How to Conquer Your Goliath

Most of you reading this will recall the story of David and Goliath in the Bible. David, a young shepherd boy, defeated and killed the giant Goliath, a Philistine, who was threatening God’s people. David did this with just five small stones and a sling. This story is probably one of the most popular stories in the Bible.

In David versus Goliath, the underdog wins. Good conquers evil. The villain gets his just rewards, and the underdog is named the hero of the land. At first glance, that is the story in a nutshell. However, if we dig a little deeper, we will find that there is so much more we can learn from this story. We can learn how to conquer our own personal Goliath.

Each of Us Faces a Goliath

At some point in our lives, each of us will have a Goliath-sized problem show up, threatening to wreak havoc. It may be a marriage problem, sickness, financial hardship, and so on. Whatever the issue, it may seem big and scary and it may seem that the problem is taunting us, laughing at us because we are afraid and unsure what to do.

When our Goliath shows up, we need to know how to respond so that we can conquer it. Will we be like the Philistines and be overly confident in our own ability to handle the problem? Or will we be like the Israelite army and allow Goliath to paralyze us with fear? Instead, we should choose to be like David and have faith that God will conquer our Goliath for us.

The Israelite Army Was Fearful

Goliath challenged the Israelites to send one of their men out to fight him one-on-one. However, the Israelites were fearful of meeting Goliath’s challenge, and they did not send anyone out to fight him. So Goliath taunted them and mocked the name of God for 40 days!

Here were thousands of well-trained warriors who were prepared to battle and fight for Israel. Yet, there was not one of them who was willing to fight Goliath, a man who was literally making fun of God

When David came along and heard the things Goliath was saying about God, he was furious and ready to do what needed to be done. David had the faith in God that King Saul and the Israelite army should have had.

God Conquered Goliath

David’s ability is not what killed Goliath. Sure, David was good with the sling and was probably well practiced from his time taking care of sheep. However, his ability alone could not do it, and David realized that. David possessed an incredible amount of faith in order to bring himself to face a giant warrior who had terrified an entire army for over a month.

Just before RUNNING toward Goliath, David said, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord Almighty — the God of the armies of Israel whom you have defied. Today the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head...And everyone will know that the Lord does not need weapons to rescue his people. It is his battle, not ours. The Lord will give you to us.” 1 Samuel 17:45-47.

David proclaimed that it would be the Lord who would conquer Goliath. He was merely the instrument God would use to accomplish the task.

We Need Faith Like David

What if we had the faith that David did whenever something was pressing in on us? What kind of miracles could God perform in our lives if we had faith in HIS ability instead of focusing on our own ability or inability? In what mighty ways would God use us for His purposes if we had faith and had managed our resources as God wanted.

What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see. Hebrews 11:1 NLT

Our faith is based on what we believe about God, not how we feel at any given moment. We cannot always trust our feelings. Our feelings are fickle at times. When we are trying to conquer our Goliath, we have to believe and trust what is truth.

Biblical Truths to Remember

God will fight for you. Exodus 14:14

He will never abandon you. Deuteronomy 31:8

He will rescue you from your enemies. 2 Kings 17:39

If you call upon Him, He will rescue you. Psalm 50:15

He will give you wisdom. James 1:5

He will guide your steps. Psalm 37:23

David Was Not a Certified Giant Slayer

David was NOT a trained combat soldier at this time. He was not dressed for the job of fighting a giant enemy. He didn’t wear the armor and helmet like a warrior. Also, he didn’t carry the typical weapons of a soldier, only a sling.

However, David took his role as shepherd of his father’s sheep very seriously. He protected the sheep at all costs, fighting off all predators including lions and bears, and David loved God.

Do your work and be happy to do it. Work as though it is the Lord you are serving, not just an earthly master. – Ephesians 6:7 ERV

God Will Equip Us

There is an important lesson we need to learn here. When God is looking for someone to fill a purpose for Him, He is NOT looking at the superficial characteristics of that person. God does not care about your status in society, and He doesn’t have a dress code.

