How Do You Handle Victory?

PRAY OVER THIS

Now it had happened as they were coming home, when David was returning from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women had come out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet King Saul, with tambourines, with joy, and with musical instruments. So the women sang as they danced, and said: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.” 1 Samuel 18:6-7

 

PONDER THIS

Your reaction to victory will reveal either the waste in your life or the gold and silver in your life. David knew how to handle victory. David knew how to handle praise. In Psalm 131, David said, “LORD, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty. Neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me. Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time forth and forever.”

When David went out against Goliath, he was despised and rejected and looked down on because he was just a boy. But now he had become the king’s bodyguard. He had hundreds of men beneath him. He was walking on the plush carpets of the king’s palace, and everybody was singing his songs. But David said, “Lord, You know who I am. I’m still David. That’s all I am.” He never really took it to his heart. He knew the battle was the Lord’s. That’s the reason God blessed David. How do you react to victory? Do you claim the battle as your own or remember it belongs to the Lord?

How hard is it for you to remain levelheaded or humble when you have success in life?

How might you learn from David’s example?

PRACTICE THIS

Take time to read through Psalm 131 to dwell on the way David viewed himself before God, no matter his earthly success.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers