Problems Are God's Opportunities — Reuben Walter

We are indebted, but yet it should not be because we are indebted, but out of a devoted and loving heart. Out of a spirit that is overflowing with thanksgiving. We are together, not out of constraint.

To hear what he has to say to us, to be comforted, to be challenged. That our walk may mirror his. And just that we might always remember that we have been bought with a price. And therefore we ought to glorify God in our body, in our spirit, which belong to the Lord.

And as I'm sure most of you and many of you feel at this hour. Even though we have lots to be thankful for, lots to be grateful for, lots to worship him of. We also feel a need and a longing that the body of Christ might be revealed in the earth.

The Body of Christ Awaiting Spiritual Maturity

In a greater reality, in greater power, greater anointing. That we may, what all saints comprehend, God's depth and love and the height of it. And just so that he may do what he said he can do. And he said he will do.

Not only for us as individuals, but for the body of Christ as a whole. For it is his temple, it is his dwelling place. As he dwells in each and every one of us. At the same time I also realize that he is waiting too.

He is longing and waiting just as the creatures are. As it says in Romans 8, waiting. Creation groans, waiting for the manifestation of the sons of God. And then Paul goes on to say, and we also who have the first fruits of the spirit, we groan too.

Longing for that reality, that ultimate reality. Which is promised to all those who put their trust in him. So as our Lord is waiting, we are waiting. We must realize that he is waiting for us. Waiting for us to grow up in the spirit of grace and truth.

Waiting for us to come to the realization that we need each other. Waiting for us to love and yield and submit to one another in the fear of God. And so that the body of Christ is not only alive, but is coordinated and works together.

Just like he envisions it. But in the meantime, each of us has our own little world to overcome. Our own battles to fight and our struggles that we need to face. And that is why we gather. We might be edified and challenged in that area.

And led to that place where he wants us to be. And today, I have my message out of Matthew 14. And it's titled, Troubles are God's Opportunities. Troubles are God's opportunities. And before we turn to the word, let us bow our heads.

Father, you're an awesome God. Your greatness, your faithfulness is new every morning. And Lord, today is no different as we stand before you, Father. We just sense that, Lord, you are longing to lead your children into the depths and the heights of your love.

We sense, Lord, that you have greater things in store for us. And Lord, it is only you who can fulfill it. But as we will read your word today, Lord, and hear it. We also realize that you need men that are committed and devoted to your cause.

And Father, we just want to be those men. We may shine forth your praise. So Lord, we just depend on you. Trust you will supply. Your word will touch us. The word will be your word, not man's wisdom. That we may be challenged.

Troubles as Opportunities for God's Glory

And Father, more than anything, you may be glorified. In this, Lord, we pray in Jesus' name. Troubles are God's opportunities. God's opportunities for what? To glorify himself. To show himself mighty.

And for us, of course, to yield ourselves into the potter's faithful hand. The message today, of course, may have a familiar flavor to it. As with the struggles that we all face are not new. And we never ought to think they're new.

We are men like you are. And we face afflictions and trials. We face, we see, we feel triumphs. But through it all, we see that the Lord wants to show himself to us. And so Matthew 14 is our text today.

Out of Matthew 14, we'll start at several troubles here we'd like to talk of. So I think we'll read part of the chapter here. Verse 14, Matthew 14, 14. And Jesus went forth and saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion towards them.

And he healed their sick. And when it was evening, his disciples came to him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the village and buy themselves victuals.

But Jesus said unto them, They need not depart. Give ye them to eat. They say unto him, We have here but five loaves and two fishes. Of course, the other translations say it quite differently, but the same idea as yours.

And he said, Bring them hither to me. And he commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass and took the five loaves and the two fishes. And looking up into heaven, he blessed and break and gave the loaves to his disciples and his disciples to the multitude.

And they did all eat and were filled and took up of the fragments that remained twelve baskets full. They that had eaten were about five thousand men besides women and children. And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship and to go before him to the other side while he sent the multitude away.

And when they had sent the multitude away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray. And when the evening was come, he was there alone. But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with the waves, for the wind was contrary.

And in the fourth watch of the night, Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit. And they cried out for fear.

But straightway Jesus spoke unto them, saying, Be of good cheer. It is I. Be not afraid. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou did me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.

