David spent seven years running from Saul. He was literally hiding in caves and trying to elude his enemies night after night. He had lost his wife and best friend, and yet he continued to have faith in the Lord. Even when he had opportunities to end the discord with Saul and could have stopped all the fighting, he didn’t. He showed grace and restraint, knowing that God would deliver him, in his time and in his way.
Do you have relationships that are adversarial? Maybe you know you need rescued from the chaos, and delivered from the strain? How does David’s example of patience and grace sit with you? It’s pretty humbling and leaves me wondering… if I were in David’s shoes and had the opportunity to “have the last word” and end the back and forth in difficult relationships, would I take it? Or would I follow David’s example and let God work how and when he will?
We can learn so much from David’s long suffering in his relationship with Saul, starting at the very beginning. 1 Samuel 18 outlines the jealousy that grew in Saul: David being praised by the people as a stronger warrior than Saul, and also David’s relationship with Jonathon. Saul got caught in the comparison trap that so many do, and his jealousy spiraled out of control. Jealousy turned to scheming and plotting, trying to get David killed and not able to threaten Saul’s position as king.
I’m sure there were many cold nights on the run where David didn’t know how it would end. He was afraid and wasn’t sure what to do next. Psalm 57 describes on of these nights, where he is equally pleading with the Lord for mercy, and also declaring God’s faithfulness, love and glory. What a testimony to the faith of David!
2 Samuel begins the reign of David after Saul’s death. David worships his Deliverer, and his words are perfect:
The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation,
my stronghold and my refuge,
my savior; you save me from violence.
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised,
and I am saved from my enemies. 2 Samuel 22
I love both of these passages, to pray through when I’m in the middle of a storm and need delivering. He IS faithful, He loves us so. And then praising God for his deliverance. His ways and timing are perfect!
Today’s focus challenged me to make a list of my own rescue stories of deliverance. Long list. And it got me thinking, what’s NOT on my list? What rescue missions did He deliver me from that I’m not even aware of? Maybe something that I consider a closed door, or a failure, He used as a deliverance. Or situations I am oblivious to, He orchestrated a rescue mission. He’s so so good to us.