David A man after God's own heart!

I am writing this lesson from my phone.  I am on the road with no access to a computer so.... here goes! 

Question of the day: Favorite family vacation and why?

So, today we are going to do something different.  We are going to skip a chapter.  This is what I would like.  Go ahead and read 1 Samuel 29.  The chapter is short and sweet.  If  anything strikes you, we can discuss it before we move into Chapter 30.


1 Samuel 30
David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day. Now the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag. They had attacked Ziklag and burned it, and had taken captive the women and everyone else in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, but carried them off as they went on their way.
When David and his men reached Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep. David’s two wives had been captured—Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Carmel. David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the Lord his God.

Let's stop a moment.
Where was David when all this happened?  Trying to fight with and join the enemy in fighting God's people. Hmmm
What are some ways that we might try to join the enemy and fight God's people?

This past week the MPA recruiting team preached about God's candy, or the fruit of the spirit. They noted that in the fruit of the spirit there is no: condemnation, reproof, judgment, separateness.  The fruit of the spirit is: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control.

So, if we have the fruit of judgement, reproof, complaining, hate, that is the fruit of what?

David was a man of God - even anointed - and yet he went and tried to fight with the wrong side.  So it is completely possible that we Christians with all our good intentions join the wrong army.
How or what are some other real life ways that we fight with the enemy?


Continue reading:
Then David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelek, “Bring me the ephod.” Abiathar brought it to him, and David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?”
“Pursue them,” he answered. “You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue.
David and the six hundred men with him came to the Besor Valley, where some stayed behind. Two hundred of them were too exhausted to cross the valley, but David and the other four hundred continued the pursuit.

I think here is important to stop and note that some are too exhausted to cross the valley.  We see later how David treats them but I wanted to note that some were too tired to go into the battle.  Too tired to go through the valley.

Maybe it is because I am in the midst of a very tiring time, but I think this is important.  Are you ever just too tired to go through the valley?

Maybe your valley is the work needed to tackle an addiction, heal hurts, go to a counselor, or go outside and walk.  What are some of your valleys?

Do you ever think that someone around you needs to go through a valley?  Maybe they need you to be willing to go and let them just sit and rest.  So many times we think, "If I can fight so can you!"
David had empathy and kindness for the men who were too tired.  Can we do the same for each other?


Continue:
They found an Egyptian in a field and brought him to David. They gave him water to drink and food to eat— part of a cake of pressed figs and two cakes of raisins. He ate and was revived, for he had not eaten any food or drunk any water for three days and three nights.
David asked him, “Who do you belong to? Where do you come from?”
He said, “I am an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite. My master abandoned me when I became ill three days ago. We raided the Negev of the Kerethites, some territory belonging to Judah and the Negev of Caleb. And we burned Ziklag.”
David asked him, “Can you lead me down to this raiding party?”
He answered, “Swear to me before God that you will not kill me or hand me over to my master, and I will take you down to them.”
He led David down, and there they were, scattered over the countryside, eating, drinking and reveling because of the great amount of plunder they had taken from the land of the Philistines and from Judah. David fought them from dusk until the evening of the next day, and none of them got away, except four hundred young men who rode off on camels and fled. David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives. Nothing was missing: young or old, boy or girl, plunder or anything else they had taken. David brought everything back. He took all the flocks and herds, and his men drove them ahead of the other livestock, saying, “This is David’s plunder.”

So... David provided nourishment and showed mercy to not just any stranger but someone who had taken part in taking all that was David's in the first place.  Yet this guy was attempting to separate himself from his master.

I don't care what the fruit of your life has been and I don't care who your master has been, if you decide to work for the Lord and turn to him at any moment, HE WILL USE YOU!

Just like God gave David the opportunity to have redemption for what he had done in destroying an entire town, by saving another town, God gave the Egyptian the opportunity to make things right again.

No matter how far you have gone down a road of fighting on the wrong side or being a servant of the wrong side, if you are willing to let God do a mighty work, he will give you the opportunity to make things right.


Continue:
Then David came to the two hundred men who had been too exhausted to follow him and who were left behind at the Besor Valley. They came out to meet David and the men with him. As David and his men approached, he asked them how they were. But all the evil men and troublemakers among David’s followers said, “Because they did not go out with us, we will not share with them the plunder we recovered. However, each man may take his wife and children and go.”
David replied, “No, my brothers, you must not do that with what the Lord has given us. He has protected us and delivered into our hands the raiding party that came against us. Who will listen to what you say? The share of the man who stayed with the supplies is to be the same as that of him who went down to the battle. All will share alike.” David made this a statute and ordinance for Israel from that day to this.

A man after God's own heart.....

Here we see the heart of Christ.  In fact, Jesus told a parable just like this.  Maybe the story that Jesus told was a little more kid friendly but it has the same message.

We may be strong enough to go through the valley.  If you are not too tired to fight, maybe God wants you to bring back what you recover and share it with those who couldn't make the trip.
 
Are you willing to share even though you did all the work?  How do we share the "spoils?"


Continue:
When David reached Ziklag, he sent some of the plunder to the elders of Judah, who were his friends, saying, “Here is a gift for you from the plunder of the Lord’s enemies.”
David sent it to those who were in Bethel, Ramoth Negev and Jattir; to those in Aroer, Siphmoth, Eshtemoa and Rakal; to those in the towns of the Jerahmeelites and the Kenites; to those in Hormah, Bor Ashan, Athak and Hebron; and to those in all the other places where he and his men had roamed.
David didn't hord the wealth.

I know all of us have successes in this battle called "Life."   At some point, we are all too tired to walk through the valley and fight.   So whether today you are the tired one or the one able to battle, there is a lesson here for us all!

First - Get on the right side so you don't lose everything because you are trying to fight with the enemy.
Second - Don't condemn the tired.
Third - If you are able to fight, then share the spoils.  With ALL!