“…your servant will go fight this Philistine!” 1 Sam.17:31b

One morning when I came back from my morning walk, I turned the corner to see this little kitten stepping up to a large water bowl we keep in the back yard. He looked like it took all his strength and courage to come out of his hiding place, cross the yard and then step up to get a drink of water. I don’t know if it was his first time or not, but he was alone and the image of this tiny kitten at the big bowl reminded me of what courage looks like. We know what we need to do, yet the task may seem too great for our abilities or we are surrounded by naysayers that don’t mind telling us what we cannot do.

This was David’s story. The youngest of eight boys, David was given the task of tending sheep. When the time to anoint a new king came, His own father did not include him in the line-up until it was plain that none of his seven other sons met God’s criteria. David was an afterthought. But David didn’t let this hold him down. In fact, he used his time wisely in the pasture, learning what it meant to lead, to fight and to build his relationship with God. When Jesse, his daddy, sent him to check on three of his brothers that were in battle, he was met with jealousy, disdain and mockery. Goliath, the Philistine giant, was terrorizing the army. David witnessed what was going on, inquired about what was going to be done and was brought before the king. He told King Saul, not to worry, that he would kill the giant. Saul also discouraged him, stating that David was too young (too small) and inexperienced to go to battle against a seasoned warrior like Goliath. David knew what God had put in Him and knew that God would help him fight this battle. And while Saul consented, it was clear he did not have faith in David’s courage as he tried to dress David with his own battle gear. David gave it a try and quickly realized that he could not fight the battle in someone else’s equipment. Instead, he went armed with what he knew – a slingshot, some smooth stones and the power of prayer. It must have looked ridiculous to watch a young, unarmed boy with a slingshot challenge a seasoned man of war in full battle regalia. Even Goliath made fun of him. What Goliath didn’t bank on was the courage God had put in David’s heart and the fact that David would call on the name of the Lord to do the work. All David had to do was fire the stone from his slingshot, God handled where it landed and caused David to get the victory. The very thing Goliath threatened to do to David, David did to Goliath.

Courage is more than strength or ability. Courage is not foolish ambition or swagger. Courage does come from within. It is looking at something that seems impossible or insurmountable and having the faith and confidence in God to know that what you need to face the battle is already inside you. Courage understands that you do not need to be like others, do like others and certainly not believe the negative talk others speak over your life. For me, courage looks like the little kitten that stepped up to the big bowl of water.