David fights the lion. David fights the bear. David fights the giant. David is going to be king. David becomes king. blah, blah, blah. i’ve heard all the David stories from the Bible. he was great. he loved God. i get it.

not too long ago, i reread 1 and 2 Samuel in the Old Testament to find out exactly why David was called a man after God’s heart—and what that really means.

as i’m reading, i’m finding out little details that were either omitted from the stories i heard in sunday school or just forgotten.

did you know that David actually played the harp for Saul to soothe the king’s evil tirades BEFORE he went one-on-one with Goliath?

and even though he had met David before, Saul had one of those, “and you are . . . ?” moments after Goliath was brought down?

i’m gaining new insight into David’s story—kind of like the behind the scenes extra of a really good movie.

here’s another one: David knew he was going to be king—the prophet Samuel heard from God that David was the one. David had every reason to hate Saul and want him out of the picture. Saul was the one who stood in the way of David’s life moving forward. David was being falsely accused and his life was in complete chaos—all because Saul was jealous and afraid. but David never fought back.

David saw Saul as the anointed king of Israel, the man God had chosen before him, and he respected that. he didn’t kill Saul when he had the chance—twice. David didn’t wage a one-man campaign in his defense to save his reputation and confront the lies Saul was spreading about him. he didn’t bad-mouth Saul. he didn’t grow bitter.

he had plenty of chances to make things happen on his own, but he didn’t. David knew God has placed Saul in the position of king, and God would bring about justice at the right time. God ultimately did. but Saul didn’t die at the hands of David or his men. he killed himself in battle against the Philistines, the enemies of Israel.

each one of us faces moments when we want things to happen in our way and in our time. everything from career to finances to relationships—the constant temptation will be to want to “help God out” in some way.

but just like David, resist the urge.

it’s not easy. but when you place your full trust in Him, not only will you get to see God’s heart, but that heart will begin to live in you too. then you’ll become the man or woman someone will write about.

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