Words from Roxanna - Saul's Armor
10:30 AM
Saul hears David’s reasons for why he thinks he can slay Goliath, and the king says: “Go, and the Lord be with you.”
But
then he recognizes David’s appearance, and Saul develops an instant
case of buyer’s remorse, “Kid, I know you killed some wild animals, but
you can’t go out there looking like that. You at least have to look the
part.”
Saul
dresses David up in his own tunic and armor. The king’s wardrobe and
armory would be the best available in their entire nation. Imagine
trading in your 2003 Honda for the King’s Rolls Royce or a fickle old
push mower for a zero-turn, four-foot-wide riding one.
David walks around in his glorious new outfit…and rejects it.
“I’m not used to these.”
“I’m not used to these.”
There
was nothing wrong with Saul’s armor; the king could’ve learned to trust
God in it. But the living fabric of David’s relationship with the Lord
was woven with the staff and sling, not golden tunics. David knew
victory didn’t depend on weapons and armor, but on trusting the proven
character of God.
There
are tragic ironies in much of our thinking about the David &
Goliath story. While we preach on the underdog, we determine our vision
and direction using “Goliath” measurements and values. Bigger spears!
Larger shields!
Because
of that, too often we chase after the best “armor” out there and miss
where we could truly know God in the present moment with what we’ve
already been given. I believe the Kingdom of God would be much more
attractive to a lost and addicted world if we learned to celebrate the
simplicity of the staff in our own hands, rather than scrambling for
Saul’s Armor in a culture that already oozes envy, greed, and lustful
discontentment.
I’m
not advocating the removal of any kind of ambition; I’m arguing that
our preeminent ambition in any endeavor prompted by our faith should be
to know and serve God in the action, no matter how simple or common.
Serve God with your staff and sling, your cheese and bread, and if God
ever has need for your particular set of Giant Removal skills, you’ll be
ready. But if He doesn’t, you still have the joy of finding Jesus in
the everyday.
God isn’t asking you to kill Goliath or to be David…or Beth Moore or Jim Elliot… God is asking you to be the first YOU!
Blessings, Roxanna
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