I love drawing reflections from Sunday sermons because, somehow, they often address exactly what I am navigating in that particular season of my life. It never ceases to amaze me how God can use a message prepared for an entire congregation and still make certain words feel incredibly personal, almost as though He orchestrated the whole sermon just to realign me and gently bring me back on track. That week was one of those weeks. i was struggling in my mind. Actually, almost everything within me was screaming, “Struggle!” Now, I refuse to give it a negative diagnosis the way the medics probably would because I simply do not identify as such , but I knew something was not quite right. The worship over those two Sundays had been particularly profound. The Sunday before, when I was leading worship, almost everything centred around the presence of God. Looking back, I believe it was a personal invitation for me to seek His presence more intentionally and simply dwell there. 

Yet, for some reason, I still felt as though something was hovering around me. Outwardly, I looked completely fine, but inwardly, I knew I was not. The strangest part was that I could not even place a finger on exactly what was wrong. So, I kept releasing the same prayer towards heaven, where my Father resides: “Lord, please help me. Something is wrong, and I cannot seem to put my finger on it.” Trust me, I was still reading the Word. I was still praying. Everything seemed “okay”, yet somehow, it did not feel like enough. I could not even cry it out because the tears simply refused to come. I was not angry either. I just felt the weight of something I could neither properly explain nor shake off. Now, as a prophetic person, I understand that there are seasons when shifts, contention and transitions are taking place spiritually. I understood that something was happening, but my question remained: “Lord, how do I get out of this?” Meanwhile, life was still lifeing . 

During that same period, people still expected me to show up as usual. I had people I mentor, colleagues I coach, and responsibilities as an elder sister, a spiritual leader, a friend and a daughter. Yet I felt overwhelmed because I knew I was not showing up for these people to the best of my ability. I wanted to give what I would normally give, but I simply did not feel as though I had much left to pour out. Then Saturday came, and there I was, battling with whether I would even make it to church the following day. Thank God for the Holy Spirit, who prompted me to get ready and go. Somehow, on Sunday, I spent the whole-time cleaning instead of getting dressed . The funny thing was that time did not seem to be going anywhere. Ahahahaha! It was almost as though time itself stood still and said, “Marie, I am waiting for you. Please get dressed and go to church!” Eventually, I did, and I arrived right on time for worship. 

A lovely lady was singing a song centred around the name of Jesus. Mind you, throughout that entire week, every song about the name of Jesus had somehow become my jam! Yet I had paid very little attention to why until that Sunday. There was something incredibly comforting about simply hearing His name “Jesus”,It felt so good to be ministered to rather than always being the one ministering. At this point, I genuinely think hugging Jesus would be the appropriate response . I am just saying! Because His name carries soooo much power! Then came the sermon, Now, I am not going to lie to you, the beginning was quite boring . But apparently, God had a plan to catch my attention right on time. I am telling you, ahahahaha! Just when sleep was beginning to negotiate with my eyelids, kaiiii, the pastor said something that immediately caught my attention. He began speaking about Paul. 

Paul experienced tremendous difficulties, both inwardly and outwardly, probably far beyond anything I was experiencing, yet he continued allowing God to work through him. That struck me deeply. In 2 Corinthians 11:24–30, Paul describes some of the extraordinary things he endured: beatings, imprisonment, danger, exhaustion, hunger, sleepless nights and tremendous pressure. Yet despite everything happening around him and within him, Paul held tightly to the faith he professed. He was hurting, yet he remained faithful. He was under pressure, yet he remained available to God. He experienced weakness, yet his weakness did not disqualify him from being used by God. And suddenly, I was reminded that God is immeasurable. He is infinitely bigger than my circumstances and far greater than the limitations of my thought process. 