But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid. And beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand and caught him and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

And when they were coming to the ship, the wind ceased. Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying of a truth, Thou art the Son of God. God bless his word. And in here we can see several instances which we can identify with and which we want to speak about today.

Several scenarios played themselves out. First one of the feeding the multitudes where they had a problem. Then in the midst of the sea, the waves were contrary. They ran into another problem. And then Peter, in coming after Jesus, ran into another one.

So we'll kind of touch on these three problems today and see how we can identify with them. And they may not seem like serious issues to us, but they were to them in that particular scenario. And we'll also talk of some from the Old Testament that were serious indeed.

And we'll see that each one of them contained troubles, troublesome times, fears, and just distress. So this message is for the needy among us. You consider yourself needy today? This message is for you.

Those serious with their lives. Those who have a foundation. Already with the Savior. This is a message for those who may have ghosts in their lives. What I mean by that is who are plagued by ghosts of the past.

Or maybe even uncertainties of the present and the future. This message is for those who wonder if God can make something out of this. For those who see the thorns and not the roses. For those who may be fearing to step out of comfort and security.

It is for those who see the waves and the sea instead of Jesus. Those who are confronted with towering giants of fear and uncertainties that impede their path and are shrinking back. And sometimes it is also for those who can't understand why God would allow this or that in my life.

If you're troubled by your failures, you will not be able to identify the people. You will be able to identify with Peter. With the disciples. As we read today. Don't fear your troubles. They are God's opportunities.

Jesus Meets His Disciples in Their Distress

The disciples here in this passage. Of course they had seen many miracles by that time. But we can see from the passage Jesus was very compassionate. He was moved with compassion. Other messages say that there were three days in the wilderness.

And the people were fainting or something like that. And here the disciples came to Jesus and they were worried about the people. Worried about lodging and food and people fainting. And of course they were probably speaking one word for the people and ten for themselves.

Who knows? But they were worried anyway. And Jesus said, give ye then to eat. Can you see how in spite of seeing all that Jesus had done. In spite of seeing the work that he had done there. Healing their sick.

Here food and lodging were a major obstacle. And Jesus just was waiting to show himself. To solve that problem for the people. To be able to meet a need that was not met in that particular desert. And it doesn't take God a whole lot.

It took a little. And as we'll see with some other Bible characters. It just took a little. For God to make a lot. As he fed those 5 ,000. And then when we go back a little further. The disciples were in the midst of the sea.

Trouble. Rowing against the wind. Not making any headways. Worried. And Jesus deliberately left them alone. You see Jesus will do that sometimes. He will sometimes leave us alone. He went up into the mountain to pray.

But he sent the disciples away in a boat. And he sent the people home as well. And here as they were rowing. The wind was contrary. And along comes Jesus walking on the water. And guess what? The very solution to their problem.

The very answer to their need. The very hope. In that distress. At that moment. They were afraid of it. They feared. And they cried out for fear. Can you imagine? I guess ghosts were not something that was unheard of at that time.

Because they thought it was a spirit. And they cried out for fear. And in verse 24. They cried out for fear. But Jesus said. Be of good cheer. It is wonderful today. At the moment of our distress. When we cry out.

He will come right away and say. Be of good cheer in his eye. So many times. When we cry out it takes a little longer than that. It takes sometimes months. Of intercession and prayer. For the Lord to come through with an answer.

And we see here also. That what the disciples faced was very normal. It is nothing strange. Nothing new. And Jesus wanted to use this opportunity. To show them. That in their troubles. I have a chance.

To show you. How mighty I am. In your troubles. I have an opportunity. To magnify myself. But you got to let me. And next thing that happened. Peter jumped out of the boat. But he didn't just jump out.

He said Lord. If this is you. Let me come. He waited for the instructions. And then he came. Look how gloriously. God showed himself. In a situation there. Where somebody in abandonment. And in trust.

Walked out to meet Jesus. And gloriously he showed himself. In walking on the water there. The very things they were afraid of. Ghosts in their lives maybe. Or the ghosts there. We can see. That we can identify.

With those scenarios. Let's turn to the Old Testament. And we'll see a few more scenarios. How God was able to magnify himself. In a trouble. In a troublesome time. Let's turn to 1 Samuel. Let's turn to 1 Samuel chapter 17.

