Readings for today: 1 Samuel 21-24, Psalms 91
Over the years, I have had the opportunity to speak to different groups of leaders within my denomination. Different churches in different communities than my own, sometimes from different cultures than my own. One thing they all hold in common is a deep love for God and a passion to seek Him for the future of their life together. Often, the way forward is not easy. It can be unclear. It can be full of challenges. There can be a lot of conflict to navigate. Major decisions and major risks have to be taken in order to move forward. Those first few steps of faith are the hardest to take, at least in my experience. I try to share vulnerably from my own life when I speak. I share the stories of the challenges I’ve had to face and my many failures along the way. I share the stories of the conflicts I’ve had to manage and the anxieties I’ve felt. I share the stories of the pivotal moments when major decisions had to be made and the incredible risks taken for the Kingdom of God and how those worked out. Like everyone, I have had my ups and downs. I’ve had my successes and failures. But through it all, I’ve learned to lean on God for my confidence.
Godly confidence is not something we are born with. It is something we earn over a lifetime. Primarily through hardship and struggle. It is forged in the fires of adversity. It is tempered in times of trial. It is refined through seasons of suffering. As I said, I’ve had my share. When my life was at it’s lowest possible point and I was in danger of losing everything and everyone I loved, God met me in a powerful way. He lifted me up out of the pit and set my feet on solid ground. I learned the truth of David’s words from Psalm 91, “Because He holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him. I will protect him because he knows My name. When he calls to Me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him My salvation.” David also had a godly confidence. It’s what led him into the valley to meet Goliath. It’s what won him victory after victory against the Philistines. It’s what sustained him when he was falsely accused and hunted down by King Saul. David knew God was with him. He trusted God to lead and guide him. He took great risks and leveraged everything he had over and over again in service of the Lord. And he never lost sight of God’s protection. He never took advantage of his position. Even when he had King Saul at his mercy, he refused to lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed. He knew his time would come and it would be by God’s hand not his that he would become king.
Once you hit rock bottom and find God waiting for you there, there isn’t much that will shake you. Once you’ve been through the fires of adversity and God leads you to the other side, there isn’t much that can break you. Once God takes your life down to the studs and begins building you back again, you find yourself no longer placing your trust in the things of this world. Success. Wealth. Power. Position. None of it matters except that it put to use to expand and grow the Kingdom of God. I’ve staked my life on this truth. I’ve watched God do His miraculous work through His people time and time again. I’ve been privileged to have a front row seat to the movement of the Holy Spirit as He transforms so many lives. I’ve experienced the sufficiency of the gospel over and over again in my own life despite my foolishness and failures. God is able, friends! God is MORE than able to do MORE than we can ever ask or imagine. Trust Him with your life today!
Readings for tomorrow: No devotionals for today