Then David ran and stood over the Philistine and took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.

                                                                                                               1 Samuel 17:51 

Read: 1 Samuel 17

David was a young shepherd boy yet he was confident and prepared to take on the formidable foe Goliath. As for the King and the whole army of Israel, they were quaking in their boots. So why the difference in attitude regarding this event? It is because the former was looking at the situation through the eyes of faith while the latter was assessing it in fear and human reasoning.

David, although young, had experience protecting the herds in which he was in charge. Our modern ears may not hear the word “shepherd” as someone who must have exceptional courage but that is exactly what was necessary to do that most dangerous of jobs. As wild animals made their way toward the sheep, it was the shepherd’s job to protect the herd, even if that meant putting oneself in harms way. David had seen the hand of God deliver him from these dangerous encounters and had developed quite a faith when it came to God’s protection. He knew that the same God who protected him with the herd would shelter him on this battlefield. This faith in God as his shepherd is eloquently preserved in Psalm 23. Of course David did what the men of Israel’s army were not willing to do. Victory was his and David got to experience that amazing triumph because he moved out in faith. If we learn nothing else from this historical account, it should be that.

As Jesus moved about during His earthly ministry, He came upon a desperate father, whose son was possessed by a demon. Consider the following: 

And He (Jesus) asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. It has often thrown him both into the fire and into the water to destroy him. But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!” And Jesus said to him, “‘If You can?’ All things are possible to him who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father cried out and said, “I do believe; help my unbelief.” 

                                                                                                                       Mark 9:21-24 

There is much to see in this account but Jesus’ statement is the centerpiece of the entire thing. “All things are possible to him who believes.” When we operate out of the mindset of David, taking Jesus’ words at face value, we begin to see God’s incredible work in our lives and we get to experience victories that others miss out on simply because they were unwilling to believe.

For this father, the desperation is easy to see. “But if You can do anything, take pity on us and help us!” He wasn’t completely sure, but he knew he was speaking with the only Person capable of handling this most difficult of situations. Jesus’ response to the man is beautiful, “If You can?’ All things are possible to him who believes.” He let the father know that nothing was impossible, that nothing was beyond the scope of God’s ability to act, no matter how desperate the situation appeared to be. Of course the boy was healed but it is the father’s response to Jesus that I believe should be the prayer of every one of us claiming the name of Jesus. “I do believe; help my unbelief.” It’s a duel statement. On the one hand, the man was prepared to place his full trust in Christ to help his boy. But on the other hand, he recognized his lack of faith or perhaps struggle with it.

That is not an uncommon position in which Christians can often find themselves. On the one hand, yes, we place our faith in Jesus as a means of being justified, redeemed, and forgiven. But is that same faith applied to every aspect of our lives? It should be but there are often times when we are tempted to fall back into the thinking of the army of Israel, summing up our situation in human terms, and allowing fear to be the guiding force. But when we act, knowing that all things are possible for those who believe, we find ourselves functioning on a higher level than our human limitations can take us.

Here are two verses to keep in mind when it comes to battling fear and doubt:

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.

                                                                                                                        1 John 4:18 

For God has not given us a spirit of timidity (fear), but of power and love and discipline. 

                                                                                                                   2 Timothy 1:7 

When we operate in the knowledge of God’s love for us and we rely on the power of His Spirit within us (which is not a Spirit of fear), we can have the same victory that David and the desperate father experienced. All things are possible for those who believe…let’s never forget that truth!