Pastor’s Column 11/24/2024

PASTOR’S COLUMN

“Now David  was greatly distressed for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters.  But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.”

1 Samuel 30:6, NKJV

“From Stress To Strength!”

There are hardly any enemies that play havoc with the human spirit as does stress. This “dis-ease” is prone to visit each of us as some point in life. Some decades ago, it became apparent to the medical community that stress was the greatest inducer of illness that plagues both the human body and the spirit.  Jonah, Isaiah, Abigail, Naomi, David and so many of the faithful who walked the pages of the Bible, had their bouts with stress.  We hear this faint and loud tone in the Scriptures, as the faithful bemoan a “disquieted spirit within me.” In the case of some souls like King Saul, their stress reached a “fever pitch” and turned to evil behavior. Jesus even predicted such a time would come. Yet, we find Jesus challenging this malady of the spirit and soul, as he invited the suffering, “Come all of you who are weary and I will give you rest…” (Matthew 11:28, NIV). What great consolation and hope for  all who are beset with anxieties. Jesus reminds us that no disconnect in life could ever last too long. David was a great King, and much of his fame was owed to his military acumen and his intelligence as a Commander of his forces. However, David made a tactical error concerning the enemy’s timing in Ziglag. It was there, where the women, children, and possibly elderly civilians were left. Upon returning to that place, the wives, daughters, sons, and others were all gone. They had not been killed but had been taken to the enemy’s camp. The other soldiers were in shock, and some felt, in retaliation, they should take David’s life. It does not appear that David feared for his life, but as a loyal commander of his army and protector of the people, he became despondent and was in much distress. In some instances, like Saul, a king who believed he failed his people, would allow his life to be taken. David turned elsewhere! He searched his soul and listened to God. David found “new strength” in the Lord. He rose up, led  his men forward. They defeated the enemy; captured their wives and children; and took back all that was taken from them. May God be praised!