Published by admin on 08 May 2015 at 10:09 am
WIN, LOSE, OR DRAW?
You know the old saying; “Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose”. What is YOUR attitude toward life? And what if you found out that it is mostly YOU that determines if you win, lose, or draw? Would you think and act differently?
We will say you are entering a race against only one other contestant. Only one of you will win. So on race day you look at your competitor and see they are in fine physical shape and maybe you are not so much. Are you already defeated in your mind? But have you considered the alternative? Maybe they are not so confident of winning. What if they should trip and fall? Or what if they show up late for the race and you already ran it alone, winning by default? There are many “what if?” possibilities that can affect the outcome of the race. The same goes for your particular race up whatever mountain you are facing.
Think of it this way, if you don’t show up for the race, you automatically lose. If you see yourself defeated, you most likely are. Even if the competition is determined to win, and they are conditioned and ready, it doesn’t guarantee they will win. There are those who look like there is no way they can win, and yet they come from behind and win, much to everyone’s amazement. A lot of that comes from sheer determination to win against any odds. And YOU have that in you, but if you aren’t already winning, then that determination must awakened from its slumber.
In 1 Samuel chapter seventeen you can read about King Saul’s reaction to a challenge by a Philistine named Goliath. Kings usually win, right? Well, that depends on who that King happens to be, and what that king is made of.
1Sa 17:1 Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and were gathered together at Shochoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Shochoh and Azekah, in Ephesdammim.
1Sa 17:2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched by the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines.
1Sa 17:3 And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.
1Sa 17:4 And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.
1Sa 17:5 And he had an helmet of brass upon his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass.
1Sa 17:6 And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a target of brass between his shoulders.
1Sa 17:7 And the staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam; and his spear’s head weighed six hundred shekels of iron: and one bearing a shield went before him.
1Sa 17:8 And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them, Why are ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me.
1Sa 17:9 If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us.
1Sa 17:10 And the Philistine said, I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we might fight together.
1Sa 17:11 When Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.
Here you have a classic case of looking at how high the mountain is, or in this case the giant, and how inadequate you seem to be for the challenge. And that’s exactly how most people operate in life. But you don’t have to be “most people”. There are those who refuse to lose, and you can be like the giant killer that nobody expected to come forth and take the victory. This particular giant killer was named David, and he was only a young shepherd boy. But the difference between David and King Saul was how they viewed the giant. Here, King Saul had all the majesty, honor and battle weapons, along with experience in battle, and he took one look at the giant who was just too big to beat, and he was afraid.
David, on the other hand looked at the giant, who was defying the God of Israel, and instead of seeing the giant too big to beat, rather saw him as a target that was too big to miss. More importantly, David’s relationship with God enabled him to trust God to deliver the giant into his hand. That’s something the King and Army of Israel apparently didn’t have. Might doesn’t always win; remember that. Now I know this is a long chapter and a lot of verses to read, but you need to carefully read them, for it will change your life.
For the sake of not making this article too long, let me shorten it a bit. David, the youngest brother of eight sons, was a shepherd boy who tended his father’s sheep, and three of the eldest brothers went out to the battle. One day his father sent him to check on his brothers and “take their pledges”, which were like credit cards of the day. In other words, his father didn’t expect his sons to return from the battle. After all, Goliath was a BIG giant and hard to beat. And when David arrived at the camp and saw the fear all the army had of Goliath, he said he would go fight the Philistine. What did David possess that the others didn’t? Trust in God.
1Sa 17:31 And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul: and he sent for him.
1Sa 17:32 And David said to Saul, Let no man’s heart fail because of him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.
1Sa 17:33 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him: for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.
1Sa 17:34 And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father’s sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:
1Sa 17:35 And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.
1Sa 17:36 Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.
1Sa 17:37 David said moreover, The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the LORD be with thee.
1Sa 17:38 And Saul armed David with his armour, and he put an helmet of brass upon his head; also he armed him with a coat of mail.
1Sa 17:39 And David girded his sword upon his armour, and he assayed to go; for he had not proved it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him.
1Sa 17:40 And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag which he had, even in a scrip; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.
1Sa 17:41 And the Philistine came on and drew near unto David; and the man that bare the shield went before him.
1Sa 17:42 And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance.
1Sa 17:43 And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.
1Sa 17:44 And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.
1Sa 17:45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.
1Sa 17:46 This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.
1Sa 17:47 And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD’S, and he will give you into our hands.
1Sa 17:48 And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hasted, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.
1Sa 17:49 And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.
1Sa 17:50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David.
1Sa 17:51 Therefore David ran, and stood upon the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw their champion was dead, they fled.
No matter how tall the giant you are facing right now, there is One much larger who can be on YOUR side. And it is YOU that determines if God is on your side or not. It is written in Romans 8:31, What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? I like it the way another minister put it, If God be for us, WHO CARES who is against us?
Having a close, daily relationship with Christ Jesus gives us confidence to win ANY battle, for we can hand the battle over to God with the knowledge that God NEVER loses. Establishing and taking care of that relationship is YOUR part, and determines whether you will win, lose, or draw. You know, or should know the rest of the story: David later took Saul’s place as King. God called David a man after His own heart. Can God say that of YOU? With God on your side, you’re always a winner. You need never lose or draw, contrary to what the world may say. After all, the world isn’t looking to God. But YOU are, and that’s why you will ALWAYS win.