When Giants Feel Too Big | David | Ashley Wooldridge

Let's have some fun together. Here we go. I'm thankful for Maria. I'm shaking off the heaviness. I'm dancing out of my regrets. I'm throwing caution to the wind. No, I am not ashamed to ask for forgiveness. No, I am not ashamed to ask for forgiveness. No, I am not ashamed to praise like this. Some would say it's foolishness. But I say it's worthless. I can't forget what Jesus did. No, I am not ashamed to praise like this. Where are those chains I don't want to tell you? I'm free, I'm free, I'm free, I'm free. My sin is gone, how can it be? I'm free, I'm free, I'm free, I'm free. And lucky with the Lord I'll stay. I'm never going back to the way I was. I'll sing, I'll dance, cause I believe. I'm free, I'm free, thank God I'm free. I found a friend that never quits. No other love's as good as this. And I don't care what anyone says. I'll never be ashamed to praise like this. Where are those chains I don't want to tell you? I'm free, I'm free, I'm free, I'm free. My sin is gone, how can it be? I'm free, I'm free, I'm free, I'm free. And lucky with the Lord I'll stay.

I'm never going back to the way I was. I'll sing, I'll dance, cause I believe. I'm free, I'm free, thank God I'm free. Come on, we get to celebrate what Jesus did for us. You were spawned in worship, here we go. You took the cross and You broke Your body. You shed Your blood, now the sinner can sing. My dead is pain and my record is clean. I couldn't do it so You did it for me. You took the cross and You broke Your body. You shed Your blood, now the sinner can sing. My dead is pain and my record is clean. I couldn't do it, You took the cross. You took the cross and You broke Your body. You shed Your blood, now the sinner can sing. My dead is pain and my record is clean. I couldn't do it, so You did it for me. I couldn't do it, so You did it for me. I couldn't do it, so You did it for me. I couldn't do it, so You did it for me. I couldn't do it. Where are those chains that once held me? I'm free, I'm free, I'm free, I'm free. My sin is gone, how can it be? I'm free, I'm free, I'm free, I'm free. And lucky what the Lord has done. I'm never going back to the way I was. I'll sing, I'll dance, cause I believe. I'm free, I'm free, thank God I'm free. I'll sing, I'll dance, cause I believe.

I'm free, I'm free, thank God I'm free. You all sound amazing. Thank you so much for singing. We're going to continue our worship here in a few moments, but I want to invite you to take your seat. And I want to welcome you, whether you're physically here on campus or you're tuning in online, my name is Travis Brown. I get to serve as one of the pastors here. And right now, before we continue our worship, right now I want to show you, but also talk to you about something that is really the heartbeat of our church and how we do what we do. So right now, I want you to check this out. This just totally fills my cup for the week. I just enjoy being out here and serving the Lord. Starts my week out strong, puts things back into perspective. And, you know, Jesus made the way for us and it's just a way for me to make sure that I'm able to serve the church and give back. What serving does for me is one, it makes my day. This is the highlight of my week. It's maybe just handing out a hamburger, But it's talking with people, making their day. This may be their first visit here. And we try our best to make them feel welcome. Well, I started serving because I wanted to become more appendant.

And it's really fun to do worship. I think it's brought me closer to Jesus, singing about Him and talking about Him through worship. My kids know that the focus is giving back right away. We come here on Sunday to worship. And then we jump right into serving. My wife's over in the children's ministry. And I'm here in the kitchen. And hopefully, we're being good role models for our kids. Serving Shays my week to week, it just gives me something to look forward. Every Sunday, it just makes my life more consistent. And just being able to go each week and know I get to spend time with these great kids, it makes me really excited to serve. I serve in the nursery on Sunday mornings here and in the prayer team. And what I love about it is just being able to be there for people and to pray for them and to help them through whatever struggles that they're going through and just being able to be part of that process with them is very rewarding. Definitely serve. It's a great place to build community, connect with other people that are like you. You can join their groups. Or you can inspire each other and inspire people that are around you. Volunteering here as a greeter has changed my life. It's like this is every Sunday is my spiritual vitamin.

That's what I call saying hi to people. I know I can impact them. But they also impact my life. And that's the way God works. And it's amazing. You know, we have some amazing people that, yeah, you can give them a round. You know, there's so many things that go into what you experience every week when you come to church, whether it's people in the parking lot who are serving when it's 120 degrees outside, praise God, people who are greeting you, people who are investing in our kids and our students, people who are making food or behind the camera or coaching a team or leading a group or whatever it may be. There's so many people who are the heartbeat of our church who are amazing volunteers. And right now, I actually want to honor those. Those of you that are in this service, I want to invite you. If you are currently serving here at CCV, I want to invite you to stand to your feet so that we can honor you, please. Let me give them a round of applause. Stay standing for a moment. On behalf of everybody as part of our church, I'm not just saying this as a pastor. I'm saying this as a dad and a family who's part of our community. I just want to say thank you. Thank you for all that you do, all the time that you invest,

