Sometimes you have to throw the stone....

If you have a rock or a stone nearby, get ready to throw it.

This week, as I was driving around, I thought about little David—that shepherd boy who grew up to become a man after God's own heart.

I thought about him and how Jesse had sent him down to the battle to check on his brothers. He didn't go looking for a fight. His father gave him a job to do, and he was doing it.

David, even in his youth, saw the scene for what it really was: a battle. So he questioned what was being done regarding the Philistine who kept antagonizing and begging for a man to face him.

Now, to be fair, my brother would have said the same thing to me.

"You're just being nosy. Go home."

David, in turn, asked a very important question that still stands today.

*Is there not a cause?*

The first time I recognized that verse in the story, it pierced my heart and changed how I wanted to live for Christ.

The cause is simple: salvation, life, and freedom.

Over the past year, I've been reminded of just how relatable this story is to me.

David faced opposition from the beginning. Not from a stranger. Not from an acquaintance. But from someone he knew.

To his brother, he was just "little David." He wasn't capable of handling what was going on, and he didn't have the expertise that perhaps the others had. He wasn't a soldier. He wasn't a warrior. He was just the kid who showed up asking questions.

Yet David stayed focused, repeating the same question over and over.

*Is there not a cause?*

Eventually, Saul sent for him, and once again David was met with opposition.

By all appearances, he simply didn't meet the qualifications to do what needed to be done.

Sure, he was a good shepherd boy. He knew how to tend sheep. He knew how to care for the flock. But the men standing before him were trained soldiers. They had experience. They understood warfare.

David didn't have the resume. He didn't have the title. He didn't have the training.

At least, not the kind they were looking for.

I don't know of anyone who doesn't get excited when they see a vision laid out before them that God has given them. However, living for Christ is not always easy. We are met with opposition every day.

The sad part is that it often comes from those we know and trust.

To be honest, it's getting a little old.

Nonetheless, it happens.

One could put all the blame on Satan, and perhaps it all does come back to him. However, sometimes people discourage us simply because that's who they are. The reasons behind it may be many. Sometimes it is jealousy. Sometimes it is insecurity. Sometimes it is misunderstanding. And sometimes, if we're being honest, people hurt others because they want to.

To some people, we simply don't have the level of spiritual maturity, experience, or knowledge necessary to carry out what we feel God is calling us to do.

I imagine that's how Saul felt when he looked at David.

From a human perspective, Saul wasn't entirely wrong. David wasn't a soldier. He wasn't trained for battle. He didn't have years of experience behind him. He was a shepherd boy standing before a king, volunteering to do what no one else was willing to do.

Yet while Saul was looking at David's qualifications, David was looking at God's faithfulness.

David knew what God had already delivered him from. He had faced a lion. He had faced a bear. And God had brought him through both.

His confidence wasn't in his ability. It was in the God who had been faithful before.

So they suited David up with armor, but it was too heavy for him to wear.

Instead, David chose the tools he knew.

With his sling, his stones, and the Lord, he went down to the battle.

Nothing more.

Nothing less.

That was all he needed.

Then came the giant—and the stone.

When I replay the story in my mind, David doesn't hesitate. He doesn't argue. He doesn't spend his time defending himself to those who doubted him.

He goes to the battlefield.

He takes what God has already placed in his hand, and he moves forward.

With one swing and one stone, the giant falls.

That's why sometimes we have to throw the stone.

Not in malice.

Not in anger.

Not in bitterness.

Not through gossip, backbiting, or tearing others down.

Sometimes throwing the stone simply means moving forward despite the criticism.

It means continuing when others tell you to quit.

It means trusting what God has shown you when others don't understand it.

It means refusing to let fear, discouragement, or the opinions of others keep you from what God has placed before you.

Sometimes the stone isn't aimed at a person.

It's aimed at the obstacle standing between you and obedience.

*I've learned that sometimes we are the answer to the question.*

*Is there not a cause?*

The calling God placed on our lives is the cause.

The gifts He gave us are the cause.

The talents He entrusted to us are the cause.

When you're faced with opposition—or if you're dealing with it right now—remember this:

David was simply doing what his father had asked him to do.

Throw stones.

Slay giants.