David is on the run, and he is running from Saul. After doing some stupid things, he finds himself not knowing what to do at the lowest moment of his life. David never enjoyed being out in the pasture with a flock of sheep. He killed lions, bears, and was doing a good job, and he also killed Goliath. David was famous. He got to marry the king’s daughter, but Saul is looking for David and planning to kill him. David lost everything, and he lost the support of the people, his wife, kingship, friends, and armies.
Psalm 142:1
A prayer. I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift my voice to the LORD for mercy. I pour out my complaint before him; before him, I tell my trouble. When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who know my way.
David wrote this in the cave, he has lost every support structure that he has, and he is depressed, feeling alone, and feeling very vulnerable. David made mistakes he has lied to the priest of Nob. The priests of Nob were slain on the command of Saul.
David did some stupid things, but why is David such a hero to us? This is how to deal with a weak character.
When you have a weakness in your life, you run to Jesus and pray,” Lord, you are my place of refuge have no other place in this world, and you all I want in life. When you feel alone, depressed, or a loser? Sometimes God leads us from nothing.
My faith has never been tested like that. When God brings you to nothing, he begins to reroute. When everything is gone, it’s not the end. The enemy whispers in our ears and says, “you’re not doing right; you always been a loser and a failure.” The enemy wants us to fail so he can control us, do what he wants us to do. The devil is a liar he doesn’t tell the truth, and God has a different opinion about that, and it doesn’t matter if it’s your fault or not, running to God is always the answer.
David finds himself in the cave all by himself acting like crazy, drooling on his beard and humiliated himself. David escaped from the cave and soon his brothers and sisters. Then all of his relatives joined him. David became their leader; he was the leader of the misfits and outcasts of Israel. They were unpleasant people, but what is it about, especially these guys who joined him in the cave of Adullam?
These are the same people that become David’s mighty men. These are the ones that would become his most celebrated warriors. God brought change, and David had enough. He has begun to admit that he needs God. He is honestly crying out to God for help, and he is humble enough to learn.
God begins to bring David his answer because now David was in the right place. God accomplished the purpose that needed to be accomplished.
I want to talk to you a little bit about your emotional cave. We’ve always got that moment in our lives feeling we’re in the cave moving towards another cave in this world. God will see you through it, but we all have it. There are distress, sorrow, depression, and adversaries. When people are gossiping about you, it weighs in your head, and it hurts even if you know that they are wrong but still, it’s painful.
We don’t need critics. What we need are people who got our back. God is our strength, Rock, fortress, and our stronghold.
David learned that God is the answer. It doesn’t matter if you made the mess or not. Maybe God brought you to a place of nothing because he doesn’t want you to forget him or he wants you to learn something. The healthy thing to do is to run to God. God is all you have, and you will realize he is all you need.
Rock Church serves the communities of Fargo, West Fargo, and Moorhead. We meet at West Acres Cinema, Sundays at 10 am. At the Rock, you can belong before you believe.
