No Sword

By Will Davis, Jr.

Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and he struck the Philistine and killed him; but there was no sword in David’s hand. 1 Samuel 17:50

When David killed Goliath, it served notice to both the Israelites and the Philistines that there was a God in Israel who would fight for his people.

Nothing about David’s victory over Goliath was conventional:

David was a runt—a small young man in his early teens. Goliath was a HUGE man.
David was inexperienced in war. Goliath was a seasoned killer.
David was unarmed and unprotected. Goliath had full body armor and shield-bearer.

This verse points out the miraculous and unconventional nature of David’s victory—there was no sword in his hand.

God doesn’t feel limited to working through conventional human means. He often does—like the healing he brings through great medical care and medication, or meeting financial needs through the generosity of others.

But he is equally if not more likely to use methods that seem almost foolish in human terms. I mean, who in his right mind sends a teen armed only with a sling and a few stones out to face a seasoned warrior? And who tries to feed a multitude with only the provisions of a little boy’s lunch? And who gives orders for a handful of relatively uneducated and untrained men and women to take his message to all the world?

The answer, of course, is God.

Don’t limit God to working only through your human experience. Don’t expect him to always do what is most efficient, pragmatic and reasonable from the human standpoint. Expect God to work in ways that give him the glory and grow your faith.

Holy God, teach us to trust you. Teach us to look for your work in the unconventional. In Jesus’ name . . . .