Then the pastor spoke about Goliath and what Goliath represented. Goliath inflicted fear. He was loud, intimidating and appeared larger than everything else around him. And isn’t that exactly what fear sometimes does? It becomes so loud that everything else begins to lose its value. Trust me, I became so afraid during that week that certain things simply did not seem to matter anymore. Even my trust in the Lord felt below average. Not that it is necessarily 100 per cent on a normal day , but at least I know it is bigger than a mustard seed! But when we read 1 Samuel 17, we see something fascinating about David. David did not merely look at Goliath; he looked at Goliath from God’s perspective. Everyone else saw an enormous giant standing against a young shepherd boy. David saw an enormous God standing behind a small shepherd boy. 

        “Perspective changed everything.” 

Sometimes, the Goliaths in our lives become so loud that their voices distort our vision. Fear magnifies the problem until it appears greater than it truly is. It confuses us, overwhelms us and prevents us from seeing clearly what God has already placed ahead of us. That is why we must continually return to God’s perspective. We must learn to see through His lens. As God told Joshua: 

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged…” — Joshua 1:9 

David could confront Goliath because he knew whose strength he was standing in. He had enough faith to speak before the giant ever fell. His confidence was not rooted in his physical ability, experience or resources. His confidence was rooted in the God who had already proven Himself faithful. And that challenged me so much. When fear is screams at me  at, I must allow the Word of God to speak louder. When the enemy bombards my mind with lies from the left, right and centre, I cannot simply sit there and entertain every thought presented to me. I must have enough faith to speak the Word of God back to those thoughts and counteract every lie with truth. David faced Goliath in God’s strength, not his own. And perhaps that was another thing God was teaching me: “Marie, stop trying to carry everything in your own strength.” It reminded me of a friend whom I affectionately call Big Sis. 

 A few weeks earlier, she had encouraged me not to overwork myself, but to breathe, rest and allow myself to fall into the arms of the Father. And can I just say that it is GOOD to have godly friends! Because you might be the strong one most of the time. You may be the person encouraging everyone, praying for everyone, advising everyone and checking whether everyone else is okay. But there may come a day when you lose it a little , and on that day, you need people around you who can remind you of the very truths you normally remind everyone else of. People who will encourage you, pray for you and gently point you back to God. 

Lastly, I was reminded that the battles I face can ultimately become opportunities for the glory of God to be revealed. God will glorify Himself, He will show Himself strong. He will bring me through situations that once looked impossible and use them to reveal another dimension of His faithfulness. Romans 8:28 reminds us that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose and ohhhh, how I love the Lord so dearly! He constantly baffles me. Just when I think I cannot understand what is happening, He finds a way to answer me. Sometimes through His Word, worship, a friend or a sermon I almost slept through . Yet somehow, He knows exactly how to reach me. 

This week reminded me that being overwhelmed does not mean God has disappeared. Feeling weak does not mean I have suddenly lost everything He placed inside me. And facing a giant certainly does not mean the giant has already won. Sometimes, I simply need to stop measuring the giant and start remembering the size of my God. So perhaps the goal is not always to ask, “God, how quickly can You get me out of this?” Sometimes the better prayer is, “Father, teach me how to see this through Your eyes. Show me what You are doing here, strengthen me where I have become weak, and glorify Yourself through it all,” Because Goliath may be loud, but God has never needed to shout to prove that He is God. Fear may exaggerate what stands before me, but faith reminds me of Who stands with me And if God carried Paul through everything described in 2 Corinthians 11, strengthened David before Goliath and repeatedly commanded Joshua not to fear, then surely, I can trust Him with this chapter too. 

So yes, I am still learning, growing, allowing God to correct my perspective, but one thing I know is this: I refuse to allow the loudness of my Goliath to make me forget the greatness of my God. I will rest when I need to rest. I will allow people to pour into me when I need to be poured into. I will speak the Word when fear becomes loud. And above everything else, I will keep returning to His presence because somehow, every single time, He meets me there.  

Oh, how I love this God!  

and please, go and read 2 Corinthians 11 for yourself and collect all the juice from it . I did, and trust me, I am definitely going back for more. 

by MPDK