1 Samuel 22:2: “And everyone who was in distress, everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was discontented gathered to him. So he became captain over them. And there were about four hundred men with him.”

May 31st, 2023 by Pastor Ed in devotional

David became the leader of a formidable group of men, drawn together by adverse circumstances. Those who gathered around him were not what we would call the pick of the crop, but they would ultimately become mighty men. There are 3 things we see in these men’s lives that made them become men of God, and the same things cause us today to become men and women of God.

Distress: First, when we are in distress over life, we begin to look for help; and it’s only when we come to God that we find peace from stress and a solid foundation.

Debt: Secondly, when we see our debt before God, we realize that we owe everything to Him and we stop trying to rely on others or ourselves and become completely dependent on Him.

Discontented: Thirdly, when we are discontent with the conditions of the world we live in, we begin to look for real contentment. It is then that we realize there isn’t enough of anything this world has to offer that will bring us contentment. No matter what temporal thing we try to use to feed the flesh, it will never satisfy. Only God offers contentment because he deals with issues of eternal consequence.

This was the situation in the lives of the men who came to David during his time of exile. King Saul was a tyrant who had become a mad man. He had moods of deep depression and a dangerous, vicious temper that allowed him to destroy even the innocent. Those truly upset with the way the current kingdom was going, began to gather to David, forming a core group that would later help govern when David finally took over the kingdom. They looked to the exiled shepherd-king for protection, training, and a delayed reward. Satan is still the same kind of tyrant trying to rule men’s hearts in the world today. King Jesus is gathering together his core group for the day when he sits on the eternal throne, ruling and reigning forever. Like them, we must submit all our lives to the King, and allow him to make the decisions we face.

“LORD, reign in our hearts and minds today we ask, in Jesus’ name.”