Normally when we think of David facing a giant, it would be Goliath. An epic battle of a young boy against a larger-than-life, seasoned soldier that would have anyone quaking in their boots. But David rose to the challenge for the sake of God's Name and defeated Goliath with a slingshot and a stone.
This story is one of several events that put David on the throne as King of Israel and is quite well known.
But, lesser known, David had to battle giants again...and again. 2 Samuel 21:15-22 speaks of four more giants that were killed by David's servants. The first giant mentioned in this group had David on the ropes and he needed help. David's servants were the ones that actually killed the four giants in four different battles in this passage.
We sometimes think that when we gain victory over something in our life that we shouldn't have to face it again. We feel disappointed if we find ourselves in the same battle again. This disappointment can cause us to become weary and weaken our defences, compromising on the standards we set for ourselves. We need help just like David did. The enemy knows our weaknesses and will try to take ground at a place where we have gained a victory - just because we are less likely to keep defences up.
We need to realize that we never face our giants alone. God has given us the victory, we just need to keep the standard (Phil. 3:16, 2 Tim. 1:13). In battle, a standard is a goal that is visible, that is used to mark a rallying point, usually to defend that spot. In life, we need to recognize where we need to set standards, where we ask for help to defend those spots in our life that are under attack. God has given us a loving community of believers that are able to pray us through, we just have to be humble enough to ask for help!
The best way to face your giants is on your knees in prayer.
Philippians 3:16
"Let us hold true to what we have attained..."
Philippians 4:1
"Therefore, my brothers, whom I love, stand firm in the Lord!"
2 Timothy 1:13
"Retain the standard of sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus."
Thursday, May 28, 2020
Monday, May 25, 2020
A Failed Rescue
On Sunday Dom went for a dirt-bike ride through some trails in Gatineau. He ended up puncturing his tire and needed me to come rescue him with an air compressor that works when connected with two bikes.
This was my first time riding alone.
I met him at a grocery parking lot without incident and used the air compressor to inflate his tire.
All seemed well, until I turned off my bike before the air compressor was disconnected.
Yah, don't do that. Apparently it can kill your battery!
Now Dom had to rescue the rescuer! He returned home to get booster cables. I waited in the parking lot. He optimistically came back with his V-Strom - thinking that we would go for a little ride after my bike was resuscitated.
10 minutes later he arrived and we were staring at my bike trying to find the battery.
I own a BMW F650 GS that I call "Little Blue". A German-made machine that has a gas tank under the seat and the battery just underneath the handle bars. In the end, it looked like we were conducting open heart surgery in the parking lot! We had to remove plastic paneling with German torx screw heads - luckily Dom had the right tools for those.
We hooked up the booster cables and tried to start the bike. It just wouldn't take. It was super dead.
After a half hour of trying to start the bike we put Plan B into action.
Plan B was riding home and getting our car and attaching a tow cradle to it. Dom had made his own tow cradle for the dirt-bike. Little Blue is 100 pounds heavier than the dirt-bike but should still fit.
We got back to the parking lot and strapped Little Blue to the tow cradle. We had to re-do it a few times to make sure there wasn't too much pressure on the plastic sides. Then we drove slowly home.
The 'rescue' took 3 hours - and was only a 5 minute drive from home.
I don't know if you've ever had something like this happen. It reminds me of how we try to be there for someone else emotionally and end up having our own heart hurt in the process. We need to stay connected to God when we are there for others and not take the burden on ourselves but send it straight to Him. His love can support both of you. You need to stay connected to Him through the process.
Matthew 11:28-30
This was my first time riding alone.
I met him at a grocery parking lot without incident and used the air compressor to inflate his tire.
All seemed well, until I turned off my bike before the air compressor was disconnected.
Yah, don't do that. Apparently it can kill your battery!
Now Dom had to rescue the rescuer! He returned home to get booster cables. I waited in the parking lot. He optimistically came back with his V-Strom - thinking that we would go for a little ride after my bike was resuscitated.
10 minutes later he arrived and we were staring at my bike trying to find the battery.
I own a BMW F650 GS that I call "Little Blue". A German-made machine that has a gas tank under the seat and the battery just underneath the handle bars. In the end, it looked like we were conducting open heart surgery in the parking lot! We had to remove plastic paneling with German torx screw heads - luckily Dom had the right tools for those.
We hooked up the booster cables and tried to start the bike. It just wouldn't take. It was super dead.
After a half hour of trying to start the bike we put Plan B into action.
Plan B was riding home and getting our car and attaching a tow cradle to it. Dom had made his own tow cradle for the dirt-bike. Little Blue is 100 pounds heavier than the dirt-bike but should still fit.
We got back to the parking lot and strapped Little Blue to the tow cradle. We had to re-do it a few times to make sure there wasn't too much pressure on the plastic sides. Then we drove slowly home.
The 'rescue' took 3 hours - and was only a 5 minute drive from home.
I don't know if you've ever had something like this happen. It reminds me of how we try to be there for someone else emotionally and end up having our own heart hurt in the process. We need to stay connected to God when we are there for others and not take the burden on ourselves but send it straight to Him. His love can support both of you. You need to stay connected to Him through the process.
Matthew 11:28-30
Saturday, May 23, 2020
Hornets and Eternity
Last week Dom and I went on a motorcycle ride. We each rode our own bike and could talk to each other by intercom. We had a lovely time and were headed home when...it happened.
A hornet crawled up into my helmet.
I could see it sitting on the inside of my visor on the right side!
I started yelling! Dom quickly turned around and saw what I couldn't see. I had started steering towards the ditch on my right side. If you know anything about riding a motorcycle, you always look where you want to go because where you look dictates where you go! He yelled to me "Look Up! Look Up!" but what I actually heard was "Stop!"
I obeyed what I thought I heard and stopped.
I was able to open my visor and free the hornet without getting stung.
That's when I looked up and saw my position and how close I was to the ditch. If I had continued on the path I had taken I would have had long-lasting injuries and damage to the bike.
I thanked the Lord and we got home safely!
In life, this happens. We are doing great and seem to be right on track when something happens. A sickness, a job loss, a lost relationship, a war, a vice. Something that looks so terrible and takes up our focus. We start looking at that problem and don't realize we're steering into something worse than the problem we have.
God sees the whole picture and knows we should stop heading in the direction we've started on. The difference is, problem or no, everyone is headed towards that ditch without 'looking up' to Jesus and following him.
We get distracted by momentary troubles that make us forget that we are headed towards eternity. God reminds us that if we just look up it will re-direct us. Jesus took the sting out of death and provided a safe path for us to follow to an eternity in Heaven. He also provided an example of how to look past our present situations to eternity.
Listen to Him, follow Him and it'll save your life and re-direct your eternity.
Hebrews 12:1-2
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."
 |
| Me and 'Little Blue' |
A hornet crawled up into my helmet.
I could see it sitting on the inside of my visor on the right side!
I started yelling! Dom quickly turned around and saw what I couldn't see. I had started steering towards the ditch on my right side. If you know anything about riding a motorcycle, you always look where you want to go because where you look dictates where you go! He yelled to me "Look Up! Look Up!" but what I actually heard was "Stop!"
I obeyed what I thought I heard and stopped.
I was able to open my visor and free the hornet without getting stung.
That's when I looked up and saw my position and how close I was to the ditch. If I had continued on the path I had taken I would have had long-lasting injuries and damage to the bike.
I thanked the Lord and we got home safely!
In life, this happens. We are doing great and seem to be right on track when something happens. A sickness, a job loss, a lost relationship, a war, a vice. Something that looks so terrible and takes up our focus. We start looking at that problem and don't realize we're steering into something worse than the problem we have.
God sees the whole picture and knows we should stop heading in the direction we've started on. The difference is, problem or no, everyone is headed towards that ditch without 'looking up' to Jesus and following him.
We get distracted by momentary troubles that make us forget that we are headed towards eternity. God reminds us that if we just look up it will re-direct us. Jesus took the sting out of death and provided a safe path for us to follow to an eternity in Heaven. He also provided an example of how to look past our present situations to eternity.
Listen to Him, follow Him and it'll save your life and re-direct your eternity.
Hebrews 12:1-2
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."
Wednesday, May 20, 2020
Stumbling Blocks
There is a great warning in I Corinthians 10 that is specific to our time and culture. The Israelites were ‘laid low in the wilderness’ though they had the spiritual rock of Christ. There were four things that they did that made them stumble:
1. Idolatry
2. Immoral Behaviour
3. Testing/Trying the Lord
4. Grumbling
The four stumbling blocks are connected. Idolatry brings about immoral behaviour, testing/trying the Lord and grumbling. Idolatry puts something else in place of God. That 'something' steals our time, our thoughts and our worship - lessening our ability to connect with God and His will for us. Thus we don't follow His will which results in Immoral Behaviour. We don't trust His plan and we don't believe what He says, which results in testing/trying Him. We don't view our situation in light of His perspective so we grumble and complain.
