Irvin Wasswa- Tylertown Campus Pastor LHBC

1 Samuel 22:1-8
22 David departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. And when his brothers and all his father’s house heard it, they went down there to him. 2 And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul,[a] gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him about four hundred men.
3 And David went from there to Mizpeh of Moab. And he said to the king of Moab, “Please let my father and my mother stay[b] with you, till I know what God will do for me.” 4 And he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him all the time that David was in the stronghold. 5 Then the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not remain in the stronghold; depart, and go into the land of Judah.” So David departed and went into the forest of Hereth.
6 Now Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men who were with him. Saul was sitting at Gibeah under the tamarisk tree on the height with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him. 7 And Saul said to his servants who stood about him, “Hear now, people of Benjamin; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, will he make you all commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, 8 that all of you have conspired against me? No one discloses to me when my son makes a covenant with the son of Jesse. None of you is sorry for me or discloses to me that my son has stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day.” 

Picture this: You have just been notified that you are going to be the next King/Queen of your country. As you prepare to take the throne, the current person on the throne becomes jealous of you and seeks to kill you. You now find yourself on the run for your life and end up hiding out in a cave. How would you respond? How would your attitude be? I can already tell you that I would probably have a sour attitude. The scenario I just described is where we find David in 1 Samuel 22. He is in a cave hiding out and fearful for his life. King Saul has been chasing him looking to take his life but to no avail. What is interesting is that both David and Saul here in 1 Samuel 22 were distressed (for different reasons but distressed nonetheless), however we see the stark differences in the way each of them handled being distressed which spoke to where they placed their hope.

How do you respond in times of distress? How do you react when crippling news comes your way or when you feel as though you have been dealt a bad hand? I love how David in his distress chose to stand for the Lord. It says in v.1-5 that he escaped from Saul and hid in the cave of Adullum. While he was there though he did not choose to sit and sulk. He made the most of where he was. Meanwhile in vs. 6-10 we see Saul whining and complaining at the fact he feels as though his servants were betraying him because they didn’t give him all the details he wanted to capture David. 

I don’t know about you but I want to be more like David in response to distressing times than a Saul. How can we be like David and choose to stand for God in light of seasons of distress? 

-Choose to Serve instead of Sulk: David while in the cave had men who were broken, distressed, and hurting come to him. Instead of ignoring them or joining in their pity party he served them by stepping up and being their leader/commander. While Saul griped at those he was over, David empowered and encouraged. It’s very interesting how your attitude shifts in the midst of a distressing time when you choose to serve others in light of walking through that time. 

-Choose to Wait on the Lord instead of Wallowing in Discouragement: After David took charge of the 400 men it says he went to Moab and asked for the king to take care of his family while he waited to hear from the Lord on what He was going to do for him. David was leaning on the Lord and His direction. Instead of wallowing in discouragement like Saul, choose to trust in the Lord by waiting on Him. Listen, you may not know what the future holds but you know the One who holds the future. Choose to lean on Him. 

Today may you be encouraged to know that the God of the Universe is still God and is still good in light of the distressing times. Life can be difficult, full of trying seasons but  let’s choose to be like David who stood for the Lord in light of the distressing times instead of Saul who chose to sulk in the midst of them. 

PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you so much for who You are and what You have done for me. I know life can be challenging and that there will be seasons of difficulty but You are good. Help me to choose to trust in You today. Help for me to choose to lean on You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

MEMORY VERSE OF THE WEEK:
Psalm 124:8:
Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.