David Faces Goliath and the Defiance of God

A story the children have heard. Since they were. Since they could hear. And talk. A story of David and Goliath. I would just tend to look at the story in itself. And not see the greater picture. That was unfolding there.

In 1 Samuel chapter 17. I'll read it. Verse 2. Here was a troublesome time in Israel. As the enemies of God were. Of course a lot of the problems. That we're going to talk about today. In the Old Testament.

Were self-inflicted. But nevertheless. Whether a trouble is self-inflicted or not. God. Still wants to use. That trouble. Or that issue. To magnify himself. And Saul and the men of Israel. Were gathered together.

And pitched by the valley of Elah. And set the battle. In array. Against the Philistines. Philistines stood on one mountain. On a mountain on one side. And Israel stood on a mountain on the other side.

And there was a valley in between. And there went out a champion. Out of the camp of the Philistines. Named Goliath of Gath. Whose height was six cubits. And a span. And he had a helmet of brass upon his head.

He was armed with a coat of mail. And the weight of the coat. Was five thousand shekels of brass. And he had. Greaves of brass upon his legs. And a target of brass between his shoulders. The staff of his spear.

Was like a weaver's bane. His spearhead weighed six hundred shekels of iron. And one bearing a shield. Went before him. And he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel. Said unto them. Why are you come out.

To set your battle in array. Am I not a Philistine. Am I not I a Philistine. And you servants to Saul. Choose you a man for you. Let him come down to me. If he be able to fight with me. And kill me. Then will we be your servants.

But if I prevail against him. And kill him. Then shall he be your servants. And serve us. And the Philistines said. I defy the armies of Israel this day. That we may fight together. When Saul and all Israel.

Heard those words of the Philistines. They were dismayed. And greatly afraid. Here's where. We see the problem. At hand. Goliath was a giant. Saul was a big man. He was over seven feet tall. But he was a runt.

Compared to Goliath. And Saul. And all Israel. And greatly afraid. There was. This was a scenario. That still happens today. We see giants. In our path. And you know what he does? He says I defy. The armies of God.

I defy the army of Israel. In other words. Who's your God? Who is he? Come out and challenge me. And instead of trusting their God. And instead of leaning on him. Israel. Shrunk back in terror. And you know that's so relevant.

So many times. For God's children. When a giant of fear. Of uncertainty. When those. Billows. Roll in our lives. They defy. You let those billows. We let those billows. Defy the living God. Instead of standing up.

And facing that giant. A giant of fear. Of uncertainty. And we'll discuss a few more. A bit later. And. We'll come back to this verse in a minute. I'd just like to read a couple more here. In 1st Samuel 13.

We see another scenario. Where Israel was full of fear. 1st Samuel 13. Where the Philistines were. Oppressing them as well here. 13. 5 to 7. That's before that time. That we just read here. And the Philistines gathered themselves together.

Verse 5. To fight with Israel. 30 ,000 chariots. 6 ,000 horsemen. And people as the sand. Which is on the seashore in multitude. And they came up. And pitched at Mekmash. Eastward from Bathaven. When the men of Israel saw.

That they were in a strait. For the people were distressed. Then the people did hide themselves. In caves. And in tickets. And in rocks. And in high places. And in pits. And some of the Hebrews went over Jordan.

To the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul. He was yet at Gilgal. And all the people followed him. Trembling. There again. You see this big army. Intimidating. There's no way. God can help us here. There's no way.

This is just. They've outdone themselves now. 60. So how much was it? 60 ,000? Incredible number of. 6 ,000 horsemen. And 30 ,000 chariots. That's almost. Modern day size army. And there. Again. Israel.

Was full of fear. A troublesome time. Was at hand. And they were crying out for fear. And they were shrinking back. And trembling. And the same trouble can be heard. Can be read in 2nd Kings. Chapter 19.

In verse 1 to 4. We hear what King. What. What was his name there? Sennacherib. King of Assyria. Went out. To the walls of Jerusalem. His messenger. And he taunted Israel. Who is the God. That's going to save you.

From my hand. Who is that Lord? And then he goes on. It's in verse. 1st Kings 19. Or is it in 18? And he taunts them. And tells them. What happened to this city. And to that city. And to those people.

And. You're no different. Who's going to be that God. Who will save you. Out of my hand. And we see it. We're confronted again. With another. Very troublesome. Distressing situation. And in these troubling.