all the people you impact. We're so honored and grateful for you. Thank you. Now you can have a seat. For those of you that have not yet taken that step to serve, I want to invite you into something. And I don't want to invite you just to fill a spot. I actually want to invite you into a mission. See, God is moving in and through our church. And you might be sitting here and you're saying, yeah, you know, I've been thinking about it, but there's so many things that get in the way. You know, it's not a great season. I don't know if I have the time or if I have the knowledge or you know what, I'm busy today. Maybe I'll do that tomorrow. And let me challenge you to not put off to tomorrow what God is ready to do in and through you today. Because every single week at this campus, somebody walks onto this campus and they're in a different season of life. Somebody walks onto this campus every week who is celebrating and seeing amazing things, how God is working. And some people are walking onto this campus every single week and they're hurting and they're going through pain that they don't even know what to deal with. Every single week, there's a family that comes and they come for the very first time and they park

and they don't know where to go. Every single week, there's a kid who walks into a room and they're really nervous because mom and dad are getting ready to drop them off for the first time. Every single week, there's a teenager that steps into a space and they're just wondering if they'll even be noticed. And what's amazing is that God uses ordinary people like you and like me to meet them on the journey. And that's what serving is. It's not just about greeting or holding babies or serving food. It's about setting up an environment so people can encounter Jesus. And my guess is that happened to you at some point. Somebody opened up their home or greeted you or made you feel welcome. And now we have the opportunity to do that for somebody else. And so today, we wanna make it as easy as we possibly can for you to step towards serving. Not necessarily sign up to serve just yet, but we wanna allow you to step into that moment. So I want every single person in the room and online to take their phones. you're gonna scan a QR code that's on the screen right now. If you don't know how to scan a QR code, find somebody under 30 that's sitting around you. They'll coach you through that. But even if you're currently serving,

I still want you to scan this. Why? Because there's somebody in your contacts that you need to send this link to because they need to sign up to serve for them. But if you're maybe taking that step, just know that you're letting us know that you're interested. You're not signing up for life, okay? You're not signing away all your weekends. You're just letting us know that you're interested. And we want to help you walk through to find the best fit and what spot fits best for you. So just take that step and we will help you along the way. Because here's what I know. God wants to impact other people through your serving, but a lot of times what happens is God does something in you when you serve others and you're surrounded with a community around you that is serving together. So make sure you take that next step. Listen, we have so much to be grateful for, so much to praise God for. God's moving in so many amazing ways in our church, and we're going to continue our worship right now. I'm gonna invite the bands to come back out. I'm gonna invite everybody else to stand to your feet as we continue worshiping our God. Amen. Come on. ♪ He's the God of all creation ♪

♪ He's been good through all the ages ♪ ♪ For sure, Paul, He never changes, never changes ♪ ♪ He's the God who moves the mountains ♪ ♪ He reconciles the brokenhearted ♪ ♪ And in Him we found redemption, redemption ♪ ♪ We sing glory to the Lord, glory to the Lord ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who holds it all ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who saved my soul ♪ ♪ To the one who I adore, praise the Lord, yes ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who reigns on high ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who saved my life ♪ ♪ To the one who I adore, praise the Lord, yes ♪ ♪ Glory, oh we praise you, Lord ♪ ♪ He's the God who never leaves us ♪ ♪ He's faithful through the generations ♪ ♪ This is our response, what else can we do but worship ♪ ♪ Yeah, thank you, Jesus, yes ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who holds it all ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who saved my soul ♪ ♪ To the one who I adore, praise the Lord, yes ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who reigns on high ♪ ♪ Glory to the God who saved my life ♪ ♪ To the one who I adore, praise the Lord, yes ♪ ♪ To the one who I adore, praise the Lord ♪ ♪ Oh, you're worthy of our praise ♪ ♪ It belongs to you, Lord ♪ ♪ All honor and power to Jesus, forever ♪ ♪ All honor and power to Jesus, forever declare it ♪ ♪ All honor and power to Jesus, forever ♪ ♪ All honor and power to Jesus, forever ♪

♪ All honor and power to Jesus, forever ♪ ♪ All honor and power, it's yours ♪ ♪ All honor and power to Jesus, forever ♪ ♪ Empowered to Jesus forever, oh Lord ♪ ♪ Empowered to Jesus, yes ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who holds it all ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who saved my soul ♪ ♪ To the one who I adore, praise the Lord, yes ♪ ♪ Glory to the one who reigns on high ♪ ♪ Glory to the God who saved my life ♪ ♪ To the one who I adore, praise the Lord, yes ♪ ♪ To the one who I adore, praise the Lord, yes ♪ Oh, you're worthy of our praise. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Bless your name, Lord, you've been faithful yesterday, you're faithful today, we can trust you with tomorrow. ♪ I'm calling on the God of Jacob ♪ ♪ Whose love endures through generations ♪ ♪ I know that you will keep your covenant ♪ ♪ I'm calling on the God of Moses ♪ ♪ The one who opened up the oceans ♪

