How to Continue When Others Are Trying to Destroy You

 

If you want to continue when others are trying to destroy you, one of the best places to look for insight is from others who had God’s stamp of approval in their lives in spite of the hatred of others.

 

“And David went out whithersoever Saul sent him, and behaved himself wisely: and Saul set him over the men of war, and he was accepted in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul’s servants. And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of music. And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands. And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom? And Saul eyed David from that day and forward. And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul’s hand. And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice.”

I Samuel 18:5-11

 

In this story you find a great king who had great power and who had won many battles who became jealous of David’s victories. In fact, Saul became so jealous of the attention that David received from the people that he threw a javelin at him and tried to kill him. Thankfully, David managed to get away and missed the javelin that was thrown at him twice.

 

 

Let me say, in life you will have javelins thrown at you from all sorts of angles and from ones you would never expect. David managed to escape Saul’s fury unscathed, but this is not always the case with everyone. Some javelins that have been thrown at you have left scars so deep in your heart because of who they came from. Saul was the king and David was fighting for him, yet Saul turns his back on his own warrior who just saved his nation from a haunting giant. Saul should have been applauding David. Saul should not have been so insecure in his leadership ability that he could not build David into the leader he was meant to be. Saul could have taken every opportunity to mold David and teach him all the things he knew about leadership, instead Saul let jealousy overtake him and tried to kill David. To me, one of the most disheartening facts about this story is that Saul used the good that David was trying to accomplish for Saul and his kingdom, and misjudged his motives.

 

 

Are you one who throws javelins at others so that you can “climb your ladder of success” per say? Do you use opportunities to criticize and crush others’ spirits with your words and actions or do you take every opportunity to build others? I have seen some people who are excited when one who is in the spotlight fails. We must be careful that we do not have the spirit of Saul, and learn from Saul’s mistakes.

 

Sometimes we throw javelins at our greatest assets. 

 

One of the reasons we must be careful about throwing javelins is because we never know who that person will become one day. David became Saul’s son-in-law, Saul’s son’s best friend, saved his nation time and time again, became future king, was in the lineage of Christ, and was also the apple of the Lord’s eye. Another thought that absolutely amazes me about this story is that even in the time when javelins were being thrown at David, he still was still fighting the armies of Saul. David never quit his duty or failed to keep working for his king. What a testimony of faithfulness and loyalty! Even when Saul was not loyal to David, you never find where David was not loyal to Saul. Even when javelins are thrown at you, and sadly by the ones you love the most, do not quit your duty. You must continue to dodge the javelins so that you can be the leader you were meant to be. David simply continued to behave himself wisely in all his ways.

 

One way you can continue to behave yourself wisely while javelins are thrown at you is by using your spirit as your greatest weapon.

 

The greatest weapon that you have in your arsenal is your spirit.

 

When Joseph’s family turned their back on him and lied and sold him into slavery, Joseph continued having an excellent spirit. When Potiphar’s wife lied about Joseph and he was thrown into prison, Joseph continued having an excellent spirit. “And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Can we find such a one as this is, a man in whom the Spirit of God is?” (Genesis 41:38) Because of his excellent spirit, Joseph excelled in spite of hardships. “For God hath caused me to be fruitful in the land of my affliction.” (Genesis 41:52b) You also find Daniel and his three friends who were taken captive, brought to a strange land, made to learn a new way of life, continued having an excellent spirit in spite of harsh circumstances. Daniel 4:9, 18; 5:11, 12, 14; 6:3; all of these verses mention the great spirit that Daniel had.

 

 

“Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him;

and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.

Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom;

but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful,

neither was there any error or fault found in him.”

Daniel 6:3-4

 

We should always brush off the javelins that are hurled at us, but sometimes they will catch us right in the heart when we are least expecting it. Are you a protector of the ones who are having javelins thrown at them? By blood, Jonathan was in line to be the next king. Instead of fighting for his rights and position, Jonathan sacrificed his own crown and put himself on the line for David. Jonathan loved David. He was willing to see David promoted instead of himself. What a sweet story of friendship! We should learn how to love others so much that we are willing to lay ourselves down if need be to see others succeed.

 

Be a protector of one’s who have javelins thrown at them. 

 

I pray that if your spirit has been wounded by javelins that have been thrown at you, you will find the healing that the Lord provides. You find in the life of David that he encouraged himself in the Lord. When others turned their back on him, David continued with an excellent spirit. We will all have javelins of some sort thrown at us from time to time in life. I hope you will dodge them. Do not let the javelins of life destroy you. Also, do not be the one who throws javelins. When you feel insecure, continue building others instead of throwing javelins. Finally, be a protector of the ones who are having javelins thrown at them. Be willing to come to the aid of ones you know who are under attack. Jonathan was willing to lay his career on the line so that he could build and encourage David. Jonathan even spoke to the king on the behalf of David.

 

I hope and pray that we can be encouraged and challenged in this lesson to continue when others are trying to destroy you.

 

Sincerely,

Dan Q Carr Jr