And David Fled

1 Samuel 20:1

And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan, What have I done? what is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life?

David made a great mistake in his young life, and that was that he allowed man to dictate his courage and faith. I know that it is easy for us to sit on the other side of David's life and criticize him for fleeing from Saul because it was not our life that was being threatened with death. However, we cannot overlook the fact that three words in David's life led him to make some bad decisions. Those three words, and David fled. Those three words led to David joining the Philistines, fighting for the Philistines, lying to the preacher, and it influenced all the men who followed him to flee with him in fear.

The three words, and David fled, are words of fear and not of faith. It is hard to see the great man of faith allowing fear to control him. It is hard to see this young man who faced the champion of the Philistines running from Saul. It is hard to see this young man who asked, is there not a cause, running in fear instead of charging by faith. However, fear will always cause the strongest people to crumble and flee, but faith will take the weakest people and make them strong. Some things happened that turned David from this man of fear back into a man of faith. Let me share what caused David to return back to being a man of courage and faith.

First, David began to pray. Prayer will always challenge anyone's life. When David prayed for God's guidance is when he had faith to stand against Saul and not run from him. Your first reaction to fear ought always be to pray. Prayer turned the fearful Gideon into a man of strong faith. Prayer turned a fearful and hiding church in the book of Acts into a church that turned the world upside down for Jesus Christ. Prayer turned a fleeing Elijah into a strong man of faith. Prayer has a way of challenging your faith and causing fear to flee. You will find that when you spend time with God in prayer that the things which caused you to fear will seem so small compared to the omnipotence of God, the God to whom you are praying.

Second, David spent time with people of faith. It was Jonathan who came to David and told him that he would be king one day. It was Jonathan's faith to challenge David that caused David to stop fleeing and start fighting. Your faith will always be challenged if you spend time with people of faith. It is critical not to run with people of fear and negativity. People of faith have a way of challenging your faith. When I find myself running a little fearful, I always begin to read about the people of faith in the Scriptures. When fear seems to be the proper choice, I run to men from the past who were men of great faith and read about them, and I find that as I spend time with them in a book that my faith is challenged. Surround yourself with people of faith, and your faith will always stay strong. Just as fear is contagious, so is faith contagious. People of strong faith will challenge your faith which keeps fear at bay.

Third, David attempted great things by faith. The only way to silence fear is to face it head-on by faith. When fear comes your way, attempt something great by faith. You overcome fear with faith. Fear will flee from your heart and mind when you choose to step out by faith. The antidote to fear is always faith; therefore, always attempt acts of faith, and fear will have very little presence in your life.