1st Samuel chapter 27.
David knew eventually soul would attempt to try and kill him again so he decided to escape to the land of the Philistine's, his enemies, knowing Saul would never come there to find him. David ended up going to war against people that God was against but misled the king of the Philistines land telling him that he was actually fighting his own people. This made the king of the Philistines land to feel David was 100% devoted to the Philistines which made the king feel David would be his servant forever. And he liked that.
David seem to operate under this one principle:
- He wanted to protect his family.
- Safety was his number one priority. So he made sure they lived someplace they would not have to fear an attack.
- He wanted to supply for his family so he destroyed cities and kept their belongings for his own family.
- He misled the king of the Philistines about who he was really fighting with so as to prevent the Philistines from turning against David.
Do I want to protect my family? Should deception be a viable option?
Regardless, family should be my number one Ministry. I should not ignore the needs of my wife so as to make me happy and her feeling not valuable or significant. I should go out of my way to ensure my wife feels valuable and important through encouraging her and lifting her up.
Although in the previous chapter Saul had apologized to David for trying to kill him, David still knew that Saul could not be trusted so he decided to go live in a place where he would be safe from Saul. This seemed to me to be a wise decision, but that place was among the Philistines. What a strange situation that David was in! In some ways it was like he had the best of both worlds or having his cake and eating it too. He was safe in his enemy’s land while they didn’t know what he was really up to. How long until they would find out what was going on? He was temporarily living there, but I don’t think that it was a place that David could call home. Living in Ziklag may have also seemed like the worst of both worlds. It was a sneaky and deceptive life, but David was willing to do whatever he had to do to protect his family and others like Abiathar and himself.
David had to keep trusting and seeking the Lord to keep them all safe. I was thinking today about what is written in Psalm 120.
“In my distress I called to the Lord, and He answered me. Deliver me, O Lord, from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue. What shall be given to you, and what more shall be done to you, you deceitful tongue? A warrior’s sharp arrows, with glowing coals of the broom tree! Woe to me, that I sojourn in Meshech, that I dwell among the tents of Kedar! Too long have I had my dwelling among those who hate peace. I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war!”
In the first verse, we learn that David is talking to himself (or in Hebrew this means his own heart). He didn’t talk to God so he came to the wrong conclusion and ends up living in enemy territory for 16 months. In chapter 22, God had told him to stay in Judah. Was God able to use David during this time – yes, of course.
How many times have I talked to myself or others and convinced myself that I am right? In the flesh, we are our best allies. According to Jeremiah 17:9, the heart is deceitful and wicked. So when I talk to myself I am deceived and getting bad counsel.
Philippians 4:6,7 says to be anxious for nothing but to pray with thanksgiving and take our requests – not to ourselves, not to our friends, not to our pastor, not to our spouse – but to God. And He will give us peace that surpasses all understanding and will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
I heard this example from a pastor. He said to think of 2 stop watches – one for measuring the time you spend talking to yourself and others about a situation. The 2nd watch measures the time you spend talking to the Lord about the same situation. If you stopped the watches at the end of a week and compared the amount of time on each one, what would it tell you? Would you be convicted?
We don’t make wise decisions talking to ourselves … we can end up in our own Gath. Thankfully, our God is sovereign, faithful and forgiving to His children. We are so blessed to be called His children!
Jeanine, thank you for sharing the story about the two stop watches. This is something I hope to start using in my life immediately. I talk to myself and others way more about my problems than I do bringing them to the Lord and that needs to change in my life.
It’s strange because through these chapters I’ve seen David as more of a peaceful person, but in this chapter we see that as he attacks different places, he does not leave one man or woman alive. Now, this is still the will of God, but others are seeing his work more for the Israelites now, than for the Lord.
Do we ever begin an event or project and have the best of intentions with honoring the Lord, yet perhaps to the outside looking in, it looks like we are serving someone/something else? Or they see how hard we work and think how they might take advantage of us, like Achish said of David, being his servant for life. Do we get discouraged when there are Achishs in our lives, and does it take away from the work we are meant to do for the Lord? Let us be on guard and ready for those who try to twist the intentions of the Lords faithful servants.