War with Philistine Giants
20 Then it happened [a]in the spring, at the time when kings go out to battle, that Joab led out the army and ravaged the land of the sons of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. And Joab struck Rabbah and overthrew it. 2 David took the crown of [b]their king from his head, and he found it to weigh a talent of gold, and there was a precious stone in it; and it was placed on David’s head. And he brought out the spoil of the city, a very great amount. 3 He brought out the people who were in it, and cut them with saws and with sharp instruments and with axes. And thus David did to all the cities of the sons of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.
4 Now it came about after this, that war [c]broke out at [d]Gezer with the Philistines; then Sibbecai the Hushathite [e]killed Sippai, one of the descendants of the [f]giants, and they were subdued. 5 And there was war with the Philistines again, and Elhanan the son of Jair [g]killed Lahmi the brother of Goliath the Gittite, the shaft of whose spear was like a weaver’s beam. 6 Again there was war at Gath, where there was a man of great stature who had twenty-four fingers and toes, six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot; and he also was descended from the giants. 7 When he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea, David’s brother, [h]killed him. 8 These were descended from the giants in Gath, and they fell by the hand of David and by the hand of his servants.
This passage gives a brief summary of several events that never would have happened without God’s help. First there is the defeat of the sons of Ammon, who had provoked Israel to war and who recruited an overwhelming force that should have decimated the Israelite army. Instead, David and his men took the king’s crown and an enormous amount of spoil from the sons of Ammon.
The tale of David defeating Goliath is well-known, but then we find out there were more giants, and several of David’s men defeated these giants. Though these men were likely not boys with slings up against insurmountable odds, these giants were formidable and more than a match for any common soldier. Yet with God’s help, David’s men defeated any giants sent against Israel.
We might look at these men, David especially, as “rock stars” of the faith. They weren’t ordinary folks, but possessed extraordinary talents and abilities. However, David in particular shows his humanity on more than one occasion, and God tends to use the most ordinary folks in order to make his power known more fully.
All that to say, God doesn’t just use “rock stars”, and he uses ordinary folks like you and me every day, and will continue to do so because he created us to be more than ordinary–but that only comes with and through His power and strength. God has given you gifts, and he will give you even more as you are faithful to do what he asks of you. Don’t be afraid of the giants in your life, trust in God, and He will see you through anything.