NEW YEAR//NEW OPPORTUNITIES

1 Samual, Chapter 17! 

Just to preface the story a little bit. Because again I’m not going to read the whole thing!

There was a war going on between the Israelites and the Philistines.

David’s 7 older brothers were apart of the Israelite army.

But David was just a Shepard. (HOW MANY TIMES HAVE WE USED THIS EXCUSE… IM JUST A.. stay at home mom, I CANT DO THAT) or whatever your title may be. But I’m here to remind you that Yes you can!! 

And David’s dad asked him to take a basket of food to his brothers!

And this is kind of where I want to start:

There are three major things David did or had that helped him succeed! 

In Verse 20, we see Obedience

David left the sheep with another shepherd and set out early the next morning with the gifts, as Jesse(David’s dad) had directed him. He arrived at the camp just as the Israelite army was leaving for the battlefield with shouts and battle cries.

 -David obeyed his father and left his sheep. 

-When David brought the basket to his brothers, he heard Goliath’s taunt… Goliath was mocking the Israelites and also God. 

AND THIS IS WHERE DAVID IS PRESENTED HIS OPPORTUNITY!!

David started asking questions.. and His brother gets angry!

Guys, The moment you step out and start thinking about doing something different, people close to you might get angry, or might not understand! You can’t let that keep you from stepping out and doing what you feel called to do! 

And in David’s case, he decided He wanted to be the one to defeat Goliath! 

But People thought David was crazy… King Saul even said in verse 33

33 “Don’t be ridiculous!” “There’s no way you can fight this Philistine and possibly win! You’re only a boy, and he’s been a man of war since his youth.”

But when God calls you, age doesn’t matter! My husband and I got started in ministry at the ages of 19/20… but I know some people who got started a lot younger and others a lot later! 

In Verses 34-36 - We see preparation!

It says:

34 But David persisted. “I have been taking care of my father’s sheep and goats,” he said. “When a lion or a bear comes to steal a lamb from the flock, 35 I go after it with a club and rescue the lamb from its mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death. 36 I have done this to both lions and bears, and I’ll do it to this pagan Philistine, too, for he has defied the armies of the living God!

I believe:

Opportunity is where obedience & preparation meet! 

-If David’s dad hadn’t asked him to take that basket to his brothers, He wouldn’t have heard Goliath’s taunt. And without the preparations of being a Shepard and fighting off lions and bears, he wouldn’t have been able to take advantage of this opportunity! 

So my question for you guys is:

Are you taking advantage of the opportunities God has for you? 

It easy to say no to opportunity. 

Because it requires you to get uncomfortable. 

It requires you to step out of your comfort zone. 

But I do believe every little opportunity you say yes to, leads you towards even bigger ones! 

I know for my husband and I… these last 8 years have been nothing but preparation for us… it was like one opportunity after another and now that we are a year removed, I see how important each of those decisions were! Literally, every move we made ( and we made a lot of them) led us to where we are now! We learned something so valuable in every single one of those seasons/opportunities, and God even gave us some life long friends along the way! 

So the choices you make, concerning opportunities, that God places before you… will determine which road you will proceed to take in your journey of Faith! 

In Verses 45-47 - We see Faith!

45 David replied to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 Today the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! 47 And everyone assembled here will know that the Lord rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the Lord’s battle, and he will give you to us!”

David had Faith in God!

And he spoke with confidence!! 

Because when you realize that you don’t have to face the battles of this life alone, and you accept help from God! You can accomplish anything and God will open doors of opportunity for you! 

Every Soldier at that camp was given the same opportunity…. But

I truly believe because of David’s Obedience, Preparation, and Faith! 

He was the one that walked away a VICTOR!

So how do you recognize an opportunity from God? 

What I do, is I ask myself this question… 

Does is fall into one of these categories?

1. Did I pray for/about it?
2. Am I prepared for it?
3. Does it Glorify God?
4. Is it a dream or passion of yours? 

And ALWAYS pray before making any decisions! 

But keep in mind that when you are close to the Holy Spirit, sometimes an opportunity you are meant to take will be scary… but you just experience this peace (that almost doesn’t make sense) and you just know, that you know, that you know, that you are supposed to do it! 

So I want to encourage you to seize every opportunity! 

Its a NEW YEAR!! We were given goals, dreams, passions, and purpose for a reason! 

We literally have the CREATOR of the universe living inside of us! 

We are made to create! 

So what opportunities are you creating for yourself?

Because 

I don’t know what opportunities God has for you…

Maybe its for a fresh start,

Or For reconciliation 

Maybe its to get clean 

Or offer forgiveness 

Maybe you are supposed to start a business or a non profit… 

Again Idk….. But you will, when your opportunity arises!! 

SO SIEZE IT! 

Hope this Encourages you!! 

Have a great day! 

Peace!