Well, God has an answer. A small boy emerges from the ranks. The giant looks down on a little shepherd and laughs, “Is this all you’ve got?” David, youngest of the sons of Jesse, kneels before the giant, finds his stones, and slings them into the face of the monster. You know the story. Goliath is vanquished, Israel is saved, and the shepherd boy leaves the hillside for the palace and eventually the throne itself.
Who was Israel’s savior that day in the Valley of Elah, with those two armies encamped on either side
?
As Israel watched on beneath the boughs of the Terebinth, God delivered them; not David, God. The boy was simply God’s agent. You can read this account in the First Book of Samuel, but in the meantime, here are David’s words, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” Twice before in the life of David, he faced foes, predators of his charge and he knew that it was God, the Living God, who had saved him.
Again when the giant jeers, David’s confidence in God shines, “You come to me with sword and with spear, and with javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts.” Before the two armies arrived at the valley, before the Philistines made landfall on Israel’s shores, before God called Abraham to leave Ur and follow him to a new land, God formed a stone,
and that stone found its way to Elah and was smoothed by the brook. God delivered them.
Many years later, God would send another child to fight for his people and to save them. His name would be
The Lord Saves,
Jesus. This child would fight an even greater battle, the greatest the world has ever known. He, like David delivers and is now enthroned; Great David’s greater Son.
In the face of such giants; pandemic, injustice, inequity, hatred, and division, the question remains, “What can we do?” We are Christians. “Pray without ceasing,” Paul tells us. It's not an empty answer. Prayer is the stone we put into the sling, not directed at the giants we face, but offered to the God who saves.
The prayer book contains prayers, it is a brook from which we can collect our stones. Here are some prayers that I’ve been praying in the midst of this unrest:
Grant, O God, that your holy and life-giving Spirit may so
move every human heart [and especially the hearts of the
people of this land], that barriers which divide us may
crumble, suspicions disappear, and hatreds cease; that our
divisions being healed, we may live in justice and peace;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Heavenly Father, in your Word you have given us a vision of
that holy City to which the nations of the world bring their
glory: Behold and visit, we pray, the cities of the earth.
Renew the ties of mutual regard which form our civic life.
Send us honest and able leaders. Enable us to eliminate
poverty, prejudice, and oppression, that peace may prevail
with righteousness, and justice with order, and that men and
women from different cultures and with differing talents may
find with one another the fulfillment of their humanity;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this
land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as
their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to
eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those
who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law
and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of
us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
And finally, teach our people to rely on your strength and to
accept their responsibilities to their fellow citizens, that they
may elect trustworthy leaders and make wise decisions for
the well-being of our society; that we may serve you
faithfully in our generation and honor your holy Name.
For yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as
head above all. Amen.
As you pray, may the Living God, the God who delivers, meet you in whatever valley you find yourself, facing whatever giants.
Peter+
