Past the Yada Yada: Choosing Faith Over Criticism

When Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are how wicked your heart is; you came down to watch the battle.

1 Samuel 17:28

David had just arrived in the Valley of Elah.

Jesse had asked his youngest son, David, to go down and meet his three oldest brothers who had followed King Saul into war against the Philistines. And so, obedient David had just arrived, having walked around fifteen miles, (more than a day’s journey), carrying a load of goodies for his brothers.

And what does he get? A sound blasting from his angry oldest brother, Eliab. No kind words, no appreciation. Rather a mouth full about how irresponsible he is along with a whole load of misunderstanding and presumptions about his intentions. Blah blah, yada yada goes his brother. That would be reason enough for David to turn on his heel and leave in a huff right?

But not David.

David chose not to take offense. Rather he moved forward. And the rest, as they say, is history. David’s trust in his God and rich experiences with Him gave him the confidence to move forward and defeat Goliath the giant, leading to Israel’s great win against the Philistines.

Now, what if David had been bogged down by the rude comments?

Life is not always fair. We all go through the pain of being misunderstood, falsely accused, and ridiculed. Many a time for doing right and that sure hurts all the more. But what is your response? Are people and their sharp comments keeping you from doing what God wants for you?  Or would you like David, to choose to move forward? To move past the negative comments. Choose not to let the giants of fear and hurt overwhelm you. Rather choose to move forward relying on the Lord and His Word, allowing Him to use you mightily for His glory.

Prayer

Lord help me choose to trust in You over the pain of people’s opinions or sharp words.