♪ I need you now to do the same thing for me ♪ And he will. All together, come on. ♪ Oh God, my God, I need you ♪ ♪ Oh God, my God, I need you now ♪ ♪ How I need you now ♪ ♪ Oh rock, oh rock of ages ♪ ♪ I'm standing on your faithfulness ♪ ♪ On your faithfulness ♪ ♪ I'm calling on the God of Mary ♪ ♪ Whose favor rests upon the lowly ♪ ♪ I know with you all things are possible ♪ ♪ I'm calling on the God of David, yeah ♪ ♪ Who made a shepherd more courageous ♪ ♪ I may not face Goliath, but I've got my own giant ♪ ♪ Oh God, my God, I need you ♪ ♪ Oh God, my God, I need you now ♪ ♪ How I need you now, oh ♪ ♪ Oh rock, oh rock of ages ♪ ♪ I'm standing on your faithfulness ♪ ♪ On your faithfulness ♪ We remember, Lord, we remember you. You heard your children then, you hear your children now. You are the same. You are the same. You answered prayers back then and you will answer now. You are the same, God. We believe it today, come on.

You were providing then, you are providing now. You are the same, God. You are the same, God. You moved in power then, you're moving power now. You are the same, God. You are the same, God. You were a healer then, you are a healer now. You are the same, God. You are the same, God. You were a savior then. You are the same for now, You are the same God, You are the same. Oh God, my God, I need You. Oh God, my God, I need You now. How I need You now. Oh. Oh light, oh light of ages, I'm standing on Your faithfulness. On Your faithfulness. Oh. Oh, Your faithful Lord, Your faithful Lord. You never fail, You never change. He's trustworthy. Sing this with us, declare it. Sing great is Thy faithfulness. Great is Thy faithfulness. Morning by morning, new mercies I see. And all I have needed, Thy hands have provided. Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me. Amen. Amen, we believe that.

Thank you so much for joining in, you can take a seat. You know, in the Old Testament book of Exodus chapter 8, the nation of Egypt was facing one of the 10 plagues that God was sending to them. And in this chapter, they're being overwhelmed by the plague of the frogs. And the Bible talks that there were so many frogs, not just a few of them, there's probably millions of frogs. And they weren't just outside, they were everywhere. They were in their homes, they were in their beds, they were in their kitchens, they were in their ovens. The frogs were everywhere until Egypt's leader, a man named Pharaoh, he finally had enough. He's like, I'm done with the frogs. And so he goes to Moses and he says, hey, I'm done with the frogs, can you tell your God to get rid of the frogs? And Moses replies back to him, he says, yes, I'll do that, but I'm going to let you tell me when you want the frogs gone. And then Pharaoh responds with the most bizarre answer that I've read in Scripture. Pharaoh says, hey, let's do that tomorrow. I'm like, tomorrow? I mean, it says that the frogs are in your bed. Why would you want to spend another night with the frogs? Why wouldn't you ask them to do that today? I mean, why would you put off to tomorrow what God is ready to do in your life today? Man, you know what? I actually respond to God the same way so often. Tomorrow I'll deal with that. Or tomorrow I'll start serving. Or tomorrow I'll forgive. Or tomorrow I'll surrender this part of my life that you want me to surrender. But why would you put off to tomorrow what God is ready to do in your life today?

You know, it's one of the reasons why I love the fact that we take communion every week because it reminds us that we don't have to wait until tomorrow. You don't have to get your life in order before you come to God. You don't have to continue to carry the sin and the shame and the discouragement. You don't have to carry it one more night because Jesus has already carried all of that to the cross. And in communion, we remember. We remember that his body was beaten. His blood was poured out. And through Jesus, only through Jesus can we experience his grace. Not just tomorrow, but it's actually available to us today. And as we get ready to take communion right now as a church, my prayer is that not only would you thank Jesus for coming and sacrificing. himself on the cross, but I pray you'd also ask yourself, man, what does God want to do in my life today that I keep putting off to tomorrow? Father, we're so grateful that we get to come into this space in this moment and worship you by remembering what you did for us on the cross. Father, speak to us, meet us right where we're at. We love you, it's in Jesus' name we pray, amen. ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Hi CCV, my name is Donna and I serve in the kitchen. Today I'm going to read a couple of verses from Psalms 34.

