Jesse Duplantis - Running Toward Your Giant

Running Toward Your Giant

y mother came from a large family that always Mcelebrated the holidays together. It still amazes me that we were all able to fit in my grandmother's small home every Thanksgiving and Christmas. As I remember those days, I can almost smell the delicious Cajun food that filled the table and taste the mouthwatering desserts stacked on the old freezer chest. But, some memories of those days are not so great.

You see, while the women were in the kitchen cooking, my dad and four uncles usually had a little entertainment planned. They loved bragging and telling tall tales about themselves, always trying to

"one-up" each other with stories of strength and endurance. They also enjoyed talking about how submissive their wives were.

Of course, it was all a lot of hot air, and they knew it, but it didn't stop them from laughing and saying things like, "When I say 'jump,' my wife asks,

'how high?!'" The truth was that the men might have been the head of their house, but the women they were married to were the "necks" that could turn a hot-head around and around!

One of their favorite family sports was boxing, and the men in the family often bragged about how good their own kids could fight...which was where the entertainment came in. When my cousins and I saw the boxing gloves, all of usgirls and boysknew that the uncles were placing bets, and we would have to fight each other again.

I remember my daddy telling my uncle, "I've got two bucks on Jesse that says he'll whip your son!"

Then, my uncle would say to his son, "If you let Jesse whip you, I'll whip you too." I never ate a Christmas dinner without a swollen lip or a closed eye. Today, that is considered plain crazy and wrong, but back then, it was a different culture and time. Boxing in the front yard with your cousins was holiday family fun...at least it was fun for my uncles!

You see, although I won a few family boxing matches in my childhood, I had a girl cousin who could not be beaten. She weighed 180 pounds when she was 12 years old, and nobody messed with herI mean nobody. I got so mad at her one time that I hit her in the head with a baseball bat. She turned toward me, looked me in the eye, and said, "You've made me mad." I knew I was in trouble.

When you stand back and look at a giant in your life, fear will arrive to try to overtake you. But, if you start running toward that giant and keep up the good fight of faith, he will fall by your side. One day you will cut his head off and show everyone how to get "a head" in life. That's what King David did when he was a young man.

Now, David wasn't what I'd call a good looking boy, but he had fierce confidence! David was ruddy faced and fair, according to 1 Samuel 17:42 and cocky enough to face a nine-foot giant without flinching. Like most teenagers, he thought he was something to be reckoned with. You know how teenage boys are. They grow one hair on their chest, and think they're a man. They blow-dry it to puff it up and make it look big. They put their mother's mascara on it and try not to sweat so it doesn't run!

David was young and thought that he was invincible because God was on his side ... which is exactly how we should all be!

And the Philistine came on and drew near unto David; and the man that bare the shield went before him.

And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him: for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and of a fair countenance.

And the Philistine said unto David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves?

And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.

And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.

Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.

This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the LORD's, and he will give you into our hands.

1 Samuel 17:41-47

Now, when David first came into the camp, his older brothers got mad at him. They belittled him because they thought he'd followed them just to see the battle. But, there was no battle to see. The entire army of Israel was hiding from Goliath and the Philistine army.

Can you imagine David's brother's reaction when he began to rebuke them and then threaten Goliath? I know they must have thought, 'What is this punk kid doing? He doesn't have any armor or weapons; all he has is a sling shot. Why is he popping off at the mouth? He's going to make that guy so mad that he'll come over here and wipe us all out!'

The Bible says that Goliath "disdained him" because he was young and ruddy! He thought it was an insult and cursed at David, promising to feed him to the birds and the animals. But, David didn't run away from Goliath just because he was big, bad and burly; he ran toward him. He had an attitude that said,

"You want some of me?! I'll climb up your face and rip your eyebrows out!"

David didn't care if he was small. He didn't care if he didn't have armor that fit him or a sword big enough to whip a giant. Instead, he responded to the giant's threats with words of confidence in God. "This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand and I will smite thee..." (vs. 46). Notice that David wasn't confident in his own ability but in the ability of the God he served. That's how we should be!

It doesn't matter how small or insignificant we think we are, God is big enough to fight our giant and give us the victory. We just have to be bold enough to trust Him like David and speak the end result with fierce faith.

David took the weapons he knew best, his faith and his sling-shot, and started searching the ground for stones. With that done, not only did he run toward that giant in faith, but he ran toward the entire army behind Goliath.

The Bible says that David hurled his slingshot and with a stone hit Goliath in the one spot that was unprotectedhis head. Whack! Goliath's big body started falling to the ground, and when Goliath hit the dirt, the entire army of Israel saw it and ran toward the Philistines to defeat them.

Notice that the rest of the army gained immediate confidence after seeing the miracle of David slaying Goliath. That's what happens when one person's faith brings results. It causes others, who were once trembling in fear, to recognize the power of God and the importance of faith.

It is possible to look unarmed in the estimation of men. While we fight for God, we may confidently expect that He will fight for us.

It's amazing how many people are like David's brothers and the army of Israel. It's amazing how many who have the potential to be a "David" will stand back and let a stinking demon from hell defy the promises of God.

If you have cancer, high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes or family or financial problems, begin to realize that the battle is not yours. It's the Lord's. You are David, and that sickness is Goliath. It is the devil's way of trying to intimidate you, destroy your confidence, and rob you of a good life.

It's time to stand up like a cocky teenager and say to that problem, "I've had enough! This day you shall bow your head at the power of Jesus in me."

I've done a little boxing in my life, and my coach used to tell me, "Boy, don't ever back up; just go forward." Sometimes your nose is bleeding, your teeth hurt and your lips feel like they could go around your head two or three times, but you can still win if you don't back up.