Anytime you trust in anything other than God, it will always lead to barrenness and frustration. The Bible say's we should trust in the Lord with all our heart and lean not on our own understanding, in all our way's acknowledging Him and He will direct our paths. Pastor Mark will be encouraging us to be more like David and to look at Saul's example as one to never follow. Saul in his self centered frenzy continued to pursue and hunt David down because he wanted to control his own fate rather than trust in God. David on the other hand, desired God's will to be done, and remained faithful to Him even while being hunted.

Have you ever experienced a hardship but chose to worship and praise God through it? When Christians suffer and walk through trials and remain joyful and still seek and serve the Lord, we shine extra bright before unbelievers in the world. Today, Pastor Mark will be reminding us that we have a spot lite on us, and that unbelievers are always watching us and waiting to see what we are going to do and say because we claim to be Christian. New believers are watching as well! When David was being hunted by Saul, he still remained faithful and praised God, and his men and family around him saw this and grew in their faith.

Too often, we put on a Christian face, and talk the “Christian-ese” when we walk into Church acting like everything is perfect, when in fact, we truly need prayer and help. Today, Pastor Mark will be exhorting us to not play the hypocrite and to be honest to ourselves and others about our spiritual walk. Saul tried to cover up his sin and refused to seek wise counsel, and unfortunately there can be a little bit of Saul in all of us at times. We don't like to go to others for prayer, because that would mean we would appear vulnerable as if everything isn't always okay. All of us have sin and shortcomings and we all need help at times!

As Pastor Mark continues his teaching series through the Book of 1 Samuel, he'll be challenging us to serve rather than be served, and to love others rather than expect it in return. Jesus showed the best example of unconditional love, He ministered and served individuals, not desiring anything in return. Jesus simply wanted to follow the Fathers orders, and draw men and woman to repentance and receive everlasting life for themselves. In our text today, we see the opposite of this, Saul was totally selfish and self-centered and only cared about what was in it for him. This is why God removed Saul from the throne, and raised up David.

It's been said: “If you hang around a barber shop, you're going to eventually get your hair cut”. Today, Pastor Mark will be reminding us that the key to our spiritual success, is to simply abide in Jesus and to draw near to Him. We all tend to become more like the person we look up to and spend most of our time with. Just like a son that admires his dad tends to follow in his footsteps, we are God's children and should admire and look up to the Lord and become more like Him. On the other hand, when we spend time idolizing the things of this world, and look up to ungodly celebrities or athletes, we tend to live unholy lives.

Would you ever bring your own plastic fork or knife when going to a wedding? Of course you wouldn't, because those are articles used at a barbecue or a casual event. At a wedding there are champagne glasses and more honorable articles that are used. As Pastor Mark continues his teaching series through the Book of 1 Samuel, he'll be explaining how just as the Temple of God had articles used for honor, and articles used for dishonor, we too are articles God wants to use. Except, God desires us to be used as articles of honor, not dishonor. We need to purpose to cleanse ourselves of everything dishonorable, so God can use us.

Do you ever stop to think about how your in a spiritual battle? As Christians, we are in the most intense and important battle that has ever been fought, because it's a battle over our souls and the souls of those we love. We can either fight this spiritual battle with carnal weapons, or we can fight this battle with the spiritual weapons and armor God has given us. It may seem obvious that we can't fight a spiritual battle with carnal, physical weapons but we try to daily! How often do we say, “OH if I only had more money my life would be better”, or if I just had a better job things would work out”. We need to look towards the Lord!

We've all been faced with trials and hardships, what separates the Christian from the unbeliever is that we have the Body of Christ to lean on. More importantly, we have the God of the universe to confide in and to draw strength from when we are experiencing difficulties in life. David knew that he would get a word from the Lord when he found a fellow brother to talk to. When you come face to face with tribulation, where do you turn? Do you look towards the world for advise and comfort, or do you seek the Lord and get wise counsel from the Church? Always remember that bad company corrupts good character.

Most of us are all in regarding God’s will as long as it benefits us. But, as soon as it compromises our desires and goals, we quickly find our zeal waning and begin to question God’s wisdom. As we continue to examine Samuel’s account of Saul’s pursuit of David, we can be challenged by the example of Jonathon. As Pastor Mark points out, Jonathon stood to lose his right to the throne of his father. He risked the hatred and lashing out of his father over his rebellion. But, because he knew that God favored David, and had a greater purpose for him, he was willing to sacrifice his own will for the sake of God’s.

God gave us the gift of friendship - He never meant for us to do this journey on our own. The story of David would have looked much different if it weren’t for his friendship with Jonathon. God placed them in each other’s lives for a reason. He used Jonathon to encourage David when he needed it, and even to protect him when his very life was in danger. As Pastor Mark challenges us to ask in today’s message, do we have any friends like that? Are we that kind of friend? It requires being sensitive to the feelings of others and aware of the quiet leading of the Holy Spirit as we walk through this life together.