.  A strong aspiration and desire to pray will create the proper climate for effective intercession. (2 Corithians 7:7, Matthew 5:6)

2.  Fervency.  Fervency changed Elijah’s situation, suspended natural laws, and brought about supernatural miracles through prayer. (James 5:16-18)

3. Perseverance. On some items, there will be instant results as we pray, while answers for other requests might take time. However, Scripture talks about persevering and enduring until the answer comes, learning to add patience to our faith. (Ephesians 6:18, Hebrews 6:12)

4. Intercession.  Addresses the pray-er needs, assists in intercession for other.  True pray-ers know the importance of standing in the gap between God and others until the result comes.

5. Praying in tongues. (Jude 20 Amp, Ephesians 6:18)

6. Choose a comfortable posture: Kneeling, sitting, standing, prostrating