1 Samuel 30:1-30

Adversity is always a great test of character and will usually show us where we are in our walk with the Lord.  David has been sent away from the battlefield to return to his home in Ziklag.  However, when he arrives he discovered that the city has been burned down and that all of the women and children have been taken captive.  Fortunately, none of them had been killed; but they were all gone and their homes had been destroyed.  This is one of those times where we see how David will respond in the face of extreme adversity.  It is easy to be a man “after God’s own heart” when everything is going right; but when trouble strikes is when we see David’s true character.  We must never expect that God will prevent all adversity from coming into our lives.  This type of expectation is often used by Satan to discourage us.  We must recognize that God will use adversity to help us to grown and to strengthen our faith.

DAVID STRENGTHENS HIMSELF IN THE LORD: When David and his men found that their city had been destroyed and their families taken captive they were obviously very upset.  When things like this happen people have a tendency to want to blame someone; so they blame David.  He is their leader and he has left the city vulnerable to attack so they decide that is was David’s fault and threaten to stone him.  This is often the cost of leadership; when things go wrong, it is usually the leader that will be blamed.  David does not make excuses or try to defend himself or his leadership.  His reaction to his own personal loss and the subsequent attack of his own men was to strengthen himself in the Lord.  He looked to God for comfort and worshiped God despite the circumstances he was facing.  We must learn to find our strength from the Lord in the midst of adversity.

DAVID SEEKS FOR DIRECTION FROM THE LORD: David’s next course of action is to seek for direction from the Lord.  He does not pretend to know the answers, nor does he assume that God will simply bless whatever he decides to do.  David stops and asks God for direction before deciding what to do.  God assures David that He will deliver them from this enemy so David sets out to find their families.  When we face adversity, it is easy for us to assume that God will automatically bring relief, but that is not always the case.  It is wrong for us to presume that God will always punish the unjust and deliver the just right away.  David does not want to make a decision in anger so he stops and prays for direction from God.  This is a good example that we would do well to follow when we are faced with adversity.

DAVID SLAUGHTERS THE ENEMY OF THE LORD: As David and his men go out so search for their enemy, they find a member of the raiding party that had been left behind.  He agrees to show David where the people are in exchange for his life.  When David finds his enemies, they are having a wild party because of all the spoil they were able to take on their various raids.  David and his men proceed to kill all of the men except those who fled away on camels.  David and his men were able to rescue all of their families and recover the things that had been stolen.  If it is His will, God is able to provide victory in the midst of adversity.  David had a much smaller army than the one that he fought, but God was on his side made him much stronger than any enemy he could face.  We must not fear the circumstances of adverse times but trust God.

DAVID SHARES THE SPOILS GIVEN BY THE LORD: One third of David’s men were too tired from the days of traveling to continue the pursuit, so they stayed behind and watched the baggage of those who went on to war.  When the ones who fought returned victorious, there were some men who did not want to divide the spoils of war with those who had stayed behind.  David would not allow such treatment of his men.  He recognized the importance of those who had stayed behind and knew that they had done their best; so David insisted that they have and equal share.  Besides that, he restored the spoils that were taken from other cities to the people in other cities that had been raided.  David is not greedy, but recognizes that God had provided the victory and so David does what is good and just.  It is impressive to see that David responds correctly in both adversity and victory.  Many men will seek God’s help in the face of adversity but will forget God completely in times of victory.