David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day. Now the Amalekites had raided the Negev and Ziklag, They had attacked Ziklag and burned it, and had taken captive the women and all who were in it, both young and old. They killed none of them, but carried them off as they went on their way.
When David and his men came to Ziklag, they found it destroyed by fire and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep. David’s two wives had been captured-Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail, the widow of Nabal of Camel. David was greatly distressed because the men were talking of stoning him; each one was bitter in spirit because of his sons and daughters. But David found strength in the lord his God.
Character Check Why do I need to be liked?
In Business Terms I came from a home in which my mother divorced seven times and was an alcoholic. I didn’t fully realize the impact my background had on me, but one afternoon about 4 p.m., I found myself sitting at my desk completely immobilized. I had been helping one person after another in an effort to gain their approval. I had lost all sense of my own boundaries.
There I sat, unable to move, unable to talk, and all I could do was cry.
It was as if the Lord spoke to me, saying, “Ted, why have you always had to be a cut above others? You weren’t content to be a pilot; you had to be a Marine fighter pilot. If others showed off by flying under a bridge, you had to fly under a bridge upside down. You weren’t satisfied with a college degree; you had to have a doctor’s degree. Why?”
In that moment I broke down. I realized how my need for approval was destroying my life and ministry. That experience was one of the best things that happened to me.
I’ve now rediscovered what I once knew as a boy. When my stepfather would beat my mother, I would leave the house with my dog and my rifle, go into the hills, and stay there for a few days. I would talk to God with childlike innocence and trust and listen for what the Lord had to say.
Now I see success as being in touch with the voice of God.
—Ted Roberts
Something to Think About You must live with people to know their problems, and live with God to solve them. – P.T. Forsyth
