The Battle Is the Lord’s
Scripture:
“The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.”
— 1 Samuel 17:37
Quote:
Elder Carl B. Cook taught:
“Regardless of the size, scope, and seriousness of the challenges we face in life, we all have times when we feel like stopping, leaving, escaping, or possibly giving up. But exercising faith in our Savior, Jesus Christ, helps us overcome discouragement no matter what obstacles we encounter.”
Reflection:
Everyone else saw Goliath and felt fear.
David saw Goliath too. He was not pretending the giant was small. He was not ignoring the danger. But David saw something the rest of Israel had forgotten.
He saw the Lord.
When David looked at Goliath, he remembered the lion and the bear. He remembered times when the Lord had already helped him. That memory gave him courage to face what was in front of him.
Sometimes your Goliath might be anxiety, temptation, loneliness, family struggles, school pressure, depression, fear of failure, or something you do not know how to fix. And sometimes the first step of faith is not feeling fearless. Sometimes the first step of faith is simply remembering: “The Lord has helped me before. He can help me again.”
David said, “The battle is the Lord’s.”
That does not mean we do nothing. David still picked up the stones. David still walked into the valley. David still ran toward the battle. But he did it knowing he was not alone.
You are not alone either.
Whatever giant you are facing right now, Jesus Christ knows how big it feels. He knows how tired, scared, or overwhelmed you may be. And He can give you strength to take the next faithful step.
Today’s Challenge:
Think of one “Goliath” you are facing right now. Then write down one time the Lord has helped you, strengthened you, comforted you, or carried you in the past. Let that memory give you courage to take one faithful step forward today.
Come Follow Me for Teens:
To go deeper into this week’s lesson, study 1 Samuel 17 and look for what everyone else noticed about Goliath — and what David noticed about God.
