Day 55: The Heart of David

I found out some time ago that the readily familiar Bible stories I grew up with, David and Goliath, Sampson, Abraham and Lot, Elijah and Elisha, etc. are not so readily familiar to most. Most wouldn't seemingly be able to tell you if Lot's wife turned to salt or pepper (or some mixture of both, which then makes her "Special Seasoning" according to Whataburger). I suppose that the fact that I can tell you that she didn't turn to Special Seasoning when she turned back is something I should thank my parents for.

The different heroes of the Bible are known for their traits of courage, loyalty, wisdom, and for the amazing things that God did in their lives.

David, before he was King and all that, had the weird job of counting sheep every day and was somehow also expected to stay awake. During this time he played the harp, killed wildlife, made vacations to battlefront lines, and ran errands for his dad all while also getting anointed by THE prophet of Israel at the time, Samuel. He would then go on to kill a massive member of a society that strangely enough (to my knowledge) is not associated with any specific land area, outrun a King for years in the wilderness (all those years of counting sheep helped), become King, kill one of his top dogs in the military because he slept with the dude's wife and made a kid, danced naked in the streets, had a son that became the wisest (and richest) person the world has known, get chased from his palace by one of his sons who then slept with all of his concubines in plain sight to assert his control over the palace (sex = dominance in the dog culture), and he finally brought the Ark of the Covenant back to Jerusalem before he finally kicked the bucket.

Full life.

But nowadays we don't remember David so much for his poor family skills, his sins with Bathsheba, or even bringing the Ark back to Jerusalem. We know him for being King, killing Goliath, and being a worshipper. In fact, he's the only person I can remember from my years of Biblical teachings that is known to be a worshipper. The whole dancing naked in the streets was an act of worship. The guy had a heart for the things of God like seemingly no one else in his time, and he spent his time writing some 70+ psalms and playing the harp all day (until people threw spears at him; then he ran). The guy's son got deathly sick, so he fasted and fasted and when his son died, he broke his fast, got up, got dressed, and went on life as normal. I love his explanation which seems a bit cold-hearted, but I think it shows how the man considered his relationship with God to be.

"While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who can tell whether GOD will be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me." 2 Samuel 15

He fasted for a movement of God.

Recently, my church began their annual 21 day fast that they start the year with every year. 21 days, from January 9th to the 30th, of fasting and prayer for the movement of God over the coming year. "Starting the year off right", as Pastor Richie would say. Quite honestly, I've never fasted before this, not because I hadn't wanted to, but because I never found the will to do it. It's much harder to do on one's own, but there is strength in numbers. Through day 1 it hasn't been too bad as far as having to deal with temptations. I'm sleeping a lot more erratically because there hasn't been any caffeine to boost me throughout the day (fasting sodas, and I hate coffee and tea) and I was able to sit at the table with my parents and smell them eating popcorn without having the temptation to eat. Both the meal and the snack smelled exquisite, but I didn't have the desire to eat; a lovely release that did not come from me.

Corporately I have joined with my brothers and sisters in Christ to fast as a church as we pray collectively for a move of God, but I'm also fasting for my own life. A further sense of direction than the one I already have, whether that be in my career path, the companion that will join me on that path, and really, overall, just to move closer to God. The one downside of coasting for 18+ years is that I know I should be closer, which frustrates me, so I'm ready to sprint all out as I move forward.

I'll be pretty honest. Worship is my thing. I'm not yet that great of a public speaker, I'm not used to praying, comforting isn't it either. The one thing I'm good at that has a true spiritual application is worship. Naturally, not used to prayer makes "Praying and Fasting" kinda a double edged sword for me. Never done one, not used to the other. But I'm getting there. Being on a worship team again has allowed me to really cut loose and it's like a fresh breath from God. When I was prayed over back in May, someone said that they saw the heart of David. I was about to publish this, and then I was reminded of that.

Here's to the sprint to the finish line.