Is Power Always A Good Thing? ♔
20 December, 2015
My last blog post explained the ins and outs about how David fought and killed Goliath. David was a nobody; he worked as a shepherd and was largely overshadowed in life by his big, stronger older brothers. God overlooked his brothers, however, and chose David to become King of Israel.
Before David fought Goliath, he was humble, loving, and gave his whole heart and soul to God. Many of the Psalms were written by David during his time as a shepherd in the pasture. I can just picture David skipping through the wildflowers praising God, singing songs of joy and love with his sheep at his side. David embodied purity in every sense of the word.
It's almost ludicrous to believe this same David: the lovely, youthful man of God, would someday became an adulterer, sleeping with a married woman named Bathsheba and secretly killing her husband.
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How did that happen? How does someone switch from one extreme to the other? Didn't David know any better? What happened to the humble shepherd?
David had been king for quite a while when the incident happened. He had been living in paradise, with a grand castle as his home and servants at his beck and call. He had complete reign over anything he wanted. He was the richest man in the entire world. He was no longer the little shepherd who got picked on by his older brothers, he was a new man.
Unfortunately, the incline of his political standing led to the decline of his spiritual maturity. It can be argued he was more spiritually grounded as a shepherd boy than he was as a major king due to the massive sin he fell into with Bathsheba.
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We are told to run the race of life as fast as we can. We are groomed from youth to catapult ourselves into success. We are blinded by advertisements flashing money, six-packs, athleticism, and fame as the end-all-be-all of happiness. This world has a small cookie-cutter version of how to "make it," and it primarily involves a hefty bank account and attractive appearance.
In David's age, there was nothing better than serving as king. There was no one cooler or more respected in the entire world. David had everything. He fit the cookie-cutter to a tee.
Why, then, did he commit that detrimental sin? Wasn't he already happy enough?
Having little in this life is often the ideal elixer for a quiet life focused on God's love. There's a verse in Acts about how "giving, not getting, is the way to real living." Think Christmas morning: isn't it much sweeter to give your brother a present that'll make him jump up with excitement than to receive?
David was at the top of the pyramid of the hierarchy, and it led to brokenness. Oh, how often I have longed for my own greatness. "If only I had a #1 NY Bestseller... If only I married an amazing man... If only I had a never-ending supply of money/time/energy... If only I had a closet filled with Manolo heels..."
Those things may be nice, but I already hold the key to what my heart ACTUALLY longs for. My heart longs for God. David's heart, while he was lusting after Bathsheba, was not actually desiring to be with her. His heart was actually desiring a closer relationship with God.
Everything ties back to Him. Our desire for money? Our desire for a marriage? Our desire for a hot bod? Our desire for a multi-million dollar business? We are not actually desiring these things.
If you look closer, we are actually desiring a relationship with our creator: God. We are desiring love and worth and acceptance and peace. Nothing can bring us peace like a closeness with Jesus Christ.
I believe David was richer when he was a shepherd in the fields than when he had thousands of servants at his feet.
Although we may not have everything we want in this temporary life, we have everything we need. We have Jesus, He's just a prayer away. Don't let success cloud your judgement and closeness with Jesus, honey. ♥
^ Would you, really? Or would your wealth take the place of God in your heart? Sometimes simple living is a blessing. It's okay to be happy with a quiet life.
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