What to Do When Life Double Dares You
Has life double dared you mentally and physically at the same time? Perhaps you were facing the prospect of opening your own business, accepting a significant but challenging promotion, or being called by God to enter some form of ministry or service. Have you faced naysayers who doubted you, and physical challenges that tested your physical abilities at the same time?
Mental and Physical Dares
Each one of these examples includes a mental and physical dimension, a double dare, like in the 1986 Double Dare game show recently revived on Nickelodeon, on which kids answer challenging trivia questions and perform physical challenges.
You have the skills and knowledge to start a business, accept that promotion, or enter an area of ministry or service, but there is your old double-edged nemesis, the combination of naysayers and your fear of being able to pull it off.
David had a double-dare experience facing Goliath.
David had a double dare experience when he had to fight Goliath. The Israelites were frozen in their tracks by fear and eventually fled. But David, after being criticized and ridiculed by his brothers, told Saul he would challenge Goliath.
Saul spoke a mental dare to David telling him he was only a boy and unable to confront the Philistines. David overcame this challenge by telling Saul how he fought a lion and a bear while caring for sheep.
David's Second Challenge
The physical challenge for David came when he faced the nearly 10-foot-tall Goliath. The Philistine giant looked down on David and questioned why the Israelites would send a boy
like David. He even cursed David and his gods.
David accepted this second dare. He announced to the Philistines that he would defeat the giant to show there was a God in Israel and the battle was God’s battle, and Lord of Hosts would deliver them into the hands of the Israelites. That’s exactly what happened.
Always Naysayers, Even Ourselves
The message behind the David and Goliath story is a simple one, but a hard one to fully embrace and make it an integral part of our lives. There will always be someone who will question your mental and physical capabilities to accomplish something.
Ironically, that someone will often be your inner self, the part of you who is aware of past failures and worried about failing again.
Most importantly, the challenge we all have as Christians is to make it part of our mental, emotional, and spiritual fabric to put aside the naysayers, including our fearful inner selves.
We need to announce to ourselves and the world by faith-powered actions that the same God in Israel, the same Lord of Hosts that David proclaimed, will be at our side as the Holy Spirit guides and strengthens us.
Additional reading:
Listening to God's Words
David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.” (1 Samuel 17:45)
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9)
The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)
Also Read: Isaiah 43:1, John 14:27, Philippians 4:6-7
In the Words of Others
“Prayer lets God do what he does best. Take a pebble & kill a Goliath. Take the common, make it spectacular! Pray & see what He can do.” Max Lucado
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” Nelson Mandela
“The greater the obstacle, the more the glory in overcoming it.” Moliere
“Fear has two meanings: ‘forget everything and run’ or ‘face everything and rise.’ The choice is yours.” Zig Ziglar
Think About It
Recall a challenge you faced in your personal or professional life that required both mental and physical strength and courage. How did you face the challenge?
Do you feel you always have to please others, especially the naysayers? Does this negatively or positively affect you? Why?
Describe how you have made God and the leading of the Holy Spirit part of how you face challenges? If not, why not?
Have you explored the scriptures on how to defeat your giants as David did by turning the battle over to God? Begin now.
