"Going
Against the Grain”
If you say
that an idea or action goes against the grain, you mean it is very difficult
for you to accept it or do it, because it conflicts with your previous ideas,
beliefs or principles. -Collins
English Dictionary
I have made
many mistakes in my life. Consequences
always follow wrong choices or decisions and they certainly do not discriminate.
It doesn’t matter who you are, they will show up sooner or later.
Letting the
crowd, peers, friends, and family formulate your ideas, beliefs and principles
can cause unwanted consequences, guilt and regrets. Going against the grain can
be very difficult. So how can we go
against the grain, why would we, when should we, and what are the benefits?
Today I am
writing about someone who went against the grain of the traditional thinking of
his time, producing impossible actions with amazing results. If you and I want
to go from average to great in using the talents God created in us, we can
follow the same pattern as he did.
That someone
was the lowly shepherd boy David. How
did he prepare his thinking and develop the courage to go against the grain at
such a young age, around 15 years of age, among all the naysayers?
The Preparation: Knowing Who Created You.
It was the
best thing that could have happened to him.
His father gave him the job of tending his sheep. Evidently, the father thought it was a menial
job. His father didn’t even think of David when Samuel came to anoint the next
King of Israel. Jesse sent David’s seven
brothers, without David, for Samuel to choose and anoint the next king. Why did he not send David?
Samuel, the
priest, attempted to go with the grain in choosing the next king, God wanted, by his
outward appearance. Don’t we do the
same? God plainly lets all of us know in
this important matter, "For the Lord does not see as man sees, for man looks at
the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart." (1 Samuel 16:5)
I don’t know
if David enjoyed being a shepherd or not, but in doing so, he was placed in a
position to discover his God, know this God, and to highly reverence this
God. What was the key of tending those
sheep? “Be still and know that I am God”. (Psalm 46:10)
Was Psalm 19
written because of David's spending lonely days and nights in the wilderness overseeing
his father’s sheep? I believe it was and
influenced David to serve God and to reveal God’s glory to the children of
Israel. The first 6 verses of this Psalm
reveal God in nature. The next 5 in His law and the last 3 reveal David’s belief
and trusting in God by his prayers to Him.
God sought a
man after His own heart (1Sam. 13:14) and said, "I have found My servant David."
(Psalm 89:20) Again, in the New Testament, God is quoted as saying, "I have
found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My
will." (This is taken from 1Sam. 13:14 and quoted in Acts 13:22)
David was
prepared by seeking the One who created him, having all trust in this Creator
(God) and laying his heart out to this God in prayer. A great pattern to follow if you want to
bring out the best of yourself.
Even David’s
father Jesse, didn’t believe David needed to be with them at the
sacrifice. He left him uninvited with
the sheep. Evidently, this father did not
know his youngest son’s heart either.
God knew his heart and out of this heart came devotion, trust, and
desiring a relationship of fervent prayers to Him.
David was
given something by God after Samuel anointed him. "…and the Spirit of the Lord
came upon David from that day forward." (1 Samuel 16:13) David cherished God’s
Spirit upon him. How do I know? The prayer of David’s repentance in Psalm 51:
10-11, "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit in
me. Do not cast me away from Your
presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me."
David
learned about God in the wilderness while protecting his father’s sheep. He
knew God’s word was truth, and more importantly he knew Him well enough that he
unloaded himself in prayer daily. He
reverenced God’s glory and he would serve Him in honor and do his best to
reveal to all His glory. I believe that
is why God said, “I have found David, a man after My own heart, who will do all
of My will". This is what God wants in
you and me. If we remember this, God’s
glory will be shown by us in our generation and we will live to obey all of His
will as David.
So, David
was prepared to follow and obey God’s will wherever it would take him. As Christians, we should expect no less from
ourselves.
( In the next few post I am going to show how thoughts of living in this world can become so ingrained into our thinking that our faith is slowly, and sometimes subtly, dissipated. We as Christians have slowly allowed the ways of the world, (going with the world's grain of thinking and living) to influence our decisions of the way we act and the lifestyles we manifest with that line of thinking.
Is this important? Should we begin (and that we includes me) to notice how the world view is affecting our living as God would have us to live. Do we delight in the Lord any more? Is our heart's desire to do His will.
Choosing to live by the ways of the world or the commandments of God is our choice. In the next few post on "Going Against the Grain" I want to use the same pattern David did.
Our children and grandchildren, in a culture of instability, need to have a solid faith to stand on. They must first learn to love God and believe Him.
In my first book, "The Heart Behind the Stone: Develop a Giant Slaying Heart" is a good book for your teenager to read on how David prepared his faith and love of God in order to face and defeat his giants. Also, I write about the three giants that have taunted the moral fiber of this great country in which we live. Have you listened to the news the last several months? Do you want your children to live as the world or the way God directs them?)
What motivates us to go against evil? Are we afraid of going against the grain of world view? David wasn't and the three giants we are faced with today can be put down just as David put down Goliath. All we need are men and women after God's own heart. Don't you think it is time? Are you ready to be like David and have "A Cause"? The cost is only $2.99. You can click here to go to: http://amzn.to/1Mi2AXW to purchase online. This is a Kindle E-book.
Thank you!
Rick Hepler
( In the next few post I am going to show how thoughts of living in this world can become so ingrained into our thinking that our faith is slowly, and sometimes subtly, dissipated. We as Christians have slowly allowed the ways of the world, (going with the world's grain of thinking and living) to influence our decisions of the way we act and the lifestyles we manifest with that line of thinking.
Is this important? Should we begin (and that we includes me) to notice how the world view is affecting our living as God would have us to live. Do we delight in the Lord any more? Is our heart's desire to do His will.
Choosing to live by the ways of the world or the commandments of God is our choice. In the next few post on "Going Against the Grain" I want to use the same pattern David did.
Our children and grandchildren, in a culture of instability, need to have a solid faith to stand on. They must first learn to love God and believe Him.
In my first book, "The Heart Behind the Stone: Develop a Giant Slaying Heart" is a good book for your teenager to read on how David prepared his faith and love of God in order to face and defeat his giants. Also, I write about the three giants that have taunted the moral fiber of this great country in which we live. Have you listened to the news the last several months? Do you want your children to live as the world or the way God directs them?)
What motivates us to go against evil? Are we afraid of going against the grain of world view? David wasn't and the three giants we are faced with today can be put down just as David put down Goliath. All we need are men and women after God's own heart. Don't you think it is time? Are you ready to be like David and have "A Cause"? The cost is only $2.99. You can click here to go to: http://amzn.to/1Mi2AXW to purchase online. This is a Kindle E-book.
Thank you!
Rick Hepler