We may not be dressed for the job, and we may think we do not qualify for what God is calling us to do. However, when God has a plan to use you for a particular purpose, he will equip you with the necessary tools. He will go before you, and He walk beside you.

God is looking at your heart and your faith. He is also taking notice of what you have done with what He has given you. Have you been a good steward of the resources, time, and money He has given to you? Do you spend time with Him, obey Him, and trust Him?

David found Value in the Place He was In.

When David was a shepherd, he spent long periods of time alone. David used this solitary time to mediate on God’s Word and play his harp. This time spent as a lowly sheep herder provided an opportunity for David to eventually become King Saul’s armor bearer, personal musician, and warrior. Being alongside King Saul allowed David to gain important insight about things he would need to know about being king.

God placed David out in those fields shepherding his father’s sheep, and He led David out to the battleground where he defeated Goliath. God did all of this in order to prepare David for his future and place of promise, which was King of Israel. All of those solitary days and nights may have seemed ordinary and uninspiring, but they were ordained by God for His purpose.

Wherever You Are, be Your Best You

Does God have you in a place that you would rather not be right now? Maybe you don’t particularly enjoy your job or your coworkers, or you don’t like the place where you live. Maybe you are just not where you thought you would be in life at this point. Of course you can and should pray about the situation, and God may change it for you (or He may change YOU). However while you are there, BE YOUR BEST YOU!

God may have you there for a reason. Maybe you are suppose to show Jesus’s love to someone around you who is hurting, or there may be an opportunity for you to witness to a coworker or neighbor. Maybe there is someone in your immediate vicinity whom you, and only you, can help in some way. There may be something about this place that will bring about a change in you that God needs for you to have. God could be waiting for you to take notice and use this place you are in right now to bring Him glory!

Resist the Devil

The devil works hard to break down our faith, just as Goliath did with the Israelites. He will use whatever and whomever he can to bring fear and turmoil into our lives. He wants to get our minds focused on our problem so that we will become consumed with worry and uncertainly. We may even begin to believe the lie that our Goliath is too big for God!

The devil has won half the battle if he can convince us that we are worthless and unworthy. He knows he can do that if he can get us to listen to those around us who bring us down instead of encouraging us. In order to conquer our Goliath, we have to remind ourselves daily what God says about us, and we need to speak it out loud so that satan can hear it. REMIND HIM OF WHO YOU ARE! There is absolutely nothing he nor anyone on this planet can do to change what God says about you. Nothing!

Remember What God Says About You

When you are on the way to conquering your Goliath, remind yourself of who God says you are.

He says you are loved! And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. Romans 8:38 NLT

He says you are valuable, so much so that Jesus died for you! For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. – John 3:16 NKJV

He says you are special! Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart. Jeremiah 1:5 NIV

He says you are His! …For He calls us His children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know Him. – 1 John 3:1 NLT

He says you have purpose! “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

Let God’s Word Lead You

The world will always try to tell us how to conquer our Goliath. Everybody and their brother will give you advice if you allow them. In the story of David and Goliath, Saul tried to give David his armor and sword to use in his fight against Goliath, but David refused.

So Saul clothed David with his armor, and he put a bronze helmet on his head; he also clothed him with a coat of mail. David fastened his sword to his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. And David said to Saul, “I can’t go in these,” he protested. “I’m not used to them.” So he took them off again. – 1 Samuel 17:39

David did not want to depend on Saul’s armor for protection. David knew that he needed to depend on God. The same goes for us. We need to depend on what God’s Word says. We need to study His Word and pray, instead of relying on other people’s advice to solve our problem.

Sometimes God does use other mature believers to guide us when we need help. However, we need to be careful about whom we take advice from. We need to make sure the person is a true believer of God, spends time in God’s Word, and shows the fruits that come from a relationship with Jesus Christ.

God can and will conquer your Goliath if you give it to Him and let Him. Be a good steward of all that God has given you, including the place you are in. Have faith and remember what God says about you. Listen to God’s Word and allow Him to handle all of your problems.

Pick Up Your Sword!