I sought the Lord and he answered me. He delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant. Their faces never covered with shame. This poor man called and the Lord heard him. He saved him out of all his troubles. And now could you please join me in prayer? Father in heaven, we come expectantly today. Thank you for your word that always guides us into all truth. Please speak to our hearts through the message today. In Jesus' name, amen. Man, can we just celebrate the reading of God's word? That's amazing. Yeah, so glad you're here. What is your giant? You know that thing in front of you that just feels crazy overwhelming and it just keeps you up at night? What's your giant? The thing is we all have giants. And some giants have a name and a face. Others of them just exist inside our mind or our hearts and there's a battle inside of us. If I was sitting down with you today and we just got to have coffee and I was just talking to you and I just asked you, just be really, really vulnerable and just name your giant. How would you name it? What would you say? And what I want to do at the very top of this message is I just want to give you a moment to name your giant. This is really important that you name it.

So just name it right now. What is it? Is it that anxiety and fear of something right now that's in front of you or something in your future you don't think is ever going to happen? Is it a pain that you're in the middle of? Is it something with an X? Is it something at work? Is it something really big financially? Is it a loss you just experienced that you don't think you're ever going to get over? Just what's your giant? And whatever it is, what I want to talk to you about today, and this is the big idea, and just hang with me for a moment, this is the big idea, is that your giant is not as big as you think. And some of you are like, you don't even know what it is. How could you even say that to me? And you might even think that seems insensitive to say, but I'm just here to tell you it's not as big as you think. And even though you might push back, let me just take you back in your past. How many of you have had a giant in your past, not the giant you're facing right now, I mean a giant years ago, that you thought, I will never get over this? It's done. I'm never moving past this, right? And then here you are today, and doggone it, it wasn't as big as you thought. Could it be that when we have giants in front of us, we give those giants more credit than they deserve? Could that be? And so I just know, for some of you, I've been there.

I would just look at, I look at my own life and I just say, I mean, even I look at the past and just recent past and I think, you know, there was a time Jamie and I were sitting down with a guy that we meet with regularly. That's our coach and counselor. And we were sitting down with him and we were just sharing like this really big giant that we were facing in front of us. And it just felt so big. Like, how do you ever overcome this? And we're explaining it and I just verbal vomit all over this guy. I'm like, look at this thing, it's so big. And we get done and he says, can I just tell you something? I said, of course. He says, I want to give you a word and I hope you're not offended. Here's the word, enough. And I was like, what? He says, enough is enough. And maybe that's the word you need to hear because that pierced my heart in such a big way because he was just saying like, you've given this thing too much credit. You think it's too big. Enough is enough, try to move on. And what I want to do today is I want to pierce some of your hearts.

I want to shake you up a little bit and help you see what God wants you to see that your giant is not as big as you think. And what I want to speak to you about today is the anatomy of a giant killer. Like anatomy of a giant slayer. What does it look like to slay a giant? And we're in week two of a series walking through the life of David. How many of you brought your notebooks back if you were here last weekend? Show them to me. I love, please bring these. They're going to walk you through the series. You can capture what God's telling you. We're in 1 Samuel chapter 17 today. If you have a Bible, and we're going to look at one of the most epic and well-known stories, maybe in all of scripture. Even if you've never been to church, this is your first time at church, you've heard this story. And it's the story of David and Goliath. Now, I want to tell you the danger that some of us have because we've heard this story so many times. Our danger is with our familiarity. We can sugarcoat what God meant to shake us to our core. And so I'm going to shake you a little bit today. I want to tell this story in a fresh way. And I just hope God speaks to you clearly today.

So if you've got a Bible, it is 1 Samuel chapter 17. And as you turn there, let me just give you a little context. In chapter 16, which is what we covered last week, we saw David's anointing. Remember we said, you are anointed. God has given you an anointing. If you're a follower of Jesus, he has a spirit inside of you, and he has a purpose and a plan for your life. And with David, he's anointed king, chapter 16. Chapter 17, you're probably thinking, well, he's king because he was anointed, right? Not even close. In fact, as you study the life of David, it takes 17 chapters, almost 15 years for him to become king. How many of you know that when God calls you to something, he'll put you in a waiting period so many times. In the waiting period, it stinks like nothing else. You ever been there? In a waiting period, God is developing you, and he's never wasting a waiting period. Don't ever think that. And David's in a waiting period. So when chapter 17 hits, he's not king. He's back to shepherding. He's back in the sheep field again. And God is going to make him king, but watch this. God doesn't give David a crown right away. He gives him a Goliath, a giant to slay.

And David's life gives us a role model in this chapter of how we can begin to slay giants in our life as well. Let's pick up in chapter 17, verse one. It says, now the Philistines, if you don't know who the Philistines are, they're the Klingons of the Old Testament, all right? They're like the enemies of God, always there coming after them, and they gather their forces for war. So they're going to war. The Philistines lived kind of on the very Western coast of Israel, right up against the ocean. And even today, like where the Gaza Strip would be and all there, that would be kind of where the Philistines were at, and they were coming at the people of God for war. Verse three says, the Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another with the valley in between. So what's going on is God's people, the Philistines are on opposite hills, and in between is a valley. It's called the Valley of Elah. You can still visit there today in Israel. I've been there. It's epic. And so there's going to be like a battle. The question is, who's gonna go on the battlefield? And in verse four, if this was a movie, this is where the soundtrack changes. It's like pom, pom, pom.