And distressing situations. These are the ones. That God seeks. To glorify himself in. It is only in these. Because. Just think about it. When life. Doesn't throw any curve balls at us. Any distressing situations into our path.

Yes we thank the Lord. But we live in ease. We don't long for a greater glory. Because we got everything. We don't long for a greater. Substance. More substance in our lives. Because. What do you want to long for?

It is only. In the valley of tears. And trials. Where we can. Where God can come through. Both in an individual. And in a people. It is only in those times. Where he can magnify his glory. And in each one of these.

He did in a great way. In each of these cases. God magnified himself. But in every one of these cases. As we'll just come back to read here momentarily. He needed a man. Or two men. Or whatever it was.

He just needed somebody. Who was going to look and see. At the insult that was happening. To the glory of God. And stand up and face it. In first Samuel 17. Verse 20. Go back to that verse again. Here David came back.

Came to his brothers now. And. Verse 20. David rose up early in the morning. And left the sheep. With the keeper. And took and went. As Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the trench. As the host.

Was going forth to fight. And shouted for the battle. And Israel. And the Philistines. Had put the battle in array. Army against army. David left his carriage. With the hand of the keeper. Of the carriage.

And ran. Into the army. And came and saluted his brother. And as they talked with them. As he talked with them. Behold. There came up the champion. Philistine of Gath. Goliath by name. Out of the armies of the Philistines.

And spake according to the same words. And David. Heard them. When all the men of Israel. And all the men of Israel. When they saw the man. Fled. From him. And were sore afraid. Here they were in battle array.

To take on the Philistines. And as soon as this one guy comes out. They run. Like grasshoppers. And the men of Israel said. Have you seen the man that has come up. Surely to defy Israel. Is he come up.

And it shall be that. The man who killeth him. The king will enrich him with great riches. And. In verse 26. And David spake to the man. That stood by him saying. What shall be done to the man. That killeth this Philistine.

And taketh away the reproach from Israel. For who. Is this uncircumcised Philistine. That he should defy the armies. Of the living God. Oh. Now God had a man. Now God had somebody. Whom he needed. Whom he could glorify himself with.

Jesus. David said here. Who is this uncircumcised Philistine. That he should defy. The armies of the living God. Now. Was showdown time. Where those fears. And those intimidations. And those troubles.

That Israel was facing. Now. We were about to see. The glory of God. In 1st Samuel 14. We see the same thing with. 1st Samuel 14. 1 to 7. We see the same thing with Jonathan. When he. Philistine camp was.

Intimidating there. In 14 verses 1. 1st Samuel 14 1. Now it came to pass upon the day. That Jonathan the son of Saul. Said unto the young men. That bear his armor. Come. And he died. But he told not his father.

And Saul tarried. In the outermost part of Gibeah. Under a pomegranate tree. Which is at Migron. And the people. That were with him about 600 men. And it goes on to say. Who else was there. In verse 6.

And Jonathan said to the young men. That bear his armor. Come. Let us go over. The Lord will work for us. For there is no restraint. To the Lord. To save by many. Or by few. Of course we know what happened.

In that story. And we know what happened. In Goliath's story. And if we go back to 2nd Kings 19. Verse 14. We also see. 2nd Kings 19. Verse 14. After he had read this. The refuel. To Israel and the armies of God.

King Sennacherib. Hezekiah received the letter. Of the hand of the messengers. And read it. Then he went up into the house. Of the Lord. And spread it out. Before the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord.

And said O Lord God of Israel. Which dwelleth between the cherubims. Thou art the God. Even thou alone. Thou has made heaven. And earth. Lord bow down thy ear. And hear. Open Lord. Thine eyes. And see.

And hear the words of Sennacherib. Which had sent unto the reproach. To reproach the living God. Of a truth Lord. The king of Assyria. Have destroyed the nations. And their lanes. And have cast their gods.

But the work of men's hands. Wood and stone. Therefore they have destroyed them. Now therefore O Lord our God. I beseech thee. Save thou. Us out of his hand. That all the kingdoms of the earth. May know that thou art the Lord God.

Even thou only. Here was a man. Who instead of cringing in fear. Sure. The rest of the Israelites. Probably also cried out to the Lord. But not like Hezekiah did. He came before God. With boldness. And reverence.

