1 Samuel 17:39
And David girded his sword upon his armour, and he assayed to go; for he had not proved it. And David said unto Saul, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them. And David put them off him.
David was about to fight Goliath. When he went before Saul to plead for the opportunity to fight, Saul thought it best to put his armor on David so that he would be protected against this giant. Saul’s intent was good, but David had never fought in Saul’s armor. Yes, Saul had certainly proved that fighting in his armor worked, but David had not tested this method. David believed that God was his armor who had protected him against the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear, and he believed that God was big enough to protect him as he fought Goliath. When David said, I cannot go with these; for I have not proved them, he was saying that he had never tested if Saul’s armor would work, but he was saying that he had proved God and he determined that God was all he needed in this battle against Goliath.
At the writing of this devotional, I am in my mid-fifties and have been in full-time ministry for three and a half decades. There is one thing I am confident of: I have proved God, and He has always proven Himself to be true. I have proved God as an evangelist for twenty-eight years and as a Pastor of a growing church, and He has always come through. Let me share my findings with you about God.
First, I have proved God to be faithful. God has promised to be faithful, and never one time has He not shown Himself faithful in trials, heartaches, battles, and in service to Him. God is a faithful God that you can depend on for any endeavor of life. God is a God you can depend on to be there if you step out by faith and attempt something great for Him. God is faithful, and you can be sure that He is a God who will never leave you nor forsake you no matter what you face in life. I have proved that God will always be there.
Second, I have proved God to be ever-present in my time of need. God has always provided financially when I did not know how I was going to make it. God has always been there to comfort in times of death when my heart was broken. God has always been an ever-present help in my time of need. When my heart was broken, He was there. When my health was tested, He was there. When my strength was weak, He was there. I have proved that no matter what I have faced in life, He is an ever-present help in any need.
Third, I have proved God to be merciful. Oh, those times that I have chosen to sin, I am thankful that I have proved God to be merciful to take me back and use me if I will confess my sin to Him. I have proved God to be merciful to use anyone again no matter how deeply they have gone into sin. God has proven Himself merciful to those who have disappointed Him.
Fourth, I have proved God to be powerful. I have put God to the test to step out by faith, and I have learned that God has more power than my faith will ever need. I have learned that my faith is always too small because God’s power has always been greater than my faith.
My friend, I have proved God in these areas and many more, and the God Who has proven Himself true in these areas will prove Himself true to you if you will just trust Him. I have proved God in every area of my life and I have learned that God is all I need.
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