Apr
13
Written by:
Route 365
4/13/2010 6:34 AM
written by Mary Ayala
The roller coaster ride continues for David. Having faced the agony of personal loss and the anger of his disenchanted soldiers, he is now assured by the LORD that he will overtake the marauders and rescue the kidnapped women and children. The only question is how. Isn’t that always the question? How is God going to accomplish big things in my life? No, not just big things, but impossible things. As a Christ follower, I don’t believe in coincidences. There are just too many times when I could only say that God orchestrated something because it could not have happened otherwise. I see this pattern in this passage. The abandoned Egyptian, a slave of the Amalekites, is befriended by David’s men and is then able to lead them to the raiding party. Coincidence? I don’t think so. It’s God’s response to David’s acknowledgement of his source of strength. When the LORD assured David that he would overtake the raiding party, He also took part in bringing the promise to fruition. This wasn’t really just David’s victory. After all, two hundred of his men were too tired to even continue the pursuit. I can imagine the exuberance that marked the moment when David and his men realized that “nothing was missing.” Every woman and child was safe along with the flocks and herds.
But what is also amazing to me about this story is David’s mercy towards those men who were too exhausted to finish their battle assignment. Others argued that they shouldn’t share in the recovered plunder. But David insisted, “All will share alike.” I want to have David’s attitude when it comes to dispersing the riches of God’s grace and mercy. I don’t want to be a hoarder of blessings. I want to let God’s graciousness wash over me and splash onto anyone who’s standing nearby. If I learn a lesson about relying on God’s strength, I don’t want to keep it to myself. I want to share so that someone else can recognize that God is in control of the ride.
Your Fellow Traveler,
Mary
Tags: