I’m going to tell you a little story about the power of five stones. I talked about it in my book Facing Goliath ; but today I just want to go over a few simple steps of how stones can be used as weapons to be victorious in your own life battles. The battle of David vs. Goliath has been told many times, many ways and for many different reasons. I’m going to share the part of the story that has become a battle strategy for me and my own battles. I’m going to tell you how five stones and faith in God took a giant down.
Hopefully this will be a help to someone else and a way forward for those who are on the battlefront.
If you’re in that small group of people who’ve never heard of the battle of David and Goliath, let me give you the crib notes on the story. David was a good little shepherd boy , his responsibility was to take care of his father’s animals and keep them from harm and danger. And that was the extent of his life experience- watching his father’s animals! His brothers on the other hand were trained soldiers in King Sauls army ; the were battle tested warriors and the military power of Israel. Now stay with me on this one because I’m going somewhere in the story. We’re going to the day when a boy (equipped with nothing but a stone and slingshot ) took down a giant ; and proved that with God ‘all things are possible ‘ Mattew 19:26 ESV
Whether we’re aware of it or not- you and I are constantly on the battlefield in life. We battle with emotions like insecurity, low self esteem, feeling like we’re ‘not good enough ‘ and etc. . We’re fighting to get ahead financially or battling for a sense of self worth. The outlook at times can seem to be bleak and I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve been knocked down more than a few times. But I understand that the most important thing to do is to reach up and grab the hand of Grace! David put it like this “I kept on believing, even when I said, “I am completely crushed,””
Psalms 116:10 GNB
The Apostle Paul ? He too acknowledged that we’re going to get knocked down, “We are pressed on every side, yet not crushed; perplexed, yet not to despair;”2 Corinthians 4:8 WMBBE . So don’t be so hard on yourself if you get TKO’d. As someone recently told me, ‘it happens to the best of us.
Now, back to the story.
Ok so Goliath the giant was a Philistine ; the Philistines didn’t believe in the God of Israel. So there they were in the valley , the army of Israel and the Philistines. At some point in the standoff between the two sides, Goliath began to ridicule the God of Israel and dare anyone to fight Him and defend their God – “Saul and the Israelite soldiers heard what Goliath said, and they were very afraid.”1 Samuel 17:11 ERV “Saul and his men heard what Goliath said, but they were so frightened of Goliath that they couldn’t do a thing.” 1 Samuel 17:11 CEVU . King Saul even offered his daughter’s hand in marriage and a lot of gold to anyone that would kill Goliath. There weren’t any soldiers who were willing to put their lives on the line- not even for the king’s reward.
Sometimes you’ll encounter a situation that tests your beliefs. It could be physical or mental or emotional. Either way it’ll always be there to make you take a look at who you are, where you are ( or are not ) and what you’re willing to fight for.
• What are you afraid of today ?
• Are you facing the (seemingly) impossible?
• What’s going on in your life that you’re not willing to fight against or face?
Remember David’s brother’s? The battle tested warriors were afraid to challenge Goliath. When David the shepherd boy heard what was that being said about his God , he became enraged by it and stepped forward to accept Goliath’s challenge. Even though David’s brother’s weren’t willing to fight Goliath, they dismissed him and literally told him to go away. David however was undeterred by this; he knew that The Lord was with him !
Sometimes you must be willing to take a chance on yourself and rise to the challenge. David wasn’t even a trained soldier, in fact he wasn’t even familiar with the armor that was offered to him as he accepted the challenge to kill Goliath. Make no mistake, Goliath wasn’t just another Philistinian soldier- he was their champion. But David wasn’t phased by the sheer enormity of Goliath’s size and he wasn’t intimidated by the fact that the only thing he knew how to use was a little slingshot !
Thats right , David wasn’t even prepared to fight with a sword and shield ! In fact the little known shepherd boy refused to wear the armor that the experienced soldiers offered him. No , David was in a different state of mind; he was going into battle with The Lord on his side !
But here is the point of the story that I want you to pay close attention to what happened next; the biblical account of David’s battle strategy. “And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in the shepherd’s bag which he had, even in his wallet; and his sling was in his hand: and he drew near to the Philistine.”1 Samuel 17:40 ASV .
Of course you know that in the end David was victorious over the Philistinian champion; and he accomplished it with a single stone! In the end, after slinging the stone and cracking Goliath’s skull- he cut the giant’s head off with his own sword! Sounds grisly I know but that’s what happened. When it was all over, David brought Goliath’s head to King Saul and a legend was born. And it was all a result of the faith David had in the God of Israel and five smooth stones.
David chose five stones. In other words, he chose his weapons selectively. David knew that he had a purpose for each one of the stones. I’ve adopted the same battle strategy of the five stones. Every time I’m battling for or against something- I choose a stone. Here’s a few examples of the stones I use :
I have a prayer stone when I need guidance, strength and courage. This stone reminds me that I can’t do anything without The Lord on my side. Sometimes getting knocked down to your knees is the best place to be – it puts us in the perfect position to pray !
I have a stone of gratitude for those times when frustrating circumstances cloud my view of life and I start to complain. Thanking God for the blessings that He’s given me throughout my life. Sometimes you can look back on all of the things that God has brought you through and it’ll give you strength to carry on.
The stone of endurance helps me keep going forward even though I’m feeling tired and weak. Because I know that ‘the race isn’t given to the swift or the strong but to the one that endures until the end ‘! God is aware of the fact that we are human and He knows that we get weary .b“For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.”Hebrews 10:36 ESV.
Whatever the situation is, I have a stone in my bag of spiritual weapons to put in my slingshot. It’s a great mental reminder that I have been given everything I need for winning the battle. You can slingshot your way into victory over the battles in your life; just choose the right stone for the job. If it will help you to hold a physical stone in your hands, then do it ! Go outside and like David did- choose your stones. Give it a name One that applies to the situation like courage, praise and worship, the Word of God or whatever you feel the need to name it.
I’m giving you a challenge. Choose a stone for the next battle of your life. Name it and use it to knock out the giant facing you. May you be victorious in every single battle.
Have a Glorious Weekend,
LaShandri Foxx Newman
