12.01.21
Hi Friends,
The number one reason I want to talk about overcoming insecurity is this: God has an important purpose for your life and insecurity will cause you to forfeit that purpose.
Frankly, I’m deeply concerned by how present insecurity is in our lives, families, churches, businesses, and culture. Pretty much, everywhere we turn, there it is -- waiting to create a host of negative emotions such as jealousy, fear, and doubt. Wherever these three emotions appear, insecurity is already doing its work.
One of the things I love about the Bible is how transparent it is when describing the human condition. When the Bible tells a story about someone, none of the juicy details are left out, no matter who the story is about! Aren’t you glad that God is not still writing this way today!
Two of the most well-known people in the Old Testament are Saul and David. Saul was essentially chosen by the people to be their first king because he looked like a king. How crazy is that! I’m glad we don’t live in a society that elevates people to high positions simply because of the way they look. I need a sarcastic emoji right now! David was the guy that didn’t look like a king on the outside (even his own family blew him off) but he had some serious qualities on the inside that caused God to take notice.
In 1 Samuel 17, David shows up on the scene of a military conflict, defeats Goliath, and becomes a national hero. Yeah David! The headlines were great -- Goliath is gone, everyone is happy, David is a hero, everybody loves David. But when you read the story, you can tell that a problem is brewing in the background. In the very next chapter, the problem (jealousy, fear, and doubt) shows up in full force.
Here’s a short summary of 1 Samuel 18:1-15:
- King Saul makes David a leader in his army. Everyone is thrilled.
- David’s popularity continues to rise. Songs are written to celebrate how awesome he is. The songs basically say, “Saul is great, but David is greater.”
- From this point on, King Saul sees David as a threat to his image and authority as king; but mostly his image.
1 Samuel 18:14-15 says, “In everything (David) did he had great success, because the LORD was with him. When Saul saw how successful he was, he was afraid of him.”
Was David successful? Yes. Was he popular? Yes. Was he more popular than Saul? Yes. Was he an incredibly courageous and capable leader? Yes. But the important question is this: Was David the enemy of Saul? The answer is no, not even close.
King Saul was completely unable to see that David was NOT his enemy.
Please hear this. Not only was David not the enemy of King Saul, he could have been Saul’s greatest ally in leading the nation of Israel to new levels of freedom, prosperity, and national security. The Lord was with David, but Saul could not see it!
From this point on, the direction of Saul’s life was no longer driven by the high position and important purpose that God had given him. Instead, his life was driven by the unholy trinity of jealousy, fear, and doubt. Which for Saul resulted in the forfeit of his purpose and all the important things he could have accomplished with his life.
When we read the story of Saul from this side of history, it’s easy to say, “How could he allow insecurity to play such a destructive role in his life?” Maybe he was so blinded by his insecurity that he couldn’t see the harm he was creating. Or maybe he could see the harm but was simply unwilling to change. Either way, the cost was the same. It cost him everything.
The truth is the behavioral results of insecurity are really hard to see in ourselves. Here are some of the behaviors that might help us to recognize insecurity in ourselves sooner rather than later. Insecure people…
- Find it incredibly difficult to give praise or affirmation to others.
- See taking more than they give as normal and ok.
- Feel threatened by the gifts and abilities of others.
- Can easily become driven by the need for approval.
- Are quick to offer criticism but have little capacity for any kind of correction.
King Saul displayed all of these destructive behaviors and more, and so can we. Let me say this one more time: Insecurity is a powerful enemy, but it can be defeated. So, let’s defeat it before it defeats us. 3
Next week, we’ll look at David. Not only did David defeat Goliath, he defeated insecurity too!
You can contact me at tim@peopleprosper.org. I always enjoy hearing from you. Please don’t hesitate to let me know how I can be praying for you.
May God Bless You and Keep You,
Tim Hargrove