In verse four, it says a champion named Goliath, who was from Gath, came out of the Philistine camp. So he comes out, and what he begins to do over and over again is he begins to taunt and defy and just look down on not only the people of God, but their God. Now, when Goliath came out, we're told later that the people just, they crumbled in fear. They crumbled and wanted to run away, and the reason why, we all know the reason why is because of what? Goliath's size. It was so big, in fact, it goes on to say that his height was six cubits and a span. Now, the way you would measure like a cubit and a six cubits and a span back then is it was somewhere around, let me show you a picture. It was somewhere around nine feet, nine inches tall. Like that's how big Goliath was. And he's not only big, everything about him is designed to intimidate because it says he has a bronze helmet on, he has bronze armor all over that weighs 125 pounds. Like think about that rucking that he's doing every day. Like that's crazy. And he has a spear that is said to be 25 pounds. Put that in perspective, a Major League Baseball player, the average weight of a Major League Baseball bat is like between 30, 32 ounces, maybe a little more. That's two pounds.

So think about how massive this guy is. And compared to what? The average person in the world today is five foot, five inches tall, all right? I am, if I round up, six two, okay? And I like to, my wife's always like, you round up, you're six one and a half. I'm like, just round up to six two, all right? So I feel pretty good, but the average was five foot five. And even in David's day, they've had skeletal remains from this period about five foot five is about what people were. So think about this. The giant they faced was almost twice as big as anybody else. I mean, that is crazy intimidating. Let me point out one more point from this passage though. If you go back to verse four, watch what it says. It says, a champion named Goliath. Now you might think this word champion, that means like he's just a warrior. He like wins all the time. No, no, no, this is different. You gotta dive into this. It's a Hebrew word. This is the only place in all of scripture this word's used. It's a compound word. And watch what the word champion means. Champion means the man in between.

And that is very significant because think about it. Here's the people of God that have a vision. God says, I want you to take ground. I have a mission for your life. Think about your life. And one man, one man comes out and he's the man in between. The man in between where God wants them to go and what they face. And I think that's significant for us because look at this, look at this image again. God, if this is you, God has a vision for your life where he wants you to go. And there is something standing in between. You have a giant and it's in between you and where God wants you to go. And the question is, will you be able to overcome this giant or will you cower in fear? And some of you feel like the Israelites felt because it says in verse 16, it says, for 40 days, the Philistines came forward every morning and evening and he took his stand. So Goliath comes out every morning and every evening to taunt the people of God. And I think that's significant because when I have a giant in my life, I feel like it's the first thing I think about when I wake up and it's the last thing I think about when I go to bed. In fact, it's worse for me. Does anyone else, when you have something really big going on, does anybody else wake up at two or 3 a.m.

in the morning like constantly? Just me? It's like so eerie that I wake up at that time. I'm supposed to be resting to be prepared for what God has for me the next day and I wake up and my mind is racing about my giant. When it says that Goliath came out every morning and every evening, what's interesting at this time in Israel is that the people of God were told to bring to the tabernacle sacrifices every morning and every evening. And a lot of scholars believe, and I would fall into this camp, that when Goliath came out, he would come out at the exact time in the morning and the evening that the people of God were supposed to be worshiping. Now, how many of you know that when a giant, you're facing a giant, it often keeps you away from the worship of God? Like some of you have experienced times in your life where there was a giant, you stopped coming to church. You stopped serving. You stopped leaning in. You stopped reading your Bible. For me, I read my Bible every single morning and pray. It is a structure in my life I just don't miss. But when I have a big giant, can I tell you what happens to me? I can wake up and read my Bible reading for that day. I can read a whole entire chapter,

but I can get to the end of the chapter and not remember one thing I just read because all I was thinking about was my giant. Think about how giants are designed to taunt us and keep us away from where God wants us to head. And that's what's happening to the people of God right here. They're all in fear. They all are being opposed by a giant, the man in between. And into this valley, the in-between, God is going to bring a shepherd boy. He's gonna show us how to. Slay a giant. His name is David. What's interesting is David was not there on the battlefield. Okay, remember the hills and the valley in between? David wasn't there. His brothers were there, he wasn't there. And the most likely reason he wasn't there is because David wasn't 20 years old yet. He's probably a teenager still. It was a requirement in Israel at the time, you had to be 20 years old to enter the army, so David's not there. He's still tending sheep, his brothers are there, but his dad says, hey, I want you to go check on the brothers, see how they're doing. So he sends David on an Uber Eats run. Literally, this is what he does, just watch this. Verse 17, now Jesse said to his son, David, take this ephah of roasted grain,

