Have you ever been in the middle of telling a great story only to be interrupted by someone who wants to tell their version? When you have a family like mine, who all like to talk, those interruptions are frequent and expected. We all have our favorite stories to tell, and even though my family has heard them all before, we each listen with excitement and anticipation as though the often-told story were brand new. I love to hear and tell stories. I do find it interesting, however, that the same story, the same event, can be recalled very differently by different individuals. Even within close knit families like mine, everyone is an individual and we all view events through our unique, individual lenses. When I was in graduate school, I took a class in organizational leadership. The focus of the class was learning to view your organization through four distinct frames or lenses. It was one of my favorite classes because it forced me to look at challenges through different frames (lenses), or different perspectives, and describe the same challenge from these four distinct angles. The challenge, or problem, didn't change. The only thing that changed was the angle in which the problem was viewed, assessed and tackled. The main lesson being challenges are rarely one dimensional, but are multifaceted in nature. This fundamental concept helps explain why stories, even familiar family ones, can vary depending upon who is telling the story. I started thinking about this while I was reading a familiar Bible story found in I Samuel, Chapter 17.
The story of David and Goliath is one of many stories I have heard since my childhood. I remember hearing this story in Sunday school and feeling in awe that David, a young teenager, would run bravely to fight a giant! I have heard the account of this event so many times I can tell it on my own, without reading it from scripture. I'm not sure, but I would imagine many people know something about this story. Even if they were not raised in church, people probably know that the story has something to do with a giant. And Goliath was indeed a giant of a man. The story itself is usually referred to simply as the story of 'David and Goliath'. Period. But David and Goliath were only two people involved in this historic event. As I returned to scripture to review this ancient account, I wondered how the other story participants may have described the events of the day.
To give some background, David was the youngest son of a man named Jesse. The story of David and Goliath is outlined in I Samuel 17. But, if you look at the previous chapter, I Samuel 16, you learn that God had sent the prophet Samuel to the house of Jesse for a very important assignment. The Bible tells us King Saul had rejected God, and God instructed Samuel to anoint a new king to take Saul's place. This was Samuel's mission in Chapter 16 when he arrives at Jesse's home. Jesse had eight sons and David was the youngest. Samuel, just like many of us (myself included), thought he knew just what God wanted. When Samuel saw the eldest son, Eliab, Samuel assumed Eliab was the perfect choice for a king. Apparently, Eliab looked the part, because God told Samuel "Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature, because I have refused him; for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart" (I Samuel 16: 7, KJV). Poor Samuel....he was looking at the situation through a different lens than God. As Samuel continued through the first seven sons of Jesse, God consistently said no. Finally, the only son left was David. I Samuel 16: 13 records the anointing of David: "Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward." Wouldn't it have been interesting to speak with Jesse and hear his account of that day? What did Eliab, and the other brothers, think about the days events? Did the brothers resent being passed over for David? What would David have said about his encounter with the prophet? Different people, same event, different lenses......
After this event, David went back to business as usual. As the youngest son, David was tasked with shepherding his father's sheep. Later in I Samuel 16, we learn that Saul was troubled by an evil spirit. Saul's servants suggested he try some music therapy to calm his troubled soul. Saul thought that sounded like a great idea and told his servants to find a talented musician. Lo and behold....Saul's servants told him about a man named Jesse, who had a musical son named David. Thus David entered the court of Saul. Again, I am so interested in how this story would have been told. You've heard couples or friends tell the story of how they met? I wonder what David thought when he was summoned to Saul's court. How would David later describe how he came to meet King Saul? Did Saul know about Samuel's earlier visit to Jesse's home? David knew....Jesse knew...David's brothers were well aware. Regardless, David now begins his interactions with Saul. And what amazing interactions they would be....
