An Underdog Story

Goliath said: “If he can kill me, our people will be your slaves. But if I kill him, your people will be our slaves. Here and now I challenge Israel’s whole army! Choose someone to fight me!” 1 Samuel 17:9 10

David and Goliath is probably the greatest underdog tale there is. It was common practice to have one “Champion” represent on nation’s army the opposing army’s Champion. Goliath, ranging anywhere from seven-and-a-half to nine feet tall, challenged the Israelite armies to send such a Champion against him. His sheer size, combined with his fighting expertise, froze every potential opponent in their boots.

Everyone child who ever attended Sunday School can picture the scene. Little David, youngest of the sons of Jesse, goes out to see how the battle is coming along. Someone tells him about the challenge of Goliath and he is shocked no one has taken up the gauntlet. David boldly approaches King Saul and presents himself as the one to confront the giant Goliath.

Even the king won’t go against this foe, so he laughingly offers his own armor to young David. David squirms, unaccustomed to the ill-fitting battle attire, and goes out to face Goliath in his own clothing armed only with a sling and five stones. Not that David is a novice. He has slain both the bear and lion with the same sling while protecting the sheep under his care.

In the next scene we see David approaching the giant. Goliath mocks the young warrior, as well as the army that sent him. But David doesn’t care what Goliath says about him or his brothers on the battle front; it is the fact that he has mocked the God of Israel that instill such courage in the teenage shepherd. David goes, not in his own strength, or defending his own honor; he goes in the strength of God Himself.

We all love stories where the underdog wins. But there is much more to David and Goliath than just the big bad bully getting what’s coming to him. God wants to instill confidence in us about times when life seems absolutely overwhelming. If we are not careful, overpowering circumstances can also threaten to “make slaves of us.” Looking at our pitiful resources compared to the obstacles we face, we can give in to the same fear that gripped Israel’s armies; all except for David, of course.

Perhaps we have a relationship that now has turned sour. As much as we try, we cannot breach the rift that has caused us to drift apart. We have apologized, begged, wept and offered everything we can think of to mend the hurt but no words are enough. We wonder why we must face the dissolution of a relationship that was once so dear.

Or maybe we have gone along well, building a nice nest egg for ourselves and our family. We buy a good home in a well-appointed neighborhood, and have worked hard to finally have some financial freedom. But suddenly we are knocked down by a debilitating illness, we lose our job, and eventually lose our home. Well past middle age, we are starting all over again in an economy that is working against us. We feel powerless against the assault of economic disaster.

A good friend of mine is close to losing his wife of over 70 years to a stroke. They are one of the sweetest couple I know. I had the privilege of leading him to the Lord just a few years ago; nearly 90 years old. Less than a year ago he and his wife lost a daughter to cancer; now he faces the probable departure of his beloved. We can reel at the weight of such great loss; such unfair and unkind surprises.

We do have an enemy; the devil is very real. And, unfortunately many people, some of them Christians, overinflate his power and influence. Make no mistake, he has power, and he has influence, but only to the degree that we allow. We can see him the same way Israel’s army saw Goliath, and freeze out of fear. Or we can see the God who is bigger than any opponent we can conceive.

I am not suggesting that Satan orchestrates the hardships we endure. What is certain is that he will use them to make us feel absolutely helpless and abandoned by God. He will magnify the issues to such a degree that we forget the magnitude of God’s greatness, the capacity of God’s compassion and the certainty of God’s plan.

No one is exempt from hardship. Relationships struggle, economies falter and our bodies can give way. But the picture of young David marching confidently toward trash-talking Goliath ought to inspire us in our own battles against adversity.

We are not promised that we will never suffer. What we do know is that every step taken in God’s will is also taken under God’s protection. Never let the devil cause you to think you have no power. It was not the size the rocks in his sling that won David’s victory; it was the overwhelming greatness of the God whom he trusted to win the day.

No matter your hurdle today, face it with the confidence that you need never be the slave of anything. You have been bought with a price by the One who loves you best. There is nothing in this universe powerful enough to wrestle you away from God’s providential care.