these 10 loaves of bread for your brothers, and hurry to their camp. Take along 10 cheeses. He's got a charcuterie board, all right? It's like, who wants some gouda? Who wants some sharp cheddar? You know, it's like he's walking in, it's like a nobody, charcuterie board. He's checking on his brothers, and what happens is the moment he shows up on the battlefield, he hears, that's when Goliath comes out, he hears him taunt the people of God, and while everyone else was fearful, David was defiant. He says, how dare you defy my God? He starts asking around, like, what happens to the guy that will defeat this giant? His brothers start mocking him, what are you doing? Show off, and then Saul catches wind that there's a guy that's brave on the battlefield, and it's like Saul hadn't seen that before, so he invites David in, and David walks in, and he's like, I'm your guy. I know I'm like a rookie out of the NFL draft, but I can quarterback this team, put me on the field, coach. And Saul looks at David, and he looks him over, and he says, you're too small, and you're too inexperienced.

And look at this giant, look how big he is, and look how experienced he is. And you know what David's response is to Saul? Watch this, he says, but David said to Saul, your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. It's like, if you're Saul, you're like, whoop-de-doo, bro, you got some cheese, and you take care of sheep, like, what's that gonna do against a giant? And then David does something really significant. Watch this, he says, no, no, no, I wanna recall in my mind for you the faithfulness of my God. He says, your servant has killed both the lion and the bear. I've had times in my past, Saul, where I've faced not this giant, but I have faced miniature versions of him, and I've killed him, and by the way, this uncircumcised Philistine, he won't even say his name, I love that, I'm not even gonna give him the dignity. This uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them because he has defied the armies of the living God. David says, I've never faced this giant before, but I've faced others before. And he gives us the first principle that is really, if you wanna be a giant slayer, this is the anatomy of a giant slayer, here's point number one, I hope you're taking notes in your notebooks, ready? Here it is, yesterday's lions have prepared you

for today's giants. You may not know it, you may not feel it because the giant's big, but yesterday's lions have prepared you for this giant today. Think back on your life, all of us have faced something hard and sometimes it's in the same lane or really great preparation for what we're facing today, we just have forgotten it. Like you might be in a financial mess today, you ever been in a financial mess before? That would be yes, most of us have, right? You may have lost someone and think the loss is unbearable. Have you ever lost someone before? You say, it's not like this one, it's not as big. I know it's not, but yesterday's lions have prepared you for today's giants. And you may not have experience with this, but you have experience with God. You have seen God come through, if you're a follower of Jesus here today. You've seen God come through in the past and if you forget it, you'll get overwhelmed by the giant in front of you. You've forgotten how God overcame those giants in your past, so yesterday's lions have prepared you for today's giants. And it may be big, but here's the second principle we see from David, don't confuse big with unbeatable. Don't you dare confuse something that looks really big and say it's completely unbeatable.

Says who? Says you? The description of Goliath in Scripture, outside of probably describing Satan, this is the longest description of an enemy in all of Scripture. And we get all these details of how big he is, the bronze, his shield, his armor bearer's going out in front of him and the guy just, I think the description is meant to show us how big this issue really is. He looks unbeatable. And yet, I wonder if when you look at Goliath, I wonder if his greatest strength. which is his size, was hiding his greatest weakness that he's gonna fall. How many of you know, like the famous boxer said, the bigger they come, the, say it out loud, the harder they fall? What if his greatest strength was hiding a weakness that everybody missed? Now, Scripture doesn't say this explicitly, but when I read this story, what we know today about people that have giantivism, in other words, they are giants, and there are modern day giants in our world. I don't know if you know this. I mean, I'll give you an example. Look at this guy right here. His name is Robert Wadlow.

He died in 1940. He was almost nine feet tall, almost 430 pounds. What we now know from science is people that deal with giantivism, most of them have a disorder with the pituitary gland that also causes them to have a lack of vision. Like he's got glasses on. I don't know if they struggle with this, but we know that people with giantivism, they can have double vision. They can have extreme nearsightedness. They can even go blind. Could it have been that Goliath, he couldn't see very well? You'd say, how in the world would you even come up with that? And let me just show you, let me show you the verse. Verse 42 says this in 43. It says, when David came on the battlefield, it says, Goliath looked at him, and then watch this. He says, am I a dog that you come at me with? Say it out loud. Sticks. What in the world is he talking about? Sticks? Sticks is a plural word. Multiple sticks. Think about this. Verse 40, we know what David had. David has five stones. He's got a sling.