Fast forward to I Samuel 17 and the giant tale. King Saul and his army are camped on the hillside near the valley of Elah. Across the valley on the opposite hills, another army is encamped. The Philistine army (aka Israel's Arch Enemy) is in full battle array. The champion of the Philistine army, Goliath, is causing quite an uproar in the Israelite camp. The King James version describes Goliath as being six cubits and a span tall (I Samuel 17: 4). For those of us who don't speak King James' English.....that is 9 feet and 9 inches!!! Goliath was one big dude! During that time in history, it was not uncommon to engage in something called 'single combat'. This practice allowed for one combatant to represent his army in a dual with a single combatant from the opposing side. Whoever won the dual, won the victory for his army. Goliath details the terms of the dual when he calls out to the Israelite camp in I Samuel 17: 8-10, "And he [Goliath] stood and yelled at the armies of Israel, Why come out and draw up a battle line? I'm a Philistine, and you are servants of Saul, so choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me. If he can fight me and kill me, we'll be your slaves; but if I beat him and kill him, you will become slaves and serve us. The Philistine added, I challenge Israel's armies today- give me a man, and we'll fight it out!"(CJB). The Bible goes on to say that when Saul and all his army heard the words of Goliath....they were shaken and terrified. Among the members of Saul's army were Jesse's three oldest sons, David's older brothers.
It is bad enough to know the army of Israel trembled at Goliath's words. But to make matters worse, the giant had been taunting the Israelites every morning, and every evening, for forty days! For forty days the armies had been aligned on their respective hilltops overlooking the Elah valley. Day after day, morning and evening, Goliath issued his frightening challenge to Saul's army. If a war correspondent would have been embedded on the Philistine hilltop, the reporting from the battlefield would likely have been positive. Maybe something like "We continue to see little movement on the opposite hills. Goliath continues to issue his challenge twice each day with no response from Saul's army. Perhaps a victory is close at hand!' However, a reporter for the local Israelite paper would likely compose a different headline, "King Saul continues to work on his strategy for defeating Goliath. More news to follow.". I don't really know....obviously I would be a lame reporter, but you get the idea. Same challenge, different lens. King Saul must have been a nervous wreck. Again, I don't really know, but the stalemate at the valley of Elah could not continue indefinitely. Something had to give...
During the forty day standoff, someone else was anxiously awaiting news from the front lines. The Bible records that Jesse called his youngest son, David, and sent him on a mission to check on Jesse's three oldest sons who were in Saul's army. David was busy tending Jesse's sheep when he was summoned. Being a responsible shepherd, David left his sheep in the care of a helper and headed out to check on his brothers and the status of the battle. When David arrived at the battlefield, he quickly found his brothers. While David was talking to them, Goliath yelled his usual challenge, the same one he had been issuing twice a day for forty days. But this time, David heard Goliath's words. Let me just say....David did not take it lightly. I quote "Who is this uncircumcised Philistine anyway, that he challenges the armies of the living God?"(I Samuel 17:26b, CJB). Apparently Goliath wasn't saying anything different than he had been saying for the past forty days. But this time, David heard Goliath's threat. Same words, different ears... David understood Goliath's taunting words were really taunting God's ability to defend the army of Israel, and David was not about to stand idly by.
Remember, David and Goliath are only two people present at this historical event. When David took offense at Goliath's challenge, David's brother Eliab became angry. But not angry at Goliath....Eliab was mad at David. Eliab questioned David: "Why camest thou down hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness?"(I Samuel 17: 28a, KJV). It sounds like Eliab had a chip on his shoulder. Maybe Eliab resented the fact that God has chosen David over him. I don't know. But David turned away from his brother and began to express his opinion of Goliath to other soldiers. King Saul caught wind of David's words and sent for the young shepherd. So we find David (shepherd, evil spirit soothing harpist, anointed future king, teenager) standing in front of King Saul. (Just a point..You would think Saul would recognize David, after all, David was the skilled musician called to play in Saul's court. However, we learn later in Chapter 17, Saul did not know David's identity and asked his army captain, Abner, to find out who David's father was.) David basically tells King Saul, 'Don't worry. Don't lose heart because of him [Goliath]! I got this....I will fight Goliath!'. King Saul replies, 'You can't fight him! You're just a boy, and Goliath has been a warrior since his youth.' Saul pretty much said....'Are you crazy! Have you seen this guy!' But David was not dissuaded. King Saul must have been feeling guilty about having a teenager volunteer while the rest of the army, Saul included, shook with fear. Saul even tried to have David wear his kingly armor. The scripture describes how David put on Saul's armor and tried to walk. The armor was made for Saul, not for David, and David quickly decided it was not a good fit. You see, David already had armor, but not the kind Saul was offering. David tells Saul, "Adonai, who rescued me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, will rescue me from the paw of this Philistine!" Saul said to David, "Go, may Adonai be with you." (I Samuel 17:37, CJB). What was Saul thinking as David marched off to fight Goliath? What were David's brothers thinking? The Bible doesn't answer those questions, but we do learn what Goliath thought as he saw David approaching.
