On Day 3 of my trip in Israel, before we started our journey to the Garden of Gethsemane, we stopped by a couple of places. One was this cute falafel restaurant for lunch. My dish was authentic, colorful and delicious as seen here. The other more memorable place however, was the Tower of David. We didn’t do the complete tour which I wanted to do, so I’ll definitely have to come back. But I did get to stand on the grounds of his home inside the entrance of the tower. Standing there looking around, I noticed that restoration had been done to preserve the tower over the centuries, but I also saw parts that were ruined. It showed evidence of battle at some point in time. In 2 Samuel 8, I got some insight on battles that have taken place under King David’s rule, but more so, insight on David’s character that he displayed when these battles came to an end.
All in one chapter, 2 Samuel 8, David fought against 6 nations and won every battle. SIX! The Philistines, the Moabites, the Zobah army, the Arameans who tried to aid Hadadezer king of Zobah, the Amorites, and the Edomites. That’s a lot of victory, but David was known to be quite victorious in his role as king. One major explanation of why that is, more often than not, David prayed to God before making decisions in order to be sure his actions were being directed by God’s will. In a prior chapter, it reads:
“…so David inquired of the Lord, “Shall I go and attack the Philistines? Will you deliver them into my hands?” The Lord answered him, “Go, for I will surely deliver the Philistines into your hands.” – 2 Samuel 5:19
What this shows in David’s character is Humility. He surrendered to God’s will, to stay righteous in His eyes, and show him reverence.
Reflection: Do you pray for God’s will above your own? If not, if this is the type of character you desire, what can you do today to adopt this quality?
Another form of humility that David displays in his character is evident after victories have taken place. This is when he begins to receive recognition for his successes. A human instinct when praises begin to flow from others due to an achievement, is to soak it all up. Even those who don’t take compliments well or shy away from them, still feel a sense of temporary satisfaction from the encouragement. We can begin to think “wow, I really am that good” or “low-key, I was pretty impressive.”
Almost two months ago, I started a new job. I have no doubt in my mind that God gave me this opportunity. One reason is because a major part in this role is something I’m not trained to do, which is graphic design. I’ve previously led a team of illustrators and graphic artists, but I can’t say that it was specifically my function because it wasn’t. I was upfront about it though. In my interview when they asked me, “what do you think will be the most challenging part of this position?” I literally said the technical aspects of graphic design like using Adobe Illustrator, Adobe AI, etc. By the grace of God, I got the job anyway! And I found out later that they’re willing to pay for any classes I’m interested in, like those software programs which I’ll be taking advantage of. Look at God!
Along with writing, and other communication related initiatives, I literally work on graphic design projects everyday and it’s been going really well. But here’s the thing. A colleague shared with me that she loves what I come up with when I design something. I responded by telling her how sweet her comment was and thanked her. And inside, I felt really good about myself. Let’s look at what David did when he received compliments from Tou king of Hamath.
“When Tou king of Hamath heard that David had defeated the entire army of Hadadezer, he sent his son Joram to King David to greet him and congratulate him on his victory in battle over Hadadezer, who had been at war with Tou. Joram brought with him articles of silver, of gold and of bronze.
King David dedicated these articles to the Lord, as he had done with the silver and gold from all the nations he had subdued.” 2 Samuel 8:9-10
There goes that character of humility again! David gave God all the credit, honor and glory. That’s a lesson for me, you and anyone else who wants to grow in godly character and to keep being used by God, victoriously. These two examples of David’s character spell out Humility. God loves humility and responds favorably to it. Let’s get on our game and pursue growth in godly character of Humility.
“Though He scoffs at the scoffers and scorns the scorners, Yet He gives His grace [His undeserved favor] to the humble [those who give up self-importance].” Proverbs 3:34 AMP
“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” James 4:6 NLT
“The Lord gave David victory wherever he went.” -2 Samuel 8
