Anointed Not Accidental

There is no use in running before you are sent; there is no use in attempting to do God's work without God's power. A man working without this unction, a man working without this anointing, a man working without the Holy Ghost upon him, is losing time after all.

- Dwight L. Moody

I love divine coincidences. Those little winks from God when you know something is too coincidental to not be His doing. I’ve been slowly working through the Old Testament in my personal study, and this past Saturday, I finally made it to the story of David and Goliath. I was floored by a whole new realization and perspective shift of a story I had heard a 100 times. Then I showed up to church on Sunday and heard Josh Hotsenpillar preach the same story. There’s a God wink - and I think that wink was a nudge to lean further into what I had learned in my quiet time, and to share it with you today, dear reader.

I wasn’t floored by the usual details of 1 Samuel 17, as captivating as they are, the thing that struck me was 1 Samuel 16. Directly before the story of Goliath, God sends Samuel to anoint a new king, as he has grown frustrated with Saul’s rebellious behavior. Samuel goes through each of Jesse’s sons, but God has His eyes on the least expected. God chooses to anoint David.

The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king.” … Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him; this is the one.” So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David. Samuel then went to Ramah.

- 1 Samuel 16:1, 12-13

After he is anointed, he becomes an armor-bearer for Saul, who is unaware of David’s special anointing. For some reason this struck me - whenever I hear the story of David and Goliath, David is painted as a puny boy, unassuming, unaware, and seemingly accidental. And aspects of this are true, he is young, he is unprepared for battle, and one of the most powerful parts of the story is that faith in God can allow us to do things that seem impossible. But, I think we’re missing a powerful part of the story if we see his interaction with Goliath as a simple lesson in, “Huh, if David could do that, I can trust God and do hard things too!” Because if we think the lesson is to be like David, we’re missing the point!

Framing this story with the chapter prior reminds us who the main character of this story, and every story in the Bible, is: God. When David enters battle with Goliath, he has just been anointed by God to eventually be king. He isn’t an accident. God anoints him and then immediately orchestrates a moment for him to show his character and deep faith. Are there moments where it feels like we are facing more than we can handle? Of course. But, is God constantly working behind the scenes to ensure that we are equipped for the plans He has for us? Yes!

David might have felt afraid. But he had faith in God, and he had a promise made to him in that anointing moment in 1 Samuel 16; a promise that he could rely on. He was ready, he was anointed, he wasn’t an accident. When we frame this story in the context of the entire book, we find a new takeaway:

God is constantly equipping His people and working things out for their good and His glory.

And because of Jesus, because of the New Covenant, because of John 3:16, we know, dear reader, that you are like David.

You are anointed. You are not an accident. He is equipping you, He has plans for you, and you have a promise you can rely on. He wants you right where you’re at.

Maybe you’re facing a Goliath and you feel like the Sunday School descriptions of David - small, insignificant, ill-prepared, and terrified. Remind yourself of 1 Samuel 16, remind yourself that David may have been out of his comfort zone, but he wasn’t an accident. And neither are you.

God has you right where you are for a reason. Now go boldly, and run towards the giant.

Cristina Schmitter

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