30th March 2023

The Small Giant

The Lord . . . will deliver me.

1 Samuel 17:37

The towering enemy strides into the Valley of Elah. He stands 9 feet (2.7metres) tall, and his coat of armour, made of many small bronze plates, glimmers in the sunlight. The shaft of his spear is wrapped with cords, so it can spin through the air and be thrown with greater distance and accuracy. Goliath looks invincible.

But David knows better. While Goliath may have been a giant of a man, in contrast to the living God he is small. David had a right view of God and therefore a right view of the circumstances. He sew Goliath as one who is defying the armies of the living God (1 Sam. 17:26). He confidently appeared before Goliath in his shepherd’s clothes, armed with only his staff, five stones, and a sling. His confidence is not in what he had, but in who is with him (v 45).

What “Goliath” are you facing right now? It may be an impossible situation at work, a financial difficulty, or a broken relationship. With God, all things are small in comparison. Nothing is too big for Him. The words of the hymn-writer Charles Wesley remind us: “Faith, mighty faith, the promise sees, and looks to that alone; laughs at impossibilities, and cries it shall be done.” God is able to deliver you if that is His desire, and He may do so in ways you do not expect.

Read

1 Samuel 17:32-37.

Prayer

Father, You are my Safe stronghold, and in You, I take my refuge, knowing that whatever I face to day, You will be with me, and will deliver me. In Jesus name. Amen.