Recovering From RuinsSample

Be Gracious in Victory

Six hundred men accompanied David for battle with the Amalekites. However, two hundred were exhausted and couldn’t cross the valley (1 Samuel 30:9-10), so David fought the Amalekites with four hundred men. After the battle, David approached the men left at the valley. He asked after their welfare (1 Samuel 30:21) and was willing to share the spoils of victory, but some of the four hundred men did not approve of this. They said: “Because they did not go out with us, we will not share with them the plunder we recovered. However, each man may take his wife and children and go.” (1 Samuel 30:22).

David’s generosity and kindness are evident when he intervenes and says that the rewards of victory must be divided equally between those who fought and those who stayed back in the valley with the supplies (1 Samuel 30:23-25). David was gracious in victory.  There is a reason David was not selfish in triumph. He considered being victorious a gift from God and not what he earned from his handwork; “… No, my brothers, you must not do that with what the Lord has given us …” (1 Samuel 30:23). When we realise that the victory or progress we enjoy is a gift from God, our hearts will be open to allowing others to partake of it.

Don’t forget to appreciate the “little” effort your spouse, sibling, friend, colleague, pastor, and others played in supporting you to victory.  It doesn’t matter how insignificant the part they played.  Even though the two hundred men were not at the forefront of the battle but looked after the supplies and logistics, David considered their effort essential to their success. God's blessing is accessible to us equally irrespective of our role in His plan and purpose on the earth.

The lesson we can take from the story of David is that recovering from loss and defeat is possible and that God is still in the business of restoration. Jesus Christ came to do just that; He restored us to the path of life from the path of death and damnation. He reconciled us back to the Father. So now we can stand before the Father unashamedly, full of everlasting life and without any loss both in life and death.

Prayer

Father Lord, thank you for the victory I have today and the victories you will give me tomorrow. Amen. 

We hope you were blessed by this 5-day plan on “Recovering from Ruins”. You can find more edifying and soul-lifting resources from Midohoabasi Essienubong at Pruned Life.