Ever felt like the underdog?

by John Eiselt

Everybody loves an underdog story. Stories about unlikely heroes, who rise to face-off against their opponents whom, are seemingly much more suited for the challenge. We all have circumstances and events in our lives that seem too big, too hard, and down right impossible.

We all know what’s like to be the underdog, to not have enough of whatever it is we think we need to win, to overcome, or persevere.

Perhaps one of the greatest underdog stories ever recorded is the story of David and Goliath. 

In his book, Leap Over A Wall, Eugene Peterson writes this about the life of David…

“It’s the first full-blown story about David, and the most memorable. If you know anything at all about David, you know the story of Goliath. People who’ve never read the Bible, people who’ve never so much as heard about the Bible, know the story of David and Goliath.”

 “The David story anticipates the Jesus story… Why David? “…He’s so emphatically human: David fighting, praying, loving, sinning…There’s nothing, absolutely nothing, that God can’t and doesn’t use to work his salvation and holiness into our lives. If we’re going to get the most out of the Jesus story, we’ll want to first soak our imaginations in the David story.”

The story of David and Goliath is much more than an underdog story.

David is created for a purpose, and the story of David and Goliath is the beginning of God revealing that purpose to him, to God’s people, and to us.

Join us this weekend as we look at the beginning of David’s journey to becoming king. Come and discover the timeless truths it reveals about humanity, trust, and God.

Where we find our security is important to God. It should be to us, too.

Here' why it's so important.

First, when we feel insecure unless we have something or someone other than God, it reveals that God is not enough for us. 

But God IS enough. ONLY God is enough. It grieves his heart when we listen to other voices (that care less for us than he does) over his voice.

When the people ask for a king in 1 Samuel 8, they reject God's leadership out of fear. They don't believe God can overcome corrupt leadership in Israel and their enemies that are pressing in on them. They believe a king can provide greater security than God. 

The people were asking for something more than God to make them secure. 

But when we look for our ultimate security outside of God, we open the door to enslavement. 

That's what God warns the people about: "the king will make you into slaves." 

You become a slave to that which you depend on for happiness and security. 

If you have to have a certain kind of relationship to be happy, you become a slave to that relationship. 

If you have to be successful to find fulfillment, you become a slave of success. 

Same goes for any form of physical escape. It can quickly enslave us. 

One more thing: When we find our ultimate security outside of God, we lose our influence for Christ in the world. We look just like everyone else and have nothing unique to offer.

God is not an add on to life. He is king. 

Only Jesus is a king worth trusting for our security. On the cross he proved it. We need to remember that. We need constant reminding.