Council Community Church
Pastor's Corner
THE KING’S VERY BAD, HORRIBLE DAY 1-27-06
“A messenger came and told David, ‘The hearts of the men of Israel are with [your son] Absalom.’ Then David said to all his officials who were with him in Jerusalem, ‘Come! We must flee, or none of us will escape from Absalom. We must leave immediately, or he will move quickly to overtake us and bring ruin upon us and put the city to the sword.’” (2 Samuel 15:13-14)
I hate it when a day starts like that, don’t you?! You’re looking forward to a quiet morning over bagels and goat milk, and you suddenly discover that one of your children is on the way to kill you and take over the entire country – what a bummer! Okay, so most likely none of us have ever been in EXACTLY that situation, but we have experienced times when everything in life seems to be collapsing around our ears. King David knew what it was like to be in that dark place.
He had to flee for his life: “The king set out, with his entire household following him...David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went; his head was covered and he was barefoot. All the people with him covered their heads too and were weeping as they went up.” (2Samuel 15:16, 30)
And as if that wasn’t enough, David had someone kicking him when he was down: “As King David approached Bahurim, a man…came out from there. He pelted David and all the king’s officials with stones, though all the troops and special guard were on David’s right and left. As he cursed, Shimei said, ‘Get out, get out, you man of blood, you scoundrel!...
“So David and his men continued along the road while Shimei was going along the hillside opposite him, cursing as he went and throwing stones at him and showering him with dirt. The king and all the people with him arrived at their destination exhausted. And there he refreshed himself.” (2 Samuel 16:5-7, 13-14)
You get the sense that this probably qualified as one of David’s least favorite days EVER. You know the kind I mean. Things go from bad to worse to worst to horrendous to… And Shimei didn’t help things by kicking dirt, cursing, cussing and throwing rocks and accusations. He meant business (in other words, he was trying to injure): the Hebrew verb used meant that he was really ripping these stones in with great speed.
What do you do when everything is going to pieces? How did David respond? He didn’t have Shimei killed (as one of David’s soldiers wanted to do; see v. 9). He didn’t despair (give up). He didn’t have a fit of rage over the unfairness of it all. What David DID was continue to trust the Living God in spite of circumstances. He continued to recognize the LORD’s hand in the midst of his pain and grief. How do we know? Because we have some of his thoughts saved for us in the 3rd Psalm, which was written on this occasion.
“O LORD, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me! Many are saying of me, ‘God will not deliver him.’ But You are a shield around me, O LORD (think of those guards on David’s right and left protecting him from Shemei’s rock barrage)…I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me (remember ‘he refreshed himself’ at the end of the day). I will not fear the tens of thousands drawn up against me on every side.” (Psalm 3:1-3a, 5-6)
God is always there, but do we have the faith and confidence to see Him? Trust Him to see you through the dark times and the rotten, no-good, terrible, aweful days. Take some time and meditate on all of Psalm 3, and may God bless you!
