Fighting The Giants In Your Life

Fighting the giants in your life

1 Samuel 17

Prayer-

Tonight we will be having a time of worship and prayer. Josh and our sound team along with the worship team from Lebanon put together a service that will give us freedom to worship God and ask God to respond to things going on in our lives through prayer. If you would want to say a prayer, you will be able. If you would like to just pray and not be one to speak, you will be able to do that also. You will not have to do anything that you do not want to do.

We need that… all of us do. We can all find something else to do tonight and adding one more thing after a busy week is a lot to ask. But I ask you, how are things going? Are things working out or do you desire to seek God and ask him what to do?

This morning I want to ask you…

What giants are you fighting?

Are they new and occasional or are they the same old ones that you cannot get victory from? What are you doing with them? What are you doing about them?

Turn to 1 Samuel 17/ selected verses

Familiar verse and story we have probably heard. This morning let’s look at it not only as an event that happened to someone else, but let’s apply the lessons to our lives today.

It is about shepherd David fighting the soldier Goliath-

The underdog fighting and defeating a giant.

Fighting someone/something that was bigger than him and no match in any sense of the word.

How they both got there was not in this one battle. It was a nation fighting against God’s people and God showed up and showed his power.

David on the other hand was not just a soldier that was hoping to defeat His enemy but was trained, encouraged all through his life by God through the small events in his life. He defeated animals that had tried to kill the sheep that David was call to protect.

He was encouraged by a father that believed in him and showed him the way.

David was anointed by God early in his life to fulfill a purpose that was to come later in his life.

David one day, that is the way those unexpected giants show up- one day, he was following his father’s orders to go see how his brothers were doing, give them food, and report back to him. That was what was supposed to happen. He does what he is suppose to and in an instant he is now faced with a giant in his life.

No one wants to get involved- he decides he will get involved.

People give him all the reasons in the world why he can’t do it and they won’t do it.

He tries to prove to them that not only is he willing, but he has a shot at defeating the giant.

(32) “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine (giant); your servant will go and fight him.”

(26) “David asked the men standing near him, what will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel?”

The King will pour out great blessing!

Anybody want and /or need a great blessing from the King this morning?

So David is suddenly in the fight of his life with the giant of his life. He chooses to fill his bag with smooth rocks and heads into battle

The Philistine looks David over and despises that anyone would step up and challenged him- “Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.”

Goliath cursed David by his gods, but king Saul had blessed him and said , the Lord be with you.

“David said to the Philistine, you come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defiled.”

“David struck down the Philistine and then ran over to him face to face- “David ran over and stood over him- he took hold of the Philistines sword and drew it from the sheath. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword.”

This a great story of victory- grotesque in nature, after all a man was killed and had his head cut off. But what can we learn today from this portion of scripture?

Give your giant a name- identify him.

Israel giant was a 9 foot tall Philistine named Goliath! He had a name. What is the name of your giant this morning?

Fear?

Anger?

Addiction?