The Israelites followed an external craving outside of what God had for them. This was considered idolatry because it distracted them from God. The evil thing they craved is found in this: “The people sat down to eat and drink, and stood up to play.” Isn’t that our culture in a nutshell? Don’t we just want to play...to enjoy our time and get comfort? This worries me for I am IN this culture of comfort and don’t always have the perception to see my ‘cravings’ for what they are.
This warning hits closer to home in verse 12: “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.” In our culture we have taught ourselves to think that we are always right, no matter what we think or do, but our perception is only validated from God’s reference point. There is only one way to stand, but many ways to fall.
In verse 23 “All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful but not all things edify.” Do we stop and think if what we do or say is profitable or edifying in the long run?
In verse 31 “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God..” The purpose behind what you do becomes the validation of what you do. When we look to God for what we receive and what we do with our time, then we are acting in obedience to Him and not following a craving external to our relationship with Him.
How do I make sure that I am not feeding a craving ? The best way is to bring what I do back in focus with God’s perspective and the best way to do that is to spend time with Him and learn more of who He is so I can correctly discern His will.
1. Idolatry
2. Immoral Behaviour
3. Testing/Trying the Lord
4. Grumbling
The four stumbling blocks are connected. Idolatry brings about immoral behaviour, testing/trying the Lord and grumbling. Idolatry puts something else in place of God. That 'something' steals our time, our thoughts and our worship - lessening our ability to connect with God and His will for us. Thus we don't follow His will which results in Immoral Behaviour. We don't trust His plan and we don't believe what He says, which results in testing/trying Him. We don't view our situation in light of His perspective so we grumble and complain.
The Israelites followed an external craving outside of what God had for them. This was considered idolatry because it distracted them from God. The evil thing they craved is found in this: “The people sat down to eat and drink, and stood up to play.” Isn’t that our culture in a nutshell? Don’t we just want to play...to enjoy our time and get comfort? This worries me for I am IN this culture of comfort and don’t always have the perception to see my ‘cravings’ for what they are.
This warning hits closer to home in verse 12: “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall.” In our culture we have taught ourselves to think that we are always right, no matter what we think or do, but our perception is only validated from God’s reference point. There is only one way to stand, but many ways to fall.
In verse 23 “All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful but not all things edify.” Do we stop and think if what we do or say is profitable or edifying in the long run?
In verse 31 “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God..” The purpose behind what you do becomes the validation of what you do. When we look to God for what we receive and what we do with our time, then we are acting in obedience to Him and not following a craving external to our relationship with Him.
How do I make sure that I am not feeding a craving ? The best way is to bring what I do back in focus with God’s perspective and the best way to do that is to spend time with Him and learn more of who He is so I can correctly discern His will.
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
Thoughts from C.S. Lewis
Today and everyday we need God.
It's not just a side note, or a comma to attach at the end of our own considerations, we need God first.
Here are a few thoughts from C.S. Lewis that struck home:
"Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms...This process of surrender is what Christians call repentance...If you ask God to take you back without it, you are really asking Him to let you go back without going back. It cannot happen...the same badness which makes us need it, makes us unable to do it. Can we do it if God helps us? Yes, but what do we mean when we talk of God helping us? We mean God putting into us a bit of Himself, so to speak. He lends us a little of His reasoning powers and that is how we think: He puts a little of His love into us and that is how we love one another. When you teach a child writing, you hold their hand while they form the letters: that is, they form the letters because you are forming them. We love and reason because God loves and reasons and holds our hand while we do it."
It's not just a side note, or a comma to attach at the end of our own considerations, we need God first.
Here are a few thoughts from C.S. Lewis that struck home:
"Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms...This process of surrender is what Christians call repentance...If you ask God to take you back without it, you are really asking Him to let you go back without going back. It cannot happen...the same badness which makes us need it, makes us unable to do it. Can we do it if God helps us? Yes, but what do we mean when we talk of God helping us? We mean God putting into us a bit of Himself, so to speak. He lends us a little of His reasoning powers and that is how we think: He puts a little of His love into us and that is how we love one another. When you teach a child writing, you hold their hand while they form the letters: that is, they form the letters because you are forming them. We love and reason because God loves and reasons and holds our hand while we do it."
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