From the Start

So today's section of Scripture finds David at the end of his rope. He seems to be losing hope in the promise God made to him about becoming king...and he has decided to take things into his own hands. David is tired of running all over Israel hiding out, so he makes a plan to head for the land of the Philistines. No, that's not a typo...the guy who has always stood against the Philistines is now going to live with them. Achish, the Philistine king - probably thrilled to have David as an ally and not an enemy - gives David a section of land in the country and David lives there with his men and their families for over a year. Throughout that time, David and his men would raid different nations and then he would lie to Achish about who he had attacked. David led Achish to believe he was raiding Israelite nations. Achish, then, thought of David as his servant and that he would never leave the land because he was now hated by the Israelites. Today I pray for the ability to see outside of the moment. So many times we make decisions based on the now, not pausing to wisely pray for vision for the future. God can always work all things out for the good, but how much longer our training when we get off track. Thank God He teaches us so much no matter which direction we run, but I want to keep focused on His desires and the direction He is running from the start.