Let not Goliaths intimidate you….
Samuel 17:4”And a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.”
Giants make you Saints for God!
People who have never confronted strong opposition and if you have been shielded and protected, then you would never understand what it means to face an enemy! If you had not worked among giants who mock you, criticize and boo you, then you would never understand this message! You if have never been falsely accused, fingers pointed at, rejected, ignored and lampooned by your own family then you would never understand the deep feelings behind this message. Are you listening?
When I obeyed God, resigned my job, sold my apartment and moved into a rented place, little did I know that we were entering the Lion’s den! The owner was a hideous and brutal character; our ministry started in that area and it boomed gloriously. During a weekly meeting the overflow of the crowd would be so much, it would even spill into the street; revival spread the entire area. Well, when God wanted us to move, we faced tremendous problems, the owner even stopped water supply for us and sent local thugs to speak to us. The night before we shifted that place, we were not able to close our eyes, such was the horror that surrounded us. The Goliaths that we face! But as we moved along in ministry, God strengthened us to face more Goliaths, more ferocious…. Wait a moment! Does this mean that today I don’t fear and I flex my muscles to meet the enemy? Never, on the contrary, let me be frank, I still feel deep, excruciating pain on the inside, because Jesus never taught us to quarrel. Are you with me? Recently when someone twisted words, lied, spoke harshly and were maliciously confronting me, words failed, I was dumbstruck and all I wanted to do is run away to a corner and pray. Believe me. My heart cried: ‘where art thou O Lord?’
The Bible says in Verse 16, ‘And the Philistine drew near and presented himself forty days, morning and evening. ‘ The entire Israel army including King Saul were trembling! Hey, they were no duds, they were God’s people, who had faced numerous enemies and won battles too; however, this single Goliath tormented and haunted them nonstop. You want to know why? Besides the huge size of the enemy, Goliath kept the tempo of tormenting them morning and evening! How would you feel if someone calls you twenty times to harass you? How would you feel if your inbox gets bombarded with hate mails? These kind of things does shake you a bit! Brusqueness is a way of life for many today.
Why does God not remove such Goliaths in a single stroke and smash them? Why are we allowed to face these giants? This is our training ground! Amen. When Goliath roared, shouted and teased the Israelites, the Bible says, ‘David heard them.’ I’m excited as I preach this message to you today! David did not retread backwards but advanced forward to face the enemy! God brought David in front of the whole army of Israel, the Philistines, King Saul and prepared that ground to exalt David in front of his enemies. Aptly David sang, ‘You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.’ (Psalm 23:5)
Being a woman, God did not exempt me from facing giants! He pushed me and propelled me forward to enter the arena and face the battle! I wanted to run back into His Arms! He never pampered me, instead He prepared me for the battle!
Shouts of the enemy makes you a soldier for Christ!
Torments of Giants make you Saints for God!
Fear not the Goliaths today!
