Where's your trust?

Psalm 20:7 NLT

Some nations boast of their chariots and horses, but we boast in the Name of the LORD our God.

As the world teeters on the edge of war, may I ask - where is your trust?

Many in Israel are trusting in their iron domes, David's slings and assorted weaponry, certain that, in those, they will attain victory and protection from the enemy.

It wasn't always thus. In David's reign, he looked to the Lord for help. So many of his Psalms echo that trust. He had learned in his shepherding days, bit by bit, step by step, that God is faithful.

When he stepped forward to confront Goliath he did with the assurance of God's faithfulness.

1 Samuel 17:34-37 NLT

But David persisted. "I have been taking care of my father's sheep and goats," he said. "When a lion or a bear comes to steal a lamb from the flock, [35] I go after it with a club and rescue the lamb from its mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death. [36] I have done this to both lions and bears, and I'll do it to this pagan Philistine, too, for he has defied the armies of the living God! [37] The LORD who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear will rescue me from this Philistine!"

Now Goliath, there was someone who had complete trust in His armoury and rightly so:

1 Samuel 17:4-7 NLT

Then Goliath, a Philistine champion from Gath, came out of the Philistine ranks to face the forces of Israel. He was over nine feet tall! [5] He wore a bronze helmet, and his bronze coat of mail weighed 125 pounds. [6] He also wore bronze leg armour, and he carried a bronze javelin on his shoulder. [7] The shaft of his spear was as heavy and thick as a weaver's beam, tipped with an iron spearhead that weighed 15 pounds. His armour bearer walked ahead of him carrying a shield.

How powerful did he look? How awesome was his voice?

Surely the Philistines felt invincible with him on their side!

Again the Psalms ring out the futility of trusting in man:

Psalm 146:3-4 NLT

Don't put your confidence in powerful people; there is no help for you there. [4] When they breathe their last, they return to the earth, and all their plans die with them.

Many today are putting their trust in a leader to provide help and protection - Donald Trump, the Ayatollah, Putin or Zelensky - there's no help in them.

When David ran towards Goliath, he was armed with his trust in the Lord and his weaponry looked puny in comparison with Goliath's.

He turned down Saul's armour and used the weaponry he always had used:

1 Samuel 17:45-47 NLT

David replied to the Philistine, "You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD of Heaven's Armies-the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. [46] Today the LORD will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! [47] And everyone assembled here will know that the LORD rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the LORD's battle, and He will give you to us!"

Trust in the Name above all names, He will never let you down.