In one of the most familiar stories in Scripture, it can be easy to rush ahead to David’s victory over Goliath and miss what happened before the battle ever began. In 1 Samuel 17:1–30, Israel’s army is paralyzed by fear while a young David arrives at the battlefield with an entirely different perspective.
While everyone else sees the size of Goliath, David sees the greatness of the living God. And when criticism comes—not from the enemy, but from his own brother—David refuses to become distracted from the greater cause before him.
In this first part of our study of David and Goliath, we look beyond the familiar underdog story to two qualities that prepared David for what was ahead: humility and faith. The same God Israel had trusted in the past was still with them in the valley—and the same God is worthy of our trust when we face the giants in our own lives.
