Remembering the Lord’s Deliverances in times of rejection

It’s so helpful to remember how You helped David in his many times of distress, Lord, even though at first sight it must have appeared as though You were doing nothing of the kind. After King Saul’s hatred and jealousy had driven David from the land and forced him to take refuge in the courts of the Philistine king, David experienced one of his most grievous trials. He had set off to take part in a battle against the men of Judah, but had been sent back as a result of King Achish’s senior advisers not trusting him to fight wholeheartedly against his own kith and kin. It would have been easy for David to have taken this as a snub, and to feel rejected, but in reality, You were supernaturally intervening, Lord, to prevent His chosen one from having to wage war against his fellow countrymen. While David and his men had been away, raiders came and attacked their settlement at Ziklag, reducing it to ashes, and taking away their wives and children. Absolutely everything now in David’s life looked as though it had been taken away and crumbled into nothing – and as if that were not enough of a shock, his own men promptly rounded on him and blamed him for this disastrous turn of events, as if it could possibly have been his fault. In bitterness of spirit, they even spoke of stoning him to death. Just how bad could things get? Why had You allowed this, Lord? David could so easily have given in to despair. He was certainly greatly distressed – ‘but David found strength in the LORD.’ (1 Samuel 30:6). I love that expression! What resilience it speaks of in the midst of such an ordeal. With the experience behind him of years of seeking You, Lord, in the face of multiple threats, he pushed beyond his pain to enquire of You. As Matthew Henry delightfully put it, ‘when David was at his wit’s end, he was not at his faith’s end.’ Right in the eye of the storm, You met with him, and gave him a plan and the heart to rescue the captives. How magnificent are Your plans, O God our Saviour! Father, we can never praise You enough for those crucial leadings and deliverances that You send our way. May we remember to take time out during our times of crisis to find strength in You. It is so helpful to bring to mind again the deliverances You have achieved and brought about. You can, and will, bring light out of darkness, peace out of trouble and good out of evil. You who have been so faithful to us in the past will not fail to be so again, today, tomorrow and right up until the time when You take us to be with Yourself. Amen!