Introduction

David was one of the greatest military commanders and statesmen in history. He established a dynasty that was destined to last for more than 400 years.

The story of David’s early career is interwoven with the events of Saul’s reign (1 Samuel 13:31). His fascinating rise to leadership from the obscurity of a shepherd’s life makes for astounding reading. He appeared as a harp player in the king’s court. He had a marvelous victory over the giant Goliath and some gallant exploits among the Philistines. After many adventures as the "Robin Hood" leader of a band of outlaws, he was elevated to the rank of King of Israel.

The biblical story was written to glorify the man whose personal charm and charismatic success had made him a popular idol and hero. It has captured the imagination of people in every generation. Indeed, David has been hailed as the greatest of Israel’s rulers - "A man after God’s own heart."

Through his exploits we can learn something of how to be used by God as we make our pilgrimage through life. His human weaknesses are often pointed out and so he stands, not as an idealized saint in a stained-glass window, but as a flesh-and-blood figure with whom we can identify.

Therefore, our narrative today is not just about this man called David, but it is about each of us. It is an authentic account of what it means to be thrust into leadership - and to accept it.

Our story today suggests at least three ideas about life and leadership. The first thing it points to is:

1. Do not seek high places

If we do the very best job we can on whatever it is we are doing, good things will generally come to us. Truly, we need to plan and set goals. But we also need to concentrate on the task at hand.

David did not seek to be a part of Saul’s Court. A "chance" mention of him by one of Saul’s servants brought his presence to the fore. David was no ruthlessly ambitious man determined to make his way up the ladder. He was just doing his present task well.

A writer about famous men has this to say about one littleknown leader:

Charles Crocker was a burly two-hundred-fifty pounder when at the age of twenty-six he left Indiana with a group of young fellows, including two of his brothers, for the trip over the California Trail to the gold fields. He had been born of poor people in Troy, New York, left school at the age of twelve to help support his family, moved to Indiana with his parents, helped clear the land and farm, then worked in a sawmill and an iron forge. Discovering a small deposit of ore, he built a combination blacksmith shop and forge, which he sold in order to provision himself for the westward journey.

"I grew up as a sort of leader," says Crocker. "I had always been the one to swim a river and carry a rope across."

- Irving Stone*

(*Men to Match My Mountains, Doubleday, 1956, p. 144.)

True leadership will surface. In our narrative today, we see how David’s ability was emerging. We need to be patient about progress. If we are thinking too much about tomorrow, today may not be lived as well as it could be. As a student I need to concentrate on studies, not my first parish. Settled in at my first parish, I need to concentrate on that, not dream about the next charge.

Do not seek high places. If we have done our job, they will come.

Another thought about leadership is the idea that we need to:

2. Prepare well

It may have been David’s musical talent that got him the job with King Saul (and later made him famous as the Psalmist), but all the other qualities noted by Saul’s servant were royal requisites: David was a man of valor; a man of war; a man prudent in speech; a man of good presence, and the Lord was with him (1 Samuel 16:18). His training as a shepherd and as a warrior was excellent.

Not only young people, but all of us would do well to continue to study and train for our tasks. "Life-long education" is a word for today. Most vocations require updating of skills and information on a regular basis. And why not learn something new from time to time? Maybe a second language or how to fix your car. Money and time spent for our "heads" are never wasted.

A word of caution, however. It is easy to become professional "preparers" and unconsciously hold back from "getting into things." I read about a young man, starting in college. He vowed he was going to do the best job he possibly could. He bought a large, comfortable chair and placed it in his room. Then he purchased a book-rest which he fastened to the arm of the chair, and also a special study lamp which gave just the right amount of light. After supper he would put on his slippers, adjust the lamp, set up his book rest, place the books in the book rest, and sit down in the big chair. With everything then perfectly adjusted - he would peacefully fall asleep! (From Gerald Kennedy, somewhere.)

We need to prepare well, but dare not get too comfortable in the doing of that preparation.

It’s interesting that the one skill which brought David to King Saul’s attention was probably a peripheral one - music.

We need to do our present tasks well and not seek higher places. We need to prepare ourselves well. And, finally, in order to be used by God in the way that only we can, we need to:

3. Use our instincts

David is a model for us on this point too. When he met Goliath in battle (1 Samuel 17), he wisely rejected King Saul’s armor as not right for him. The offer of bronze helmet and coat of mail was well-intentioned, but to accept it would mean using unfamiliar equipment - equipment that was not made for him. So David chose five smooth stones from the brook, later to be used in his sling. He needed what was authentic to him, even as we need what is authentic to us.

It’s a rather long quote, but these words from a theologian/poet speak directly to this concern:

For even though the weaponry urged upon me by my culture in the form of science and knowledge is formidable I cannot work effectively with what is imposed from the outside. Metallic forms hung on my frame will give me, perhaps, an imposing aspect but will not help me do my proper work.

And so I kneel at the brook of scripture, selecting there what God has long been preparing for the work at hand and find smooth stones. The rough edges have been knocked off. The soft parts have been eroded away. They are bare and hard. Nothing superfluous. Nothing decorative. Clean and spare. Scripture has that quality for me - of essentiality, of the necessary. I feel that I am, again, traveling light, delivered from an immense clutter ...

What strikes me so forcibly ... is that David was both modest enough and bold enough to reject the suggestion that he do his work inauthentically (by using Saul’s armor); and that he was both modest enough and bold enough to use only that which he had been trained to use in his years as a shepherd (his sling and some stones). And he killed the giant.

It is a turning point in the story of God’s ways with his people although no one knew it at the time. A new leadership ministry was taking shape. David was not yet king - it would be years before he was recognized as such. He was a marginal figure ... and slipped back into the obscurity of shepherding in the hill country. The world at that moment seemed divided between the arrogant and bully people of Philistia and the demoralized and anxious people of God, between the powerful but rather stupid giant and the anointed but deeply flawed king. No one could have guessed that the man picking stones out of the brook was doing the most significant work of the day.

- Eugene H. Peterson*

(*Five Smooth Stones for Pastoral Work, John Knox Press, 1980, pp. 187-188.)

Conclusion

David didn’t engineer his appointment to Saul’s court. It seemed, in fact, to happen by mere chance since one of Saul’s courtiers knew something about David and brought him to Saul’s attention. Yet David was prepared when the call came.

So it was God, not David, who was responsible for this young man’s first steps towards the throne as king of Israel. And so it is with us. In our lives, too, it is God who makes and lets things happen.

A person’s mind plans his or her ways, but the Lord directs the steps.

- Proverbs 16:9 (Paraphrased for inclusive language)

In times of confusion this is a great comfort.

Prayer

O God, thank you for the critical intervention of

* the right preparations

* the right instincts

* the right book

at precisely the right time.