Verse of the Day: 1 Samuel 27:1, And David said in his heart, “Now I shall perish someday by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should speedily escape to the land of the Philistines; and Saul will despair of me, to seek me anymore in any part of Israel. So I shall escape out of his hand.”
Chapter 27 is a sad chapter. It is the sad account of what happens when we allow discouragement and despair to set in, and how it affects our ability to make wise, rational, decisions. David, who had been running from Saul for some time now, and who had made the right decision in not taking Saul’s life, twice, now finds himself in a very dark place. Note that even though his last encounter with Saul was actually the last time he would meet Saul face to face, discouragement convinced David otherwise. Saul and David had parted ways. David had seen God deliver Saul into his hands by putting him and his men in a deep sleep that allowed David to sneak into their camp (1 Samuel 26). After their exchange of words, they both went their own way, and this should have been a time of celebration for David because it would be the last time Saul would pursue him. Keep in mind that David had no way of knowing this for certain, but in the process of over thinking situations we talk ourselves right into despair. Although David claimed that Saul would despair, it was David who was in despair. In all his years of running, the one thing David would have to admit is that God was faithful to him. He delivered him out of Saul’s hands over and over again. There was even a time of despair in the past when David had put himself right in the midst of the Philistines, which did not turn out too well (1 Samuel 21); yet, here he is again contemplating the same mistake. This is the danger that exists for any of us who allow discouragement to cloud our memory of God’s faithfulness to us. Our words may claim that we trust God, when we are feeling discouraged, but our decisions and actions will betray us, even as David’s did. What led him down this path? It began with what he said, not out loud, but in his heart. Although he saw what God did to deliver him from Saul, and what God did to Nabal in repaying his evil behavior toward David, he (David) forgot in his heart what God had done. In his forgetfulness, he decided that he would have to take action for himself if he was going to finally escape Saul’s pursuits, even though God had already delivered him and soon Saul would see his own death on the battlefield. The fact of the matter is that if we allow discouragement and despair to creep into our thinking, it will soon erase the memory of God’s goodness and faithfulness toward us. This is especially true when the difficulties in life come as a result of our own doing, our own decisions, and our own sins. How do we battle such forgetfulness? How do we avoid following the path of discouragement that can ultimately lead to our destruction? First, we must do all we can to remind ourselves of God’s goodness and how His goodness to us does not change simply because we stumble. His grace, mercy, and love for us do not change just because we have moments of being unfaithful to Him. If that were so, then He would not have given us His Son to begin with, knowing that we would have our moments of denying Him, betraying Him, and failing Him over and over again. Instead, the Word of God tells us in Romans 8:31-32, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” In Romans 8:35 this question is asked, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?” The response in verses 38-39 tells us that nothing, ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, will ever separate us from His love, and therefore neither will we be separated from His grace, mercy, and goodness. When we begin to feel discouragement creeping into our thinking, we need to cast it aside and think on His goodness and recall how faithful He has been. Psalm 103 says it this way in verses 1-5, “Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: 3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases, 4 Who redeems your life from destruction, Who crowns you with loving-kindness and tender mercies, 5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.” When life goes sideways, no matter the reason, the devils will do all they can to convince us that God can no longer, or will no longer, deliver us from whatever hardship we find ourselves in the midst of. Discouragement will make us see nothing but hopelessness and make us forget just how much God loves us and how much hope we really have in Him; because as born again believers we have a Living Hope which is Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His free gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His free gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).
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