Tag: David

Slinging Spiritual Slang

Dr. J.D. Wilkins2 Comments

Daily Post: Dash

Dash

One of the many Bible narratives from the Old Testament people love to hear is found in 1 Samuel 17.  A giant stands hurling insults at God’s army, while assassinating the character of Israel’s king.  The warrior/champion has killed more than his share of enemies, so his bravado was marked with experiential knowledge.  His training was exemplary, his capabilities self-evident to the naked eye.  He was a giant, in actual fact, and legendary prose.

On the other side of the valley stands a shepherd boy, shocked to hear the ravings of this giant; confused and disillusioned to see the cowardice in the camp of Israel.  His brothers, Eliab, Abinadab, and Shammah, all told him to keep his mouth shut, and go back home to their father, Jesse.  Instead, David seeks an audience with the king for the singular purpose of volunteering to take out the giant.  I’m convinced Saul, the king, didn’t think this was funny at all.  The enemy was 9.5 feet tall, the armor he wore outweighed the shepherd boy soaking wet.  Goliath had helmet, leggings, javelin, sword, and shield, all made of bronze, which all fit like a glove.  The king offered the shepherd his own armor, as a token.  When it clearly didn’t fit, the king offered David only these parting words, “Go, and may the Lord be with you.”

David’s weapons were: his stick – a walking stick/club he used to defend himself against wild animals and thieves, his sling, and five smooth stones from the brook lying at the bottom of the valley between himself and the giant.  Then David does something mind-boggling to most of us today.  David is described this way…

1 Samuel 17:48-49
Then it happened when the Philistine rose and came and drew near to meet David, that David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine.  And David put his hand into his bag and took from it a stone and slung it, and struck the Philistine on his forehead. And the stone sank into his forehead, so that he fell on his face to the ground.

Having no armor, sword, shield, spear or helmet, here David stood victorious over the battle-trained giant.  David cut off the head of this giant, with the giant’s own sword (verse 51) and when the enemy army saw it, they fled in panic.

This is a wonderful story of courage.  It speaks of God’s protection and provision when God’s people face an enemy which is more prepared for battle in every way.  The intimidation factor in the world today is gigantic, in Goliath-like proportions.  Sometimes we struggle with the right words to penetrate the darkness, feeling defenseless or defeated.  All the while, the lesson to be learned in this simple story is often missed by the reader or hearer.

Lesson: using unconventional, readily available elements, empowered by God, can have spiritually eternal outcomes.

David’s sling dashed a stone into the forehead of the giant. David used the elements at hand.

It might seem ridiculous to some today, but the most powerful stone we may use in our sling is the one from the mouth of Jesus Himself.  He told Nicodemus, “You must be born again.”  It seems like spiritual slang almost.  This statement’s meaning is unknown to the world today, just as much as it confused ole Nick when Jesus said it.  Yet these words can slay giants.

For the friend next door, suffering under the sword of Satan, and the weight of sin, the deliverance may be found in, “you must be born again.”  A co-worker seeking a way to make sense of their life, may be set free by hearing “you must be born again.”  Each of us could be used just like this shepherd boy who delivered Israel that day, if we would courageously sling out the truth, “you must be born again.”

It doesn’t matter that the world laughs at this ancient story, or at your spiritual slang.  The world laughed at Jesus too.  Goliath laughed at David too.  What matters is my willingness to be used by God to defeat evil in the world.  You and I must be willing, ready, and running to the battle we must shout:

“You must be born again!” [John 3:3]

So I say to you today… “Go, and may the Lord be with you.”

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People Panicking Perpetuates Pandemonium

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Panicked

pandemonium

A panic attack is defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) as:

… an abrupt and discrete experience of intense fear or acute discomfort, accompanied by symptoms such as heart palpitations, shortness of breath, sweating, trembling, and worries about going crazy, losing control or dying.

Did you know that 8-10 percent of the population has panic attacks, or that in 5% it becomes a disorder, occurring without any obvious stimulus, making the attacks even more terrifying?  In these cases it isn’t just a rush of anxiety, like most of us might experience from time to time.  No, these patients describe it as the most frightening event they have ever experienced.  Research has discovered leads to what causes a person’s first panic attack, as well as some clues about how to avoid an attack in the first place.  The simplified version is that panic attacks often result…

…when our normal “fight or flight” response to imminent threats—including increased heart rate and rapid breathing—is triggered by “false alarms,” situations in which real danger is absent.

The good news for those who suffer this chronic disorder is, first, all panic attacks are triggered by known events, even though the person may not be aware of those events. Knowing this can often reduce the anxiety stemming from a sense of unpredictability.  Second, though it is affirming to learn the attack is caused as a misfire of the fight-or-flight response when there actually is no danger.

In a culture spawning “fake” news, political corruption, excesses and entitlements, it’s little wonder that we all don’t run into the ocean, screaming in a wild panic.  I’m sure that we could learn quite a bit from a shepherd boy, if we only would.  Just because things look dangerous, or complicated, or “glass-half-empty,” (or completely empty), doesn’t mean God sees it this way.  If only we could see the world, ourselves, and our situations through God’s eyes, I believe it would make a huge difference in our lives.  Maybe we wouldn’t become panicked quite so much.

The key to David’s life was his ability to not see things as they are, but to view them as God sees them.  Enter Goliath, a huge 9 ft. tall giant of a man, hardened by war, trained in battle.  He wears armor plated garments, has both spear and sword, and a shield to ward off enemy attacks.  He bellows at the top of his lungs, the wild ravings of the blood-thirsty heathen that he is.  And every time he does so, to a man in the camp of Israel, they are trembling in a crazed panic.

Along comes David bringing food to his brothers in the army of God.  Upon hearing Goliath’s threats and railings, David’s response is not flight, it is fight.  It’s not an imagined danger, it is very real.  It is tangible.  It is death with a face on it.  Yet, David’s instant response to the Israelite men trembling in panic was:

1 Samuel 17:26
Then David spoke to the men who were standing by him, saying, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?”

I can almost hear it in David’s voice.  The overwhelming confidence that God will not stand for His people to be challenged in this way without retribution.  God will not allow for the heathen to cast dispersions and heresies about Him without punishment.  David is clearly not panicked.  (1 Samuel 17)  How did God use David’s confidence to demonstrate His own sovereign control, authority, and covenant presence?  Watch.  After using his trusty slingshot to nail the giant with a stone from the river…

1 Samuel 17:51
Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it.  When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.

Now it’s the Philistine army’s response to be panicked, and well they should.

So, here’s the thing.  The thing, event or circumstance that frightens you most right now, whether cancer, relationship struggles, financial difficulties, or emotional strains to difficult even to talk about; hear me… God is still in control.  The authority of His word still stands.  His covenant presence with you is designed to annihilate the panic that so easily sets in to destroy us.  Here are God’s simple words to avoid becoming panicked:

Psalm 46:10
Be still, and know that I am God.  I will be honored by every nation.  I will be honored throughout the world.

 

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Tuckered vs. Knackered

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Daily Post: Knackered

knackered

My uncle Wylie had two pet “sayin’s” for when he was tired.  He’d say, “I feel like I been rode hard and put up wet.”  Or he’d say, “I’m plumb knackered.”  Now as a kid, I thought this was funny, but only because I didn’t know what knackered meant.  Turns out it means the same thing my momma would say, “I’m plumb tuckered out.”  Basically this is the word version of the war for independence.  “Knackered” is the British version, “tuckered” is the North American version of the same concept:  being just too tired to move, or exhausted.

You ever have days like that?  I still do.  I used to get up early and start buzzing around, drinking that morning brew to get the juices flowing and the synapsis firing.  After getting prepped with fuel, washed with soap, and driving through the war zone that is commuter travel, I’d work more hours than I care to think.  I’d wonder as I got back in my worn out auto, if I had the strength and resolve to actually make it back through the jungle to my home, where a hot meal and warm bed waited for me.  I’d often look like the kid in this picture; just plumb knackered.  Then things changed and my commute was about 30 yards from my bedroom to my office, and at the end of some days, I’d still look like the kid in the picture.  Now things have changed again, and I’m semi-retired, and yep, you guessed it, I still look like the kid in the picture.  It happens.

The kid in the picture is doing exactly what the Creator designed our bodies to do, when they’ve played hard or worked hard, at the end of the day, we need sleep.  It’s part of the mystery that is the human body.  According to the National Sleep Foundation, here’s a list of how much sleep is recommended for each age group:

  • Newborns (0-3 months): Sleep range narrowed to 14-17 hours each day (previously it was 12-18)
  • Infants (4-11 months): Sleep range widened two hours to 12-15 hours (previously it was 14-15)
  • Toddlers (1-2 years): Sleep range widened by one hour to 11-14 hours (previously it was 12-14)
  • Preschoolers (3-5): Sleep range widened by one hour to 10-13 hours (previously it was 11-13)
  • School age children (6-13): Sleep range widened by one hour to 9-11 hours (previously it was 10-11)
  • Teenagers (14-17): Sleep range widened by one hour to 8-10 hours (previously it was 8.5-9.5)
  • Younger adults (18-25): Sleep range is 7-9 hours (new age category)
  • Adults (26-64): Sleep range did not change and remains 7-9 hours
  • Older adults (65+): Sleep range is 7-8 hours (new age category)

I guess I’m grateful some foundation took the time to research all this, and give us this valuable information, but my thought is, that we are born with this knowledge, because it’s programmed into our DNA.  Our “circadian rhythm,” the natural sleep/wake cycle, God Himself programmed into us, with His own breath of life:

Genesis 2:7
Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.

