1 Samuel 27:1-4

Spend time in prayer and silence with God asking him to meet you and speak to you.

Bible Reading

But David thought to himself, “One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul. The best thing I can do is to escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will give up searching for me anywhere in Israel, and I will slip out of his hand.”

So David and the six hundred men with him left and went over to Achish son of Maok king of Gath. David and his men settled in Gath with Achish. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives: Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal. When Saul was told that David had fled to Gath, he no longer searched for him.

– 1 Samuel 27:1-4

Devotion

In the Bible, David is described as a man after God’s own heart. After Saul’s failure, David was anointed by Samuel as the future king of Israel. Abigail confirmed God’s promise (1 Samuel 25:27-31) and even Saul proclaimed that David would be victorious over him (1 Samuel 26:25). Despite these confirmations of his future, David became concerned only for his present well-being. David firmly believed that Saul would kill him, so he decided to go his own way and live according to what he thought was best – moving in with the enemies of God. David began to look at God through his circumstances rather than looking at his circumstances through God’s eyes. When we look at God through our circumstances, we can lose faith, courage and patience. We allow the enemy to win the spiritual battle for our soul. This is what was going on with David in the beginning of 1 Samuel 27.

The Big Question

When was the last time you allowed your circumstances to define your view of God? How can you look at life through God’s eyes?

Conclude in prayer and silence reflecting on what you’ve learned.