He's got one staff from being a shepherd. So he's got one staff that could look like a stick. Why would Goliath say, you're coming at me with sticks? Plural. Does he have blurred vision? I don't know. Could it be that his shield bearer that has to walk in front of him is there to show him where to go because his vision isn't very good? Could it have been that when David slung that stone, he barely even saw it coming? And nobody knew. Now listen, it doesn't say that definitively in Scripture. I always want to tell you that, okay? But even if, even if Goliath's vision was perfect, what everyone else did looking at Goliath, how big he was, is all the soldiers, every single soldier that was gathered there besides David looked at Goliath and say, he's so big, he's unbeatable. And David looks at the same giant and says this, he's so big, how could I miss? That's faith. Listen, when you face a giant, watch this. When you face a giant, you can either look at that giant through the lens of fear or faith. And when you look through the lens of fear, your giant automatically gets bigger. In fact, it gets bigger, you give it more credit than it's due.

When you look at a giant through the lens of faith, it puts a giant in proper perspective. And sometimes we magnify our giants. That's just way too big for God to ever overcome them. So what have we learned from David so far? Here's what we've learned. Yesterday's lions have prepared you for today's giants and don't confuse big with unbeatable. And this next point is the most important point that you could get today, in my opinion, that we see from David. I'm gonna show it to you, and here it is. Size up your giant next to God, not yourself. You have to size up your giant. Not against you, because you'll always be overwhelmed, but against the God you serve. Here's what I know. Some of you are facing bigger giants than we could ever imagine. Like, it's bad. It's like when I was writing this message on Monday morning. I write Mondays and Tuesdays. I usually try to wrap up a lot of the message on Thursday, and then I come in Saturday morning and I start going through the message and getting prepared, and that's just kind of my rhythm. On Monday morning, as I'm putting everything around what I want to speak to you about on this message, I get a phone call from a very close friend to Jamie and I,

like someone we love very much, and they begin to describe that they had just found their daughter and she'd taken her life. And I thought, I know this person. I know what they've been through already. And I thought to myself, like, how do you face that giant that is big? Some of you might be, well, my giant's not that big, but it's still big. Like, how do you face the pink slip? Like, where's finances coming from? How do you face the panic attacks over and over again? How do you face the divorce that is as nasty as it can ever be? How do you face that debt that feels overwhelming? And the more you look at your giant through the lens of how big you are versus how big God is, that's the difference. Can I show it to you? Here is what we do. We literally look at our giant and we ask this question. How big is Goliath compared to me? You could do that. How big is my giant compared to me? And it's always huge. And here's the question David asked. I'm gonna show it to you clearly. He asked this question. How big is Goliath compared to my God? You have a God that is bigger than you could ever imagine.

He went to a cross and shed his blood and he has nail-pierced feet and hands that show the lengths he will go to come rescue you. There is one man in human history that has died and rose again and conquered death and his name is Jesus Christ. And he's the only one that can save you, amen? The only one. But we forget the lengths that God went. Like, look at that. But we forget the lengths that God went. Like, look at that. You gotta look at this through the lens. You gotta look at this through the lens of how big your God is. And watch this. Compared to the giant, he can squash anything. But that's the perspective that we need. And I'm gonna show you how David had this perspective. But man, here's what I do all the time before I show you. I do this and I just want you to know, I'm preaching to myself. You'd be like, man, do you have that big perspective and that big foot that can crush anything? And I wish I could sit here and tell you I have that perspective all the time. I do not. If you're looking for a perfect pastor, you're in the wrong church. That guy doesn't exist, by the way.

I have my own doubts. I have my own securities. I have my own fears. In fact, there's times I get convicted because I feel like there's times in my life I prayed to God and I'd say, God, can you bring smaller giants? Like, I know they're gonna come, but can you bring smaller giants? And here's what I've determined. As long as I'm gonna use my life to make a difference on this earth for Jesus Christ, there won't be smaller giants. They get bigger. Come on, somebody needs to hear this. The giants don't get smaller. And if you're looking for smaller giants, get out of the game. When you use your life to make a difference, we have an enemy here on earth. We don't fight against princes and, like, against flesh and blood. We fight against princes and principalities in this world. There is evil in this world. And as a follower of Jesus, you're in enemy-occupied territory. The giants are gonna keep coming. So what we have to do is you don't need smaller giants. You need a bigger view of God, amen? You don't need smaller giants.

You need a bigger view of God. Now watch David do this. This is so, like, lean in with me. Just watch him do it. Watch this. It says in verse 41, meanwhile, the Philistine, with the shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. So David's on the battlefield now, and he's coming closer and closer to David, which makes him bigger and bigger to David. And it says this, David, he looked over David and saw that he was little more than a boy, glowing with health and handsome, and he despised him. This is funny. Goliath's a hater, but he has to admit, boy's pretty good looking, right? And he's like, it's kind of funny how he says that. And then it says this. It says, he said to David, am I a dog that you come at me with sticks? There's that sticks plural. And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. Come here, he said, and I'll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals. And then watch what David does next.