As David heads out, he has a stick in his hand and he chooses five smooth stones from the riverbed, placing them in his shepherd's bag. Can you imagine the tension in the air as both armies realize the stalemate is coming to an end? Someone is about to lose a battle. Looking strictly at the combatants....which side would you pick to be on? David was focused on one thing: someone had dared insult Adonai, and David was not going to allow the challenge to go unaccepted. Goliath, on the other hand, had been itching for a fight for over a month. Now...finally, the giant would get his wish But wait a minute...as David came closer, Goliath looked David up and down and "had nothing but scorn for what he saw- a boy with ruddy cheeks, red hair and good looks" (I Samuel 17: 42, CJB). Goliath yelled at David, "Am I a dog? Is that why you're coming at me with sticks?" (CJB). David responds to the Philistine, "You're coming at me with a sword, a spear and a javelin. But I'm coming at you in the name of Adonai-Tzva'ot (the Lord of Hosts), the God of the armies of Israel, which you have challenged. Today Adonai will hand you over to me..."(I Samuel 17:45-46, CJB). Did you catch David's armor? Saul's armor was man made, sized for Saul. Goliath's weapons and armor were also man made, sized for Goliath (he wore a bronze armor plate weighing 120 pounds). But David......David said man made armor was not his defense. David chose to fight Goliath through the name of God! The remainder of I Samuel 17 goes on to tell how David did indeed defeat Goliath with one stone flung from a slingshot. If you haven't read the Biblical account, I would encourage you to read it.
Going back to my opening remarks about different frameworks or different lenses.... When David heard Goliath's insulting remarks, David knew some things the other event participants didn't know. David had been in more than one life-threatening situation. While guarding his father's sheep, David hadn't encountered a human giant, but he had encountered other giants (lions, bears, fear of being eaten, loneliness, etc.). David had a history with God. David knew God was reliable. David knew God could deliver him from the hand of Goliath. As David approached Goliath on the field of battle, Goliath was looking through a different lens. Goliath hadn't been out with the sheep when the flock was attacked. Goliath hadn't witnessed God's deliverance of a seemingly, helpless young boy. King Saul wasn't familiar with David's story. The king didn't even know who David's father was. Surely David's brothers had heard David tell stories about how he had killed the lion and the bear. Maybe Eliab thought David was telling a tall tale about his sheep herding adventures? Lots of people, lots of different lenses.....the same event.
We are all participants in the story of life. We are all part of the bigger story, but we all have our own personal stories we live everyday. Revisiting the story of David and Goliath reminded me how we all experience things from a unique, individual perspective. My life story is definitely not the story of King David, but we have something in common. As I face giants in my life, I can look back with confidence (just like David) and say....God has always been with me. I am an eye witness to the fact that God delivered me before and I know He will do it again!. Praise God!
But, just as importantly, I want to encourage anyone who is facing giants in your own life. People around you may not see your giants because they are looking through different lenses. That doesn't make the giants any less real. I can not look at your situation through your lens. Jesse, King Saul, Eliab, Goliath, all the soldiers....no one could look at Goliath through the same lens David was using. But I want to serve as a reliable witness....God is a Deliverer. If you need deliverance.....ask God to show up and trust that He will. You may be surprised at how quickly your giants can fall....
Still listening...