Hill: The greatest answer for distress

Everyone experiences those moments in life when it seems that all we have are lemons. Many people then advise us to make lemonade. It has often been my experience that it is far easier to give that advice than to heed it.

So what do we, as Christians, do when problems come our way? How do we handle the hard and distressing circumstances of life? Please join me as we review a severe trial in the life of King David and discover his answer for a difficult hour.

Speaking the Truth in Love by Pastor Tommy Hill

Speaking the Truth in Love
by Pastor Tommy Hill

First, let me challenge you to spend some time refreshing your memory regarding this period in his life. He had moved to Ziklag with his family and his men and their families. He chose, for a time, to do things his way instead of relying completely upon God. He was now living with the enemies of the people of God. He was in actuality living a lie. In his deceit, he tried to persuade Achish, the Philistine king that he desired to go to war against Israel. In shame he was sent back to Ziklag.

It was a three-day journey back and I am sure his men were not happy about the situation. I can envision them trodding along until they reach the top of a hill from where they can see home but what they see stops them in their tracks. Can you imagine how they felt? It would be like seeing emergency vehicles pass you on the highway and when you turn down your street they are parked in your driveway. Your heart would skip a beat. In a panic they ran towards home only to find their city and homes in ashes and all their loved ones missing.

Where do you go for comfort when everyone is living the same experience as you are presently facing? Everyone was mourning the loss of his loved ones. Then the situation goes from bad to worse. The men, in the midst of their greatest grief, began to blame David for the ills that had befallen them. They began to speak of stoning him. David had no one to turn to. It was at this moment that David came to his senses. We have the answer to our greatest distress located in 1 Samuel 30:6, “David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.” May I offer you three reasons that helped David to remember where he could go to find encouragement.

1)     David remembered God’s past deliverances. He remembered how good God had been to him. God saved him from the paw of the lion & bear (1 Sa. 17:37), God saved him from Goliath (1 Sa. 17:42-46), and God saved him from the javelin of Saul (1 Sa. 18:10). When in distress we need to remember all of the blessings God has given to us in the past. Regardless of how we may have failed the Lord, the Lord has never failed us. Look back and remember.

2)     David remembered the future God had promised him. David reminded himself of the promises God had made and how God had brought those promises to past. God said, “you will be king,” and God’s promise was sure. When we are living in our own Ziklag and the world seems to be crumbling all we need to do is remember the promise God has made. We have a future. We have a home in Heaven. We have been forgiven. There is a future day on our horizon where we will reign with Him forever (Rev. 21:1-7). God has promised.

3)     David reflected on his current relationship with God. He realized that he had distanced himself from God and this was his reaping moment (Gal. 6:7). There were some things David needed to do immediately. He reaffirmed a need for a personal relationship with God. He renewed his personal walk with God. He was ready to pray again. In v. 7 he calls his pastor, in v. 8 he inquires of the Lord, he wants direction, in v. 9 he is now following God in obedience and going to reclaim that which is rightfully his. All in obedience to God.

When David encouraged himself in the Lord his God and received an answer to his prayer he responded obediently. OBEDIENCE is the key. When we are obedient we are following the Lord as opposed to desiring the Lord to follow us. The seed that is sown will manifest itself in the harvest. Thank God He still helps when the harvest comes.

God loves you today, even in times of failure. We do have a responsibility when we find ourselves in one of life’s distressing periods. Look to Jesus.

David refused to blame God, or anyone else; he encouraged himself in the sovereignty and love of God. By doing this we can learn to be part of the solution instead of part of the problem.

Pastor Tommy Hill is the pastor of First Free Will Baptist Church in Hamlet. He is a Richmond County native. He can be reached at firstfwbchurchhamlet@gmail.com. His column will appear each Friday in The Pee Dee Post.

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  • http://peedeepost.com Trucker

    Pastor Hill, I respect your beliefs and fully agree with your interpretations of the holy scripture. I accepted Christ as my Lord and Saviour when I was 14 years old. I am now 69 and have never really believed that I was saved, no matter how much I’ve tried to live a Christian life over the years. I am a firm believer in predestination and have come to realize that no matter how hard I try to live by the Lord’s word, I am still “Hell Bound” and know that I was condemned way before I entered this world. I was born to live this life and then enter into an eternal place of fire and torment. I read the Bible everyday and have read it thru 15 times . The ancient prophets predicted that Judas would enter the world strictly for the purpose of betraying Jesus and sending him to the cross. That was the purpose of Judas’ (Son of Hell) birth and life in this world. Judas had to come to fulfill the prophecies of The Crucifixion and then go on to his rightful place. It just doesn’t seem right that God could do this. Speaking of “distress,” I’ve been thru more of that than you could ever imagine and which I won’t go into. The only way out for me is death and then the place called “Hell” that awaits me. Predestination is real. I have the scriptures marked to prove it. I just can’t understand why it has to be this way, meaning why do people have to go thru predestination just to fulfill the biblical scriptures.

    • Tommy Hill

      Trucker, Thanks for your post and your candid remarks. If you’d like to talk about this privately I’d be glad to try and understand your thoughts on predestination and hopefully provide some help. You may email me privately at the email address provided at the bottom of the article.

      Sincerely, Pastor Tommy Hill, Matt. 5:16

  • Brittainy

    Well done and well written.

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