The Journey to Greatness
Most times the journey to greatness requires that a person passes through some unpleasant experiences, the outcome of which would determine whether they end up great. The purpose of this study is to encourage all who would like to attain greatness of what to expect on the possible route and to reassure them of God’s readiness to support all who would trust in him on their journey to greatness.
We will begin by briefly looking at the life of Joseph (Genesis 37-50) who dreamt of greatness as a young man and his subsequent journeys to attaining it. Joseph lost his mother as a child but took comfort in the love of his father. Then as a teenager he suffered another blow, he experienced betrayal and rejection by his own brothers, who threw him into an empty well, initially to die but upon reflection, decided to sell him into slavery. Striped of his identity, with all connection to his native land lost, he arrived as a slave to Potiphar an Egyptian. Though going through this terrible time, not once did he complain. In his new home he went about doing his job with great zeal and commitment holding on to his dreams. Just as he was settling down, and becoming accustomed to his new environment, he encountered another problem. His master’s wife, in a failed attempt to seduce him into an affair with her, she falsely accused him of trying to force himself on her and he was sent to prison. Through all of this, Joseph was never bitter! He kept persisting in doing the right thing even when wrong things kept happening. In prison his faith in God did not waver. He carried on making the best out of his terrible circumstances. When he had been fully tested and tried, God turned the tide in his favour. In one day, he went from being a prisoner to becoming the Prime Minister of Egypt. God’s ways are not our ways. Becoming great mostly comes with an extremely high price tag. We must continue to trust God even in the face of difficulties.
What a journey! The one who God is going to promote to greatness must pass through a series of tests of character.
There are many examples in the Bible of the experiences of people on their journey to greatness. During the days of His earthly life, Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour had a torturous journey to the cross (Philippians 2:8-10). However, in the end His name became higher than any other. He became the author of our salvation. Despite the pain and torture, he endured on the cross, he still prayed that “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34.
Paul in 2 Corinthians 11: 23-33 gave a catalogue of the many trials he had to endure before he could achieve the status of the greatest Apostle that ever lived. Many great people had to suffer through countless hardships before arriving at their destination of greatness.
Our next point of focus will be on King David. We will look at his journey to greatness from when he was first anointed king to when he actually ascended the throne.
The story of his journey to the throne can be found in the first chapter of 1 Samuel all the way to 2 Samuel chapter 5. David was first anointed king in 1 Samuel 16:13-14. It was God's decision to make David king. David was a young man when he was first anointed king in 1 Samuel 17:33 but he did not actually ascend the throne until age 30, 2 Samuel 2:4, 5:3.
David was on the run from Saul his predecessor for more than 10 years before he completed his training for leadership.
Let’s now look at the catalogue of his journey between his first anointing and when he finally ascended the throne.
David’s journey to greatness began when he was first appointed by king Saul as a harpist. David arrived at the Kings palace and went through a series of events, one notably being his bold confrontation with Goliath. This led to his popularity, with the women of Israel singing a song about his victory. However, this celebration of David led to him being envied by Saul. 1 Samuel 18:10-11 depicts some of Saul’s attempts to kill David. Even at that David did not leave Saul's presence. He quietly obeyed whatever assignment he was given. (1 Samuel 18:13-16)
Eventually David was removed from his position in the palace of the king. When this happened, he did not accuse the king even though he knew that Saul hated him. Rather he continued to conduct himself as he did before, giving Saul his respect as King and obeying orders and in return he earned even more respect.
Several other attempts were made by Saul to kill David. However, David's heart was free from any anger or resentment towards Saul. Despite all his negative experiences with Saul, David chose to honour Saul. As the people of Israel watched and saw how he did not disrespect Saul despite the many attempts to end his life, they in return honoured David the more.
After several other attempts at his life, David finally seeks advice from a respected leader rather than engaging in discussions with his colleagues. David was never disrespectful to Saul, nor did he attempt to sow discord, but finally left the palace quietly and went his way.
At a point David finally spoke to Jonathan Saul’s son about all his experiences. All this while no bitterness was found in David against Saul. Things became so bad, that David could no longer stay in the country and he eventually fled to a neighbouring country with his family. David by now had been on the run from Saul for several years. Then one day God allowed David an opportunity to kill Saul, but David recognised the office of the anointed and refused despite contrary advice from some of the men who fought alongside him.
When you see people in rebellion against authority, they are likely to have been advised wrongly. They may say things like “God said." Be careful when people make statements like this. Make sure you know for yourself through personal reflection and studying scripture that God is leading you in any direction. David almost failed the test but thank God he did not.
Look at how David turned his fellow brethren away from harming Saul! When you hear people saying negative things about men or women of God do you turn them away from doing such or do you join them? The one who is going to be great must avoid such discussions.
Chapter 26:7-25 is the second and final test. God caused a deep sleep to fall on Saul. The one who will not physically or verbally harm his enemy will be a great leader because in leadership, there will be several moments of betrayal, but a leader must learn to be gracious and rise above those actions.
Those who will be leaders may need the prayers of their predecessors in order to succeed. Just like Hannah who could have felt greatly insulted by the Prophet Eli, she chose instead to respect his office and in return she received a prayer that opened the door to her miracle. (1 Samuel 1:17). Majority of people if not everyone will have to go through a trial of faith and a test of character in order to arrive at a place of greatness.
In another test of character in chapter 30: David on his return from war found that Ziklag, his place of residence was invaded and burnt by some bandits. His wives, children and properties were taken away. The people he was leading began to discuss the idea of stoning him, but he encouraged himself and by divine direction he was able to recover everything that was lost. When in trouble followers who have been singing your praises will be the first to take up stones against you, but don't pray to harm them. You are on the final hurdle to greatness! From the event that seemed so tragic, came forth great treasures that enabled David to start his campaign to return to Israel his home country.
In 2 Samuel 1:11-14 shows David’s reaction to the news that Saul had died. How incredible! Only people with hearts like this can attain such great heights. If some of us were in his position, we would have thrown a party to celebrate being free from the threat of death after over a decade.
The one who will be great will have to pass the test of character development. The intensity of the trails you face is usually an indicator of the level of greatness you are called to.
If after reading through this you still desire to be great, then I would recommend you pray for grace to pass the test.
