YOU TOO MAY BE A GIANT SLAYER IN DISGUISE

Jealous Saul-triumphant David 1Sam 16-18

The bible's account of the relationship between Saul and David, is rife with Saul's jealousy towards the young, handsome, harp playing, spirit filled warrior and David's determination to honour God rather than reciprocate Saul's several attempts to murder young David.
It is notable that David, prior to his being anointed the next king of Israel, appeared to be a nobody; inconsequential. The baby of the family- the last born who was at best an errand boy for his older brothers and he tended sheep. In short, he was in a humble/lowly estate while his older brothers who were respected and  recognised by the King and the society were warriors and officers in Saul's army. They had the macho job, certainly in national security terms, their job carried more weight than David's.
What at all was that boy up to?...
Playing harps and following goats and sheep around!

It transpires that the brothers too were jealous of David. A feeling that deepened from both David's brothers' heart , and the king's. It all started after the pip squeak of a lad killed Goliath with one of the most unconventional battle weapons ever..... In fact ,Saul had put his armour on him, but the young lad asked to take it off and rather chose to wear his normal shepherd clothes . All he took with him by way of weaponry was a sling shot and five smooth pebbles.   
Na wao!
OMG! 

The boy killed the giant and took his head to Saul!  

Self note:

1) In what ways am I hindering my victory over something because I have taken on a battle strategy that is a wrong fit for me. I am chosen by God to win battles for him in His strength and possibly using the uniqueness of my skill sets, regardless of whether or not these are recognised by others. 

2) A key thing to note, is that God was with David but had left Saul.

3) All their feelings of jealousy, the insults and derision levelled against David  by the brothers and even the attempt on David's life by  the king Saul came to nothing. Imagine! Saul throwing a spear at David twice, with the pre-meditated motive of pinning him to the wall!!
Haba! What was David's offence?
Nothing.
Saul was simply jealous and he was unable to keep his feelings in check. But the bible says the 'evil spirit' that came over Saul was from God.

This I don't understand.
Why would God do this?
When I think of this, I feel sorry for Saul, because I know that even if he wished it, he could not possibly win against a spirit that God had put in him.

4) I am not a lawyer but this 'evil spirit from God' drove Saul to do all sorts of things that could be evidence of criminal intent:
-Malice a fore thought
-Attempted murder
-Stalking David thereby constituting himself into a public nuisance
-Consumed with the unlawful motive to cause grievous bodily harm to David

5) So, Saul was 'set up' by his maker. How could he have done anything to turn this tide? Did he have a choice to do different?
Whatever the answers to my questions, I can learn from Saul how poisonous jealousy can be, and how it will literally drive you insane, and you could possibly break the law too, if left unchecked.

6)....And yes , the close cousin of jealousy is resentment. I must get rid of that and all its other relatives. 
-anger
-strife
-'pull-him-downism'
-'she/ he is such a goody-two-shoes isms'

We must get rid them and throw them away, far, far from our normal living environment, just like we empty our bowels.

7) Also, here I see again God being the perfect Human resource manager in using David's hitherto unrecognised skill sets where it was least expected. David's killing of bears and lion's that had attempted to eat his sheep, was not really recognised as a skill worthy of use for national battle. Certainly not against the huge giant of a man, who's physical size alone struck fear into an entire army.
As well, David, their next king was under their very noses but they did not know!

8) We should  ask ourselves, which staff or junior worker that God has anointed for higher service have we overlooked? As God is God, he will give them the opportunity to spring up one day as He uses them to fulfil an assignment. We may be surprised, but we must not allow jealousy a shred of room.

I ask myself which part of me has The Lord planned for triumph one day, that I am unaware of ? What humble little part of me is a giant slayer in disguise? 

Perhaps you would like to think about these points and see if you too are a giant slayer in disguise? 

Jealousy- reflections on Genesis37:1-5, 31-35

When Joseph's brothers became jealous of him, there were a few contributing factors to how that came about.
1. Their father's favouritism
2. The content of Joseph's dreams and the implications therein that reinforced the idea gained from their fathers favouritism ,that they were somehow less valued.

If Joseph's dreams were of an abstract nature that did not infer his older brother's bowing down to him etc, maybe their jealousy would not have raged quite as high. But there was the matter of the beautiful coat as well, a constant visual reminder that their father paid special attention to Joseph.

Joseph's brothers are accountable to God for their attitude towards the situation in their family life. Their jealousy left unchecked led them to contemplate murder, and they actually went as far as selling Joseph into slavery.
But God's plan was unfolding, and He still brought about Joseph's rise to be the second most powerful official in the Egyptian government, second to Pharaoh.
What God had already deposited in Joseph unfolded over time to show very clearly that he was a man of integrity. His character and commitment to God, brought him blessings and an elevation to higher levels.
However, he had to walk through very tough trials and times. It was in distinguishing himself during those trials that qualified him to receive the blessing God had already set for him.

I must keep this principle clear in my mind. God has His own plan for my life, my main job is to submit to Him and ensure that in the place of trial, that my yieldedness will bring about Godly character. I can see from the Joseph story that I must not submit to the normal feelings of jealousy that may arise in various situations. I must do well to be sensitive to the feelings of jealousy, and check any unGodly attitude generated from this.

If there is a message through other people's attitudes and words that I am less valued, I must view those received ideas in the light of what God says about me. As long as I focus on the truth about what God says about me, I cannot be tempted by hurtful words and behaviour of others, or by feelings of inadequacy when my juniors or peers succeed beyond my own accomplishments in one area of their lives or other.
It is clear to me that absolutely no one has it all. Everybody must face one challenge or other, and challenges can sometimes come in series. This is a fact of life. I realise that the people I may be envying in one regard will certainly have some crushing challenge that I cannot see. Everyone must walk their own path. I must walk my own path and live with the negative outcomes of my earlier bad decisions, and any disappointments those lead to. I must take responsibility for my own part in the outcomes of my life. I must recognise the unwanted outcomes which arise out of situations that are not of my making. I must trust God to carry me through both my self made troubles and those thrust upon me by life.

Prayer:
Lord God, forgive me for envy and jealousy towards other people who have attained success in areas where I deem myself to have failed. Forgive me Lord for loosing focus of who I am in you.