We are very grateful for the ministry of Pastor Chris Hodges and Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, AL. Pastor Chris and Highlands have such a heart to help and support the local church, that they have made numerous resources such as this series available.
Enjoy Part 2 of this message series by Pastor Chris Hodges:
RUNNING WITH THE GIANTS Part 2 – David
(Hebrews 12:1 NIV) Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.
“You can overcome the limitations others put on you.”
WHEN OTHERS CAN’T SEE YOUR POTENTIAL…
(1 Samuel 16:6-7 NIV) When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here before the LORD.” But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
(1 Samuel 17:28 NIV) When Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, “Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.”
(1 Samuel 17:32-33 NLT) “Don’t worry about this Philistine,” David told Saul. “I’ll go fight him!” “Don’t be ridiculous!” Saul replied. “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.”
(1 Samuel 17:43-44 NIV) He said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. “Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!”
Everyone told David he had no potential, but he was able to:
DAVID’S WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT
(Hebrews 11:34 NIV) …quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.
(Philippians 4:13 NKJV) I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
(Ephesians 1:4a NIV) For he chose us in him before the creation of the world…
(1 Samuel 17:52 NIV) Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath and to the gates of Ekron. Their dead were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and Ekron.
Has anyone ever had a parent or adult tell you when you were young to go somewhere and sit down and “be still?”
Many times we are fidgety like a small child and find it very hard to sit still. As we grow in our walk with the Lord, just as in physical growth, we must learn to be still.
There are going to be times in our lives when it seems as though there is a lot of “noise” going on around us. It is very important during those times to not let the noise cause us to be anxious and jump ahead and make a bad decision.
God tells us through the psalmist to “be still and know that He is God.” It is during these times of being still that tremendous growth in us can take place.
In this message we learn what to do during those waiting times.
Have you ever planned on going swimming only to discover the float (or air mattress) you were going to use has a hole in it and will not stay inflated? What revealed the hole? The pressure that the air created in the float or air mattress.
Very often, when we don’t know what to do in our lives it creates great anxiety or pressure. The pressure does not cause the “hole”; it only reveals the weakness that was there all along.
What you do during a time of pressure is really determined before you get to that time of pressure.
A huge key in life is to not wait until pressure comes to get ready for the pressure. You must get ready ahead of time.
In this message, we learn how to deal with pressure than sometimes comes from not knowing what to do.
When you don’t know what to do, very often worry and anxiety try and fill that void. If we want God’s wisdom and direction for our lives and even in that situation we may be facing and don’t know what to do, we must deal with worry. In this message, we will show you how to overcome worry so that you can receive God’s wisdom and direction so you can make good decisions in life.
It is a simple fact: there are going to be times in life that we do not know what to do.
There are usually two times in life that this will happen: when we are at a crossroads or when we are in a crisis. Because of this we need to take inventory of our lives on a regular basis; not in a self-condemning way but to simply assess the quality of the decisions we are making. Here’s why: As adults, our lives today become the sum total of the decisions that we made yesterday.
If we look at our lives and we are not where we should be or want to be, we must learn to make better life decisions.
This series is all about bringing us to a place where we make better life decisions.