Between a Rock and a Hard Place

1 Samuel 14:4

And between the passages, by which Jonathan sought to go over unto the Philistines' garrison, there was a sharp rock on the one side, and a sharp rock on the other side: and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh.

Jonathan and his armor bearer found themselves between a rock and a hard place. They were the only two courageous enough to go fight the Philistines, but they found themselves between two sharp rocks with nowhere to go. They had two choices: they could either retreat as the rest of the troops had retreated, or they could go forward and put their lives in God’s hand. They chose to put their lives in God’s hand, and God wrought a great victory through those two courageous men.

At times, everyone has found themselves between a rock and a hard place. Many have found themselves in the situation where there seems to be no way out, and their choices are to retreat or going forward through the hard times. One thing I have learned from the lives of others is that retreating does not make the trials easier; the only thing that happens with retreat is that people often compromise to justify their retreat. I would rather put my life in God’s hand in the battles than to retreat and eventually compromise. Jonathan’s choice to go forward gives the believer several lessons about what to do when they find themselves between a rock and a hard place.

First, never look back. You never see Jonathan considering retreat or even looking back. The moment you look back when you are between a rock and a hard place is the moment you must fight the urge to run. God never permits the believer to run; rather, He always commands the believer to look forward by faith. You cannot retreat if you don't look back; therefore, keep your eyes looking forward by faith.

Second, look to the omnipotence of God when you are between a rock and a hard place. Jonathan said to his armor bearer, there is no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few. What a blessed thought to know that God is not constrained to one type of battle. God is very capable of facing any battle that you face. God is not surprised by the battle, and He is not in fear because of the size of your battle. The sooner you realize there is no restraint to God because of the battle is the sooner you will have the faith to go forward.

Third, never allow the loneliness of the battle cause you to retreat. Jonathan looked at his armor bearer and knew they were the only two courageous enough to face the battle, but he also knew that God did not need the whole army to win this battle. God does not need the crowd to show He is God; He needs you to be courageous enough to trust Him and His power to show He is God. God has often won battles with the minority, and He can still win any battle with a minority; all He needs is for YOU to go forward.

Fourth, take the first step; you will find God in every step after that. God is waiting on you to take the first step forward before He shows His power in the next steps. You must have faith and trust God to take the first step, and the courage to take the first step is all God needs to show that you need Him. It is when God sees you are courageous enough to take the first step that He will show His power to help you win the battles you face, even when you are in between a rock and a hard place.