“Do you know anyone at Brook Besor?”
Not long ago, our family drove the winding road up to Branson to see “David” at the Sight and Sound Theater. If you unfamiliar with this place, just imagine Broadway with Bible themed plays-the talent is truly unbelievable.
I knew the basics about David-shepherd boy chosen to be King, incredible courage, emotional roller coaster kind of life, heart on fire for God kind of guy. But I found myself digging into the book of Samuel to learn a bit more, and as always, a familiar story in the Bible gave new insight.
The scene in 1 Samuel 30 plays out like this…David and his men have returned home from battle to a raided, burned down campground with no wives or children in sight. The Amalekites(the bad guys) have swept in and looted everything David’s men own, including their families. After a few rounds of the blame game, David speaks truth into his men, convincing them to redirect their criticism on who to judge for the mess and move forward with courage. As the men high tail it in hot pursuit to reclaim what’s theirs, they stopped at a brook called Besor for a break.
1 Samuel 30:10 tells us that 200 men did not keep going…. It’s easy to skim over details like these, but let’s not…..remember all of these men are on a mission to rescue their families from the enemy. Yet, 200 checked out…lost their focus…lost their drive. Maybe they lost sight of their purpose. Whatever the reason, they didn’t keep going and their fellow soldiers did. Chapter 30 goes on to show that victory was achieved and the families were rescued, but it also mentions the haughty attitudes of those that had kept going. They were quick to judge those that lost their drive, those that made a mistake and those that didn’t keep going when the journey became too much.
David, on the other hand, encouraged the weaker men. He pointed the victory back to God’s protection, provision and goodness, not their own. He continued to remind them of God’s love for them.
We all know someone that has stopped at the ‘Brook Besor’ in life and struggled to keep their purpose in focus. Maybe they were in hot pursuit of the enemy’s schemes against their family, but somewhere along the way, they became weary of the battle. Maybe you, yourself have become a bit washed out with carrying the mundane of life and simply need a ‘David’ to encourage you, reminding of you of the big picture. Whatever the circumstance, consider this-do you know someone at ‘Brook Besor’ that needs encouragement and a fresh perspective? If so, take this story to heart and share this not so familiar story with them, reminding them God’s Word always brings perspective.
