Fervor and Ferocity!

Recently I started watching the series House of David. The story begins at the point in Scripture where King Saul has lost favor with God. The prophet Samuel communicates this message from God to King Saul, but Saul is indifferent to this message. He takes considerable pride in his victories and accomplishments, and he is no longer loyal to God.

Israel's enemy, the Philistine King amasses an incredibly large army with the inclusion of giants, hence the arrival of Goliath, with the intention of destroying the Israelites. As Scripture tells us, David was simply a shepherd boy with no military training or prowess.

The scenes that captured my greatest attention were those leading to the encounter with Goliath. David has been kept away from the impending battle and finally is released to go to the battle scene where Goliath is badgering the Israelites and belittling their God. David becomes intense about fighting this giant in the Name of the Lord. David’s older brothers, the Jewish military leaders, and the rest of the Jewish encampment criticize and belittle him as he is “just a boy.” David exclaims, “This giant blasphemes against our Lord. It is not the greatness of the giant we should be focused on. But rather, how can we forget the greatness of our God?!”

Saul approves of David being the “Champion” to fight the giant in response to David’s demand, and as King Saul puts it, “his speaking with great conviction.”

Just before David’s encounter with Goliath (in the program) the princess quotes a prayer from Joshua 1:9. Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified, for the Lord your God is with you.

I could not help paralleling this story with our lives. How often do we have a Goliath before us that could stop us in our tracks? Maybe it is an altercation with an unfriendly person. Maybe it is a temptation that continues to badger us. Maybe it is an opportunity to share our faith with someone who desperately needs God in their life.

St. Catherine of Siena spoke with great fervor when she would say, “Set the World on Fire!”  Her call to action was to “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” 

Though an unlikely candidate David was meant to be a King who would lead the Jewish people. Once he realized his call he met the giants in his life with courage. David’s courage was totally based on His belief and trust in God and the desire to do God’s will.

The giants we deal with in our lives today can be many and can seem too big to overcome. However, once we realize that we are a child of God with purpose we can then meet those giants with ferocity. With trust in our great God, we can do anything! As we have seen with David, God has repeatedly chosen the unlikely to do incredible things. Do we have a Joshua prayer that can bring us back to alignment with our God and inspire us to be who God made us to be? What giants does God have planned for you and me to overcome?

If it is speaking to others about our faith than we should get out our Joshua prayer and draw God into the situation. The greater our fervor for the God who loves us the better we are able to “set the world on fire!" Our personal story about the greatness of God in our own life is the fervor St. Catherine speaks about. God fills us with His Holy Spirit if we are open to receiving Him. Being ever thankful for all the blessings in our lives especially for Jesus and His sacrifice for us is what will feed our ferocity. This is how we can Shine Like the Son. God bless you.