And a fear of God. And laid out before him. What that man was trying to do. In this great distressing time. And just laid it before the Lord and said. This is your glory. This is your glory that's at stake.

And Father. Magnify yourself. In this situation. And while he was praying. The word of the Lord. Came to Isaiah. Son of Amos. And he goes back and he tells Hezekiah. Don't worry. The Lord has heard your prayer.

Sennacherib is not going to shoot one arrow. In his lane. And I'm going to put a ring in his nose. And he's going to go back. Exactly the way he came. And of course. What happened next? Next morning they woke up.

And there was 185 ,000 men dead. In the Syrian camp. God needed a David. That stood up and said. Who is this uncircumcised Philistine? And went forth. In a boldness and confidence. Knowing it was God's glory.

That was at stake. He was defying the armies of God. And today the devil does the same thing. Peter. Also. When we go back to the story we read. Peter. Looked at Jesus. And said. Lord can I come? And Jesus said come.

Faith That Obeys Christ's Call

When Jesus says come. Peter didn't hold any council meetings. He didn't go around. Getting votes first. He came. If he would have asked the rest of the disciples. Sometimes they would have said. Man. Do you know that this is a deep lake?

You can't walk out of here. You're defying the laws of nature. And logic. Don't. All Peter needed was Jesus' words. That said come. And he came. But of course. In the coming to Jesus. After hearing his voice.

Peter was distracted. Brothers and sisters. I'd like to place that in front of you. Maybe that has happened to you. One time or another. Or Jesus has said to you. Come. And you responded. You responded to that voice.

And you came. And when you come. His call defies. When he calls I mean. It defies logic. Reason. And laws. Which our understanding. Cannot wrap around. But Peter walked on the water. But now after a few years.

Of walking with the Lord. Or maybe a few weeks. After hearing that call. You see the waves. And the wind. And forget about Jesus. And you're sinking. And you're wondering. Lord. Was that you who called me?

Was that you who called me out? And you're sinking. You're sinking because you took your eyes off Jesus. And that's the only reason you're sinking. You're sinking in despair. In your troubles. Your eyes are off Jesus.

And they're on the waves. And they are on. The sea. The wind. Israel was troubled. Fearful. Israel was in depth of despair. And all it needed was a man to trust God. Take him at his word. And go. I don't care how big this Philistine is.

I don't care how great that Philistine army is. I don't care how big the Syrian army is. You God. You're greater. That takes trust. That takes faith. To trust God in such situations. And walk forth. In spite of the odds.

And we are reminded here through these circumstances. Brothers and sisters that we are serving a big God. Not one who can reach and who can be understood with our three pound brain. Not one who we can wrap our heads around.

Because that story of Peter alone shows us. He defies logic and the laws that govern the physical world. And God will do anything. God wants to be magnified in those situations. We're the ones who don't let him.

How often have we belittled or insulted his grace. By making our troubles too big for him. By causing having our troubles. Making our troubles into such a mountain. Such an insurmountable obstacle. And the more we see it.

That obstacle. The deeper we're sinking. Well at least Peter had the sense at the final moment to cry out. Lord save me. And I hope we all have that as well. Before we sink. To cry out. Lord save me. The maker of the universe.

The creator. He is so big. But. He's not so big. That he doesn't care about you. Like big corporations and big governments. And big important people. They're not worried with little things. The ones that are left out.

No. God is totally opposite. The bigger he is. The more concerned he is. With the ones that are despised. Forsaken. Distressed. And brushed aside. Because they are the ones whom he has chosen. As Paul said.

Not many mighty. Not many great. God has chosen the weak things of the world. To confound the wise. He has chosen the base things of this world. To bring to nothing. The things that are. So whether it's a sickness.

Whether it's our children. As parents. Maybe it's our spouses. Maybe it's a brother. Or a sister. A friend or a neighbor. That is causing me trouble. Or that is making. Not particularly making you trouble.

But the situation is troubling you. It's not too big for God. It's not too big for him to handle. I have seen with my own eyes. How the Lord. Has taken situations that seemed. Insurmountable. And flipped them around.

And you were left. To marvel. I've seen in my own children. Things. Troubles. That my father heart. Wanted to spare them of. But only to realize. God's ways are far better. Only to realize. He knows best.

