Leadership Lessons from King David part iii

Depend on God for Direction

One thing you’ll notice about  David is that his relationship with God is central to his life. He loves  God with all of his heart and this relationship with God is his  priority above all other things. He loves to worship God as well as to  pour out his heart to God, no matter what is happening in his life (just  read the Psalms). We need to do the same.

David made his  relationship with God central to his life. He valued the presence of  God, hence his efforts to get the Ark of the Covenant back into  Jerusalem (2 Sam.6:1-23). He valued God’s presence and was a passionate  worshipper of God. He recognised the great value of the ark as the  earthly throne of the God of Israel. He wanted to acknowledge the Lord’s  kingship and rule over both himself and the people by restoring the ark  to a place of prominence in the nation.

As you read the story of  David, you will frequently see phrases such as “David enquired of the  Lord.” 1 Sam 23:1-4. When David was told, "Look, the Philistines are  fighting against Keilah and are looting the threshing-floors," he  enquired of the Lord, saying, "Shall I go and attack these Philistines?"  The Lord answered him, "Go, attack the Philistines and save Keilah."  But David's men said to him, "Here in Judah we are afraid. How much  more, then, if we go to Keilah against the Philistine forces!" Once  again David enquired of the Lord, and the Lord answered him, "Go down to  Keilah, for I am going to give the Philistines into your hand." NIV

David  was committed to hearing from God and knowing his will. He listened to  messages through other people (whether prophets or priests). He also  prayed and sought God personally. David’s whole life was about listening  to God and then obeying. That’s why he was a man after God’s own heart,  some who would do all God’s will.

In contrast, Saul did his own  thing and did not take time to listen to the Lord’s instructions. Even  when he did receive them, he did not carry them out fully.

Example : Married couples often have children out of the  intimacy of their relationship. Babies are a gift from God but often  they can take up so much time and attention that married couples neglect  their own intimacy of relationship. The same can happen in our  relationship with God. Out of our intimacy with him he births vision and  ministry ideas into our spirit. If we are not careful, we can become so  busy looking after our ministries and pursuing our vision, that we  forget our intimacy of relationship with God.

How are you and God  doing right now?