A headline once declared about an indecisive politician, “He’s more like a weather vane than a beacon!” The statement is a deliberate characterization of someone unable to make a clear decision and stick with it. We tend to notice it and express our strong disapproval when we see it around us (especially in politics), but isn’t it often how we act in our Christian walk? We openly confess that we believe in the Lord and will follow Him at any price—and yet, we deny Him in our witness, and when given the opportunity to boldly stand for Him when everyone around us pushes us to compromise, we fall. I’m sure you remember the courageous words spoken by Peter at the Last Supper, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death!” (Luke 22:33). We all know how long that promise stood firm before he denied Jesus three times (proving there was more than one “chicken” in the neighborhood!).
In I Samuel 17, we see David, the scrawny shepherd boy who is full of faith, and takes on the mighty Philistine warrior, Goliath. He is so ready to defend the honor of The Living God that he fears NO ONE! But unbelievably, by the time we reach Chapter 21 of I Samuel, David is running like a madman from King Saul! In fact, when he arrives in Gath before King Achish, he tries to convince the king that he is no danger to him and the Gathites. “So he pretended to be insane in their presence; and while he was in their hands, he acted like a madman, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting saliva run down his beard” (1 Sam. 21:13). This is the same courageous David who recently killed Goliath? Yes, it is. His courage is now a weather vane and not a beacon to be followed. He serves as a realistic example to us that faith and courage are not “once in a lifetime” decisions. Our natural tendency and propensity is to fear man more than the Lord. We must in full faith allow the power of the Lord to continually work in us to permeate our hearts and minds so we practice a life of courage for the Lord. This process is a daily commitment.
ACTION POINT: Ask God to keep you from vacillating in your faith and courage. Make a “daily commitment” to renew your mind to follow His leading and grow from His instructions.
