“He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave. The men said, ‘This is the day the Lord spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.’ Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe. Afterward, David was conscience-stricken for having cut off a corner of his robe. He said to his men, ‘The Lord forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the Lord’s anointed, or lay my hand on him; for he is the anointed of the Lord.’”
– 1 Samuel 24:3-6
Yesterday, we looked at King David, the call God placed on his life, and how things got harder for him after his anointing. Today, I want to share another lesson we can learn from this Biblical hero: how to respect the frustrating perfection of Jesus’ timing. Even though Samuel had called him out as Israel’s next king, David was sensitive to the fact that Saul had the anointing and the authority to reign until God’s appointed time. In spite of being hotly pursued and persecuted by this maniacal ruler, the young warrior remained humble, although his heart must have been crying, “Where are you Lord? Why have you abandoned me?” So respectful was he of Saul that David spared his life on two separate occasions. In one instance, the king stepped into the cave in which he and his comrades were hiding, having left his army outside so he could relieve himself. While he was in that vulnerable position, David cut off a piece of Saul’s robe to prove to him that he had the opportunity to take his life but chose not to. The same thing happened again later on, only this time the young soldier encountered the king sleeping, once more sparing his life, but taking away his spear and water buckets to demonstrate that he had mercy on him a second time. You see, in both of these instances, even though David was encouraged by his companions to kill Saul, he responded by saying, “Shall I kill the Lord’s anointed?” The future king understood that his call was given by God and that He was the one who would promote him at the right time. This enabled David to be fair, just, and unendingly merciful toward his enemy! Friend, the call of God is irrevocable, but it is completely in His Hands! Don’t lose heart when Jesus speaks to you about your destiny and it doesn’t come to pass as quickly as you are expecting! Whatever you do, try not to take matters into your own hands or to hurry His plan. Respect the position He has you in and respect the ones to whom He has given authority, even if it’s the authority He has promised to you. You will get to where He is leading you if only you embrace the frustrating perfection of His time. He is using everything between your destiny and its fulfillment to refine your character and make you more like Him! Isn’t that wonderful news? |
Prayer
Thank you, Jesus, for the frustrating perfection of your time. I know you have placed a call on my life and I know that you will bring it to fulfillment as you see fit.
Reflection
Have you ever been tempted to take matters into your own hands in an effort to “speed up” the process of getting to your destiny?
One Response
Thank you for this message.