Some will argue, there’s nothing in the Bible about sleep cycles, or Adam and Eve sleeping in the garden!  Well, how about that, you’re right.  However, there is a great deal of sleeping going on in the Bible, and it points to God’s design.  I’ll give you just one verse here, then you go get your Bible and check out all the others.  David’s morning prayer, declaring his trust in God, includes this statement:

Psalm 3:5
I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the LORD sustains me.

David became knackered with being chased by his son Absalom, and “tired to the bone,” he stopped to get some sleep.  He trusted God to protect him during this sleep, and give him the strength to do it all again the next day.  We’re wired this way.  And sleep works this way, when we put our trust in God.

Are you knackered?  Maybe what you need is a good night’s sleep.

 

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Nike

Dr. J.D. Wilkins2 Comments

via Conquer

Nike is a giant-slaying footwear manufacturer, who’s slogan is famous and known around the world.

Nike

Do you know what the word “Nike” really means?  The word is Greek, and the verb form is νικάω = nikaó (nik-ah’-o).  According to Strongs Concordance the short definition is “I Conquer.”  The use of this verb implies a battle.

I was going to write about famous conquerors, quote them, then make some typical practical application of how these actions apply in our life today.  What happened along the way of my creative process was a complete 180 in my thinking.  I was suddenly taken back to my days as a boy in Sunday School, in a little country church near our home.  I remember sitting there while the teacher talked about the shepherd boy, David.  This young boy fought and killed a giant, conquering the Philistine army in that one-on-one battle. I remember thinking, “how could he do that?”  The question for me that day, and almost every time I’ve heard the story, or taught the story since has been, “wasn’t David afraid?”  I still believe the answer is “yes.”

I’m going to take a lot of grief for saying that here, just as I have at other times when I put humanity back in it’s place contextually.  Think of it like this, as Nelson Mandela is famous for saying it, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.  The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”  Once we can grasp the idea that fear doesn’t have to mean defenseless or powerless, we can begin to understand how a young shepherd can conquer a giant.  The point of this story being in the Bible records of Hebrew history in the Old Testament is not as much about whether David was courageous or cowardly, as it is about David’s complete dependance on God’s providential care in every circumstance of life.  It’s more about David’s conquering faith, while squaring off with a man so skilled in the acts of war he was considered a one-man army.  It’s about knowing through previous personal experiences that regardless of what life brought into David’s path, he could and he would act courageously while fearfully trusting in Yahweh to provide what David needed in the heat of the battle.  Courageous David would run through his own fear into the valley of death where the giant stood bellowing insults at Israel.  Listen to David’s own words:

1 Samuel 17:26
Just who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?”

When Jesus was about to die, He met with His disciples on Passover and gave them instructions about how to go forward without Him.  John, the one whom Jesus loved, wrote the most complete narrative of all the dialogue between Jesus and the twelve that night at the supper.  John chapter 16 gives a warning, a promise, a prophecy, and a command.  Jesus warns them about persecution coming to them for following Him as their Master.  Jesus promises them they will have help to face whatever comes, because He will send the Holy Spirit to empower them for their mission.  Jesus prophecies of the actions of His impending death and resurrection.  And in the end, Jesus commands them [John 16:33]…

I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.

Here’s the Jim Wilkins version…

Jesus to me (a disciple): “Peace of mind is knowing I’m still in charge, even when you don’t see me.  Peace of mind is believing that I’m still working behind the scenes to make My Father’s will completely perfect in your lives.  You’re going to suffer, and this causes you to be afraid.  Don’t be. I’ll send help in the exact moment you need it most.  So take courage through your fear, and throttle the thing that will attempt to take your life.  I am about to give you a model for how to do exactly that!”

Paul’s letter to the Romans was designed to bring this same kind of confident life action and motivation.  Chapter 8 is a description of all the things in life that may come at us, that tries to separate us from God’s loving grace.  Paul wraps us His long explanation of deliverance from bondage to the world, and our victory in Jesus, with these words:

Romans 8:37-39
But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Don’t miss the word in verse 37: conquer.  νικάω = nikaó (nik-ah’-o) =  Nike!

It’s more than just a shoe company.

 

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