Keion Henderson - How to Get it Back

I want to talk about how to get it back. That 's what I want to discuss. This is one of those moments when, if we were in the sanctuary, everyone would be high- fiving and excited about the message: how to retrieve everything that the devil has stolen from you-your joy, your peace, your happiness. Today, I want to talk about how to get it back, and I can find no better example of someone who can show us how to recover than David. Let me give you a brief background history. This will be a short message, and then we can leave.

David has been through a lot in his life. He has killed a lion and a bear, proving himself as a warrior. Subsequently, he uses that experience to defeat a giant named-guess who-Goliath. He is now the king of Judah, awaiting his appointment to be king of Israel, while Saul is still alive. Saul has rejected David, and David has rejection issues because not only is he rejected by a king he respected, but he was also omitted, disrespected, or rejected in some way by a father he loved. Can you imagine the jealousy and indignation David’s brothers felt toward him? His entire life has been marked by rejection, being overlooked, misunderstood, and underestimated. Have you ever been misunderstood? Have you ever been rejected? If you have, then you know exactly what David is dealing with.

At the time of this text, David and his men-600 of them — have been exempted by God from fighting in a war against the Philistines. They were exempted from fighting the Philistines. There were wars and rumors of wars, and everything was happening all around them, but God said to David, «I don’t want you involved in any of those fights.» Can you hear David saying, «But you don’t know what they did to me, God. I’m not here for that»? God replies, «David, the battle is not yours, it’s mine.» David responds, «But God, I want to fight this group over here because they disrespected us .» God says, «I know, David, but this isn’t the time.» Then David insists, «But I’ve got this group over here that has disrespected us. If I’m going to be a strong king, I’ve got to stand up for the people.» God tells him, «David, not at this time. You can’t fight these people.»

David was exempted from the battle between the Philistines and the Israelites, but now a time has come where they are introduced to the Amalekites, and God does not exempt him from this war. He does not exempt him from this conflict. When David and his men returned home to a place called Ziklag, after being released from the Philistine army by Achish, the Bible says that they sought asylum in this place. Now, I know I’m throwing a lot of big words at you, but I will explain. Imagine David has just finished with the battle, is on the run from Saul, and goes to Achish seeking asylum, saying, " I don’t currently have a kingdom, but if you would loan me one, I would be most appreciative.» Achish says, «Okay, I guess what you can have is Ziklag.»

The Bible states that Ziklag became David’s and his men 's home for some 16 to 18 months. They stayed there, ate there, procreated there, and built their families and homes while on the run from Saul. They set up shop, and he was comfortable. Now, the Amalekites have come up against David, and he must fight them after being told by God to turn the other cheek in so many battles that he wanted to engage in. Now God says, «David, this is the battle that I want you to have.» I want you to listen to me, because I know we live in a culture where all Christians are saying to turn the other cheek. We live in a culture where we’re supposed to forgive, and certainly one where we need to overlook things. But let me tell you something, ladies and gentlemen: there are some fights you have to engage in. Some things must be confronted head-on, and you need to give it everything you have. The Bible says there are some things you must watch for, fight for, and pray for. This is a battle that David has to fight. If David is going to see a future, he must have this battle.

I don’t know what fight you’ve been avoiding, and I don’t know what conflict you’ve been postponing. But there is a fight you will need to jump right into. It doesn 't matter how much anxiety or frustration it causes you, nor does it matter if it makes people look at you oddly, scandalize your name, talk about you, tweet about you, post about you, or comment about you. Some fights you have to engage in. Someone at home, say, «I’m going to have this fight! I’m going to have this fight!» David had recently attacked the Amalekites, and if you go back to your Bible, I want you to turn to 1 Samuel chapter 27...