And he's actually in our prayer. In our distresses. He's answering our prayers. I have experienced. Our personalities. Who rubbed me the wrong way. I loathed it. I bucked it. Fought against it. But God.

Was wanting to be glorified in it. And we got 11. He was exposing. A condition of our hearts. All alone. He says I'm letting this happen. Because. You're praying. To walk more freely. So here it is. Be still.

And know. That I am God. I have felt. How the Lord. Has crushed. Before. We give something up. Into his capable hands. If you're one of his own. The troubles. And fears. That we are facing. And that we may still face.

Are. God's opportunities. God's opportunities. To magnify himself. And glorify himself. And deep down. Every one of us here. Agrees. You know it. That's what it is. You know this is the truth. Those troubles.

Even if they were self-inflicted. God. Wants to be magnified in them. Because this is only God. It's only our Heavenly Father. Who can take. A troublesome situation. And turn it into something glorious.

Look at the story of David. Look at the story of Joseph. And you can see it. Again and again and again. How he takes a troublesome situation. Look at the stories we read today. And turns them. Into. Opportunities.

Where his name. Is exalted in the earth. As a Hezekiah. As we read there. Hezekiah. That was a beautiful part. When he said something here. In verse 22. In 2 Kings 19. Verse 22. Here's what the Lord said.

Whom has thou reproached and blessed me? Against whom has thou exalted thy voice? And lifted up thy eyes on high? Even against the Holy One of Israel. Remember it's our flesh. Or the devil. That's keeping us from walking in true liberty.

It doesn't need to take us 20 years. To grasp. A concept. Of God's. Glory. I'd like to conclude here. With. Passage out of 2 Samuel. I don't know. It never. Touched me this way. But this is a beautiful passage that.

David's Victory Song in 2 Samuel 22

David sings here. It's a victory song. That after all. His trials and hardships. That after all. The ups and downs in his life. Yes there was. Sowing and reaping. Yes there was. Bad times. There was violations of God's laws.

There was. A price to be paid. There was. Numerous things that went on in his life. But in the end. Here's what he says. David's victory song can be ours. 2 Samuel 22. I'll read three different parts here.

Because the whole chapter itself. Is just a beautiful. Song of rejoicing. How God can. Take. How it goes in that song. He can take a barren desert. And turn it into lush and fruitful land. He can. He can take something.

That seems to be lost. And hopeless. And turn it into something. That's glorious. Verse 2. And he said the Lord is my rock. And my fortress. And my deliverer. The God of my rock. In him will I trust. He is my shield.

And the horn of my salvation. My high tower. And my refuge. My savior. Thou savest me from violence. I will call on the Lord. Who is worthy to be praised. So. Shall I be saved. From my enemies. When the waves of death compassed me.

The floods of ungodly men. Made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about. The snares of death prevented me. In my distress. I called upon the Lord. Cried out to my God. And he did hear my voice.

Out of his temple. And my cry. Did enter into his ears. Let's go over to verse 17. He sent from above. He took me. He drew me out of. Many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy. And from them that hated me.

For they were too strong for me. They prevented me. In the day of my calamity. But the Lord. Was my stay. He brought me forth. Also in a large place. He delivered me. Because. He delighted in me. The Lord rewarded me.

According to my righteousness. Verse 29. One more. Look at all the praise songs. And how he puts it together. My enemies were too strong for me. I was in the depths of despair. Yes. After the fact. But that's why scripture is given to us.

So that we might learn from it. And even sing it. In the midst of the fact. Verse 29. For thou art my lamp O Lord. And the Lord will lighten my darkness. For by thee I have run through a troop. By my God.

Have I leaped over a wall. As for God. His way is perfect. The word of the Lord is tried. He is a buckler. To all them that trust in him. For who is God. Save the Lord. Who is the rock. Save our God. God is my strength and power.

He makes my ways perfect. He makes my feet like hinds feet. Set up me upon the high places. He teaches my hands to war. So that a bow of steel. Is broken. By my arms. And we could go on. There's more in this chapter.

But. The sum of it all is. David's victory song. Can be ours. But he needs men. Who do not shrink back. In a day of adversity. He needs men who can stand up. To that uncircumcised Philistine. And say he's defying the armies of the living God.

That's what he needs. And then God says okay. Now I've got my man. Now I. Am going to be glorified. In his life.