All of a sudden, the unthinkable has happened.
It started off as a day like any other day but then without warning, a crisis situation entered your life and now you have to find a way to deal with it. It could be a sudden accident, an unexpected diagnosis, the loss of a loved one, or some other unforeseen emergency or event. What will you do in such situations? How will you handle it? What will your response be when the moment of crisis arrives in your life?
Most people don’t like to think about unpleasant things like accidents and emergencies. That’s totally understandable. But the truth is that just about everyone will have to respond to some kind of crisis or emergency at some time in their life. The way that you deal with these crisis situations can tell a lot about who you are and what you really believe about God.
If you read through the Bible, you’ll find that a lot of really Godly people had their own “moments of crisis” where they were forced into dealing with unexpected events. Reading about how these men and women handled these situations can help us when we experience our own times of adversity. Let’s take a look at one such crisis situation involving Israel’s King David and see what we can learn and apply from it today.
In the years before he became king, David and a group of his men had split away from Israel to get away from King Saul and his desire to kill David. During this time, David and his men had joined up with a man named Achish, a leader of the Philistines. However, some of Achish’s army officers were very suspicious of David and his men. They were afraid that David would eventually turn against them during battle, so they talked Achish into sending David and his men back home.
Now “home” for David and his men was a place called Ziklag. Ziklag served as both a home city and military base for David and the men who were with him. Ziklag was a place where David, his men and their wives and families had been living for over a year, so things had become pretty comfortable and well established there. In fact, David and his men were probably looking forward to getting back to their homes and enjoying a little rest and relaxation with their families.
But when David and his men returned home they made a horrible discovery…
“Three days later, when David and his men arrived home at their city of Ziklag, they found that the Amalekites had raided the city and burned it to the ground, carrying off all the women and children. As David and his men looked at the ruins and realized what had happened to their families, they wept until they could weep no more. (David’s two wives, Ahinoam and Abigail, were among those who had been captured.)” (1 Samuel 30:1-5)
Think of the horrible realization that began to dawn on David and his men- a group of terrorists had come into their homes and destroyed them. Their families had disappeared and everything that they owned and worked for had been totally destroyed.
Now we’re told in this passage that it was the Amalekites who were responsible for destroying this city. The Amalekites of David’s time were a group of raiders and terrorists who attacked without being provoked and had no problems with killing large numbers of people. In this instance, they probably moved into the city without warning and caused tremendous destruction and devastation on the defenseless women and children who were left there.
So imagine this whole scene in your mind. The city is in a ruin, burnt to the ground. There’s a heavy smell of smoke still in the air. There are little pockets of rubble still smoldering and areas where fires are still burning. All around, people are frantically searching for their loved ones, not knowing if they were dead or alive. As you can imagine, the effect of all this was absolutely devastating on the men who remained. Many were angry. Some even wanted to kill David because of what had happened.
So what was David’s response to this situation? What did he do when the moment of crisis suddenly arrived? Well, here’s the answer…
“David was seriously worried, for in their bitter grief for their children, his men began talking of killing him. But David took strength from the Lord” (1 Samuel 30:6).
Did you catch that last part? When the moment of crisis came, David took strength from the Lord! So how did he do that? How did David find strength in the Lord and how can we find that same strength today? Well, The Doctor believes that a really good way to take strength from the Lord during a time of crisis is to stop and remember who God is.
For example, what are some things that you know about God? Well if you’re a Christian, a few things should quickly come to mind…
God Is Truth – “Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'” (John 14:6 NIV)
God is Love – “We know how much God loves us because we have felt his love and because we believe him when he tells us that he loves us dearly. God is love, and anyone who lives in love is living with God and God is living in him.” (I John 4:16)
God Is All Knowing – “For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things.” (I John 3:20 NKJ)
God is All Powerful – “O Lord God! You have made the heavens and earth by your great power; nothing is too hard for you!” (Jeremiah 32:17)
God Is Perfect – “As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the LORD is proven; he is a shield to all who trust in Him.” (Psalm 18:30 NKJ)
God Doesn’t Change – “But whatever is good and perfect comes to us from God, the Creator of all light, and he shines forever without change or shadow.” (James 1:17)
God Is Gracious – “But you are merciful and gentle, Lord, slow in getting angry, full of constant loving-kindness and of truth…” (Psalm 86:15)
God Is Merciful – “But God is so rich in mercy; he loved us so much that even though we were spiritually dead and doomed by our sins, he gave us back our lives again when he raised Christ from the dead– only by his undeserved favor have we ever been saved– and lifted us up from the grave into glory along with Christ, where we sit with him in the heavenly realms– all because of what Christ Jesus did.” (Ephesians 2:4-6)
God Is Forgiving – “O Lord, you are so good and kind, so ready to forgive, so full of mercy for all who ask your aid.” (Psalm 86:5)
God Has A Plan – “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” (Genesis 50:20 NIV)