“This will never work out”, “I’m too bad for the blood to apply”, “The promises aren’t for me”, “I’ll never get ahead”, “I’m not qualified”. Do any of these thoughts sound familiar? We would like to take this opportunity to reveal two of the enemy’s main attacks. Once the lies are revealed, you can put the light on them! The light is the Word of God.
Most attacks the enemy uses to make you feel unqualified fall under one of two main categories: fear or rejection. These are both used to torment believers and distract them from the answer. The light. The mighty and incorruptible seed that is the Word of God.
Now that you know the problem, now that the lie has been uncovered, it’s time to put the light on it! 1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” Psalm 118:6 “The Lord is on my side; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” Psalm 94:14 “For the Lord will not forsake his people; He will not abandon His heritage.” These are all verses we can use to combat the attacks of the enemy!
We want to remind you of one of many times God called someone who appeared to be unqualified. We want to remind you of David, who went from shepherd boy to appointed king to giant slayer! As the title of this blog indicates, it only takes one step to go from unqualified to called. That one step is faith! David is such a great example of going all in with his faith. Read 1 Samuel to get all the details!
David was so unqualified for king that when Samuel arrived at Jesse’s house to appoint one of his sons as king, Jesse brought all seven of David’s brothers but left David tending to the sheep. Bible Scholars believe part of this was due to David being an illegitimate child. David was also described as smaller than his brothers. Talk about “rejected, left out, and looked over”! If anyone ever has been, David was. And after David was appointed as the next king, he went back to the field to shepherd the sheep until it was his time. For around fifteen years, David waited to see this promise of kingship be fulfilled. Do you have any promises you’re still waiting for?
So, what did David do in this spare time? He didn’t complain about not being king. He didn’t spend the whole time doubting the call on his life. Instead, he did the job he was in, and he did it well. One thing he had to do as a shepherd was guard the sheep. In this guarding of the sheep, he fended off attacks from lions and bears. In our own lives, we have to fend off attacks as well. Your attack may not be in the form of a lion or a bear. It might be in the form of your own attitude! With each attack, David strengthened his fighting skills and also strengthened his faith in God during times of battle. This faith came in handy much quicker than he expected.
Jesse’s oldest sons had been sent off to fight in a battle against the Philistines. David stayed back to tend the sheep. During the battle, Jesse came to David and told him to carry food to his brothers. I think Jesse was just a concerned father. Not only did he ask David to take food, but he wanted David to bring back a token from his brothers; something to assure him they were okay.
While David was checking in on his brothers, Goliath, who was described as the champion of the Philistines, came over to taunt the men. David realized that everyone around him was terrified. All of the men began talking about how big and strong Goliath was. They talked about what all this enemy of theirs had done. They were more convinced of the power of their enemy than their ability to conquer him. Have you ever believed more in your problems than you have in your problem solver?
David, however, never spoke of the size or power of this big and strong enemy. He didn’t even call him a giant. No, David said, “You come at me with a sword and a shield, but I come in the name of the Lord who you defiled!” He didn’t see Goliath as a mighty warrior. He saw Goliath as opposition to the Lord God Almighty! And David knew who he himself was, a member of that army, backed by God! You know the rest of the story. David took out his sling, took Goliath down with one stone, and then cut his head off with Goliath’s own sword!
The sword which was a tool for destruction in the enemy’s hand, became a symbol of God’s faithfulness in David’s hand. In the same way, the cross that was meant to kill Christ, God used to resurrect me and you! Is that something to shout about, or what?!
The Word says that what the enemy means for evil, the Lord will turn for our good and for His glory. What began as an attack from the enemy in your life will become a testimony of victory. It will become a weapon AGAINST the enemy! If you’ll just believe! If you’ll just trust in the Lord!
Many tell this story and highlight the fact that David won with only a sling and a stone. But we would argue that David had much more. David had faith that the Lord would fight for him and through him. David’s sling didn’t qualify him. His trust in God qualified him! The world told David that he was unqualified, unable, and unworthy. But David trusted in the Lord God, over all else!
We pray that each of you reading this is able to apply it to your own life. We pray that the Word of God revealed here will build your faith and help develop you for all you are called to! We pray that you recognize that no circumstance speaks louder or matters more than the Word of God. We pray that your life would be changed as you jump from feeling unqualified to knowing that you are called! That step is simple: it’s having faith in who God is and what He says!