This is amazing to me. David, he's like, sees the giant, and he doesn't once comment on the size of the giant. Watch what he does. He just comments over and over again about the size of his God. Oh, 45, David said to the Philistine, you come against me with sword and spear and javelin, and I come against you, not by my strength, in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied this day, not me, the Lord. He points always back to God. We'll deliver you into my hands, and I'll strike you down. I will cut off your head. That is bad. This very day, I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know, not about David, not about me, that there's a God in Israel. He just keeps talking about how great God is, how big God is. All those gathered here will know that it's not by sword or spear that the Lord saves. For the battle is the Lord's, and he will give all of you into our hands. As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, But ran quickly, I love this, he just ran at him.

He ran quickly towards the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag and taking out one stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine in the forehead, and the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face down on the ground. So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone. Watch this, the author says, without a sword. In his hand, and he struck down the Philistine, and he killed him. Is that not epic? Is that an epic description of what God can do? Can I tell you my observation? David's speech about God is longer than the fight. Why? Because the speech is the point. What David was trying to do is he was trying to show us that when you face a giant, you don't compare the size of the giant against you. You compare the size of the giant against the size of your God, and you gotta talk about the size of your God over and over and over again, because CCV, you have a God that went to the cross to save you. He died for you, and if you don't rely on the power that's been given to you to face all your giants, you'll always be overwhelmed. And it's why some of you feel overwhelmed. You know, throughout this series,

I wanna keep saying to those of you that have not given your life to Jesus, not repented of your sin, not declared him as Lord and been baptized, if you've not done that, like, of course, you're gonna be overwhelmed for the rest of your life. You don't have the power of Jesus, resurrection power inside of you. So of course, that's what you need. And that may be your big takeaway today. You know, this past week, I heard this story about a young boy who's playing in a field, and his father's watching him, and there's a huge boulder in front of him. And this boy, it's in his path of play, and he's trying to move this boulder, and he just keeps trying to push against this boulder, push, and it won't budge. And the dad yells out, hey, you're not using all your strength. He's like, oh, okay. So he tries to push harder and harder, and it's like it won't even budge. And he looks at his dad, he's like, I'm trying. He's like, nope, you're still not using all your strength. And so this boy backs up, and like a linebacker, like chasing offensive line, he runs and like hits this boulder with all of his might, falls to the ground, it doesn't even move. And he looks at his dad with tears going down his face,

and he says, dad, I'm using all my strength. And his dad looks back at him and says, no, you're not, because you haven't asked me to help. That's a description, I think, very accurately of how some of us will be facing our giants. It's like our own power, our own strength. And what God wants to lean in with you today and just shake you up a little bit is to say, you gotta put your giant in perspective. And you gotta keep looking at that giant in comparison to me, not your own strength. So remember, your giant's not as big as you think. It's not. You may be giving your giant way too much credit. You can't even get a good night's sleep. You can't even like function. Your giant's not as big as you think. And how do you become a giant slayer? Well, here's the anatomy of a giant slayer. You just remember yesterday's lions have prepared you for the day of judgment. You just remember yesterday's lions have prepared you for today's giants. You don't confuse big with unbeatable. And you size up your giant next to God, not yourself. I wanna ask everyone to just close your eyes for a minute. All of us, just close your eyes. And I wanna give you a moment to just let God speak to you. Actually, at the beginning of the service, like what is your giant?

And I want you to think about that giant again. Just put it in your mind. And the visual you just saw, are you comparing that giant against who you are and your strength? Or are you truly comparing that giant versus God? Some of you know you don't have God in your life. And what God's speaking to you today is that you can't go another day without Him truly in your life and your heart by giving your life to Him and getting baptized. And that is your next step. And I pray you have the courage to take it today, not tomorrow. But for those of us that are followers of Jesus, let me just ask you, what's God saying to you today? Have you forgotten the past lions and God's faithfulness? Have you thought big means unbeatable? Or maybe you just need to start sizing that giant against God, not yourself. Whatever God's saying, Speaking to you with your eyes closed, I wanna ask you to just close your eyes for a minute. I just, I wanna invite those of you that know you need some prayer. Like, you know, at the end of every service, we have people down up front that wanna pray with you. And I just pray that, man, you would stream down front and just say, I've got a giant and I need the right perspective.

Enough is enough. For those of you that need Jesus, man, I just pray you come forward as well or just grab a pastor, grab anybody and just say, man, I think today's my day. But for all of us, I wanna just pray that God would speak into our lives and show us exactly what he wants to say. Father, all of us are facing giants. We know it. And some of them are so big. There's someone just so overwhelmed right now that you brought them to show them nothing's overcomable with you. Would you help us walk not by our own power, our own strength, but by the strength of your spirit? And God, for those that maybe they're giant as they need to step forward and serve, help them to just take that step as well. But for all of us, we wanna remember the life of David, not as a perfect person, but as someone that shows us how to slay giants. God, help us to go from here as a group of giant slayers, not by our own strength, but by yours. We pray this in Jesus' name, amen. We'll see you back next week for week three of David. Thank you. God bless you.