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Who
Are Your Giants?
1 Samuel 17:4-14, 32-37, 45-50
Lesson Purpose:
The purpose of this lesson is to show God as greater than the
giants in our lives. All too often we find ourselves overwhelmed,
afraid, and unsure because of life’s circumstances. This
lesson demonstrates God can be greater than the issues we face
everyday. God is greater than the giants but not in a negative,
domineering, or frightful way. He overcomes our hardships. When
we are in relationship with Him the giants of our lives shrink
and cease to have control over us.
Scripture:
David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with
sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the
name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel,
whom you have defied. This day the Lord will hand you over
to me, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head.
Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to
the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the
whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those
gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that
the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s and He
will give all of you into our hands.”
As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly
toward the battle line to meet him. Reaching into his bag
and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine
on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he
fell facedown on the ground.
So David triumphed over the Philistine with a sling and a
stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine
and killed him.
(1Samuel 17:45-50)
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Ice
Breaker:
Invite the group to think for a moment about this question: When
you were a child what was your biggest fear? Ask group
members to share their responses.
Life
Connections:
Use these questions to help your group members to begin to open
up with one another and to think about their own lives. The answers
to these questions need not be spiritual in nature. The intention
is for practical real life responses.
1)
Why are children afraid of the dark? Because
of shadows; because they can’t see their parents anymore;
because everything takes on a different look when the lights are
out.
2)
What creates fear in people’s lives? Bad experiences; they
are taught to be afraid of things by parents or friends; pressure
to succeed.
3)
What are your fears? Getting fired; death; losing
my family; getting cancer; nuclear attack.
4)
How do you deal with fears? I work extra hours
and stay busy to try to cover them up; I drink; I chew my fingernails;
I talk about them.
5) How can fear be negative to us? Can lead to
bad habits that try to mask our feelings; can make it so we aren’t
really living life; can control us and make us nervous, anxious
people.
6)
How can fear be positive for us? Can motivate
us to do well; help us to deal with hard things in life; protect
us from danger.
Scripture’s
Answers: 1 Samuel 17:4-14, 32-37, 45-50
In this section the Life Connection questions are now related
to the passage of Scripture being used in this Bible Study. The
answers to the following questions should come from the text as
well as out of the individual’s hearing and understanding
of what they have heard read.
Have a member of the group read the Scripture passage aloud for
all to hear. Make sure extra Bibles are available so everyone
can follow along.
Introduction:
There are many different ways that we could use this passage to
make important life points. However, this lesson is focused on
being controlled by fear. We find over and over again the mention
of the fear of the Israelite soldiers. They were discouraged and
afraid; they felt like there was no hope. Even King Saul, who
was supposed to be their fearless leader, did not know what to
do. Everything in the lives of God’s people was out of control;
they were ruled by fear. Along comes David, childlike, trusting
and ruled by God not by fear. David could have listened to the
words of doom, the taunts and the laughs and Goliath might have
won, but he didn’t. David’s unwillingness to be controlled
by emotions, outside forces or the approval of others allowed
God to work through the future king.
7)
If you were one of the Israelite soldiers how would you feel?
Scared and tired; ready to give up and go home; frustrated and
worried.
8)
What would you have thought when little David came and
said that he was going to take on this mighty giant?
I would have laughed at him; I would have wanted to stop him so
that he would not be killed; I would have used him as a diversion
so that many of us could have attacked Goliath at once.
9)
What do you think made David try to kill Goliath?
He was young and didn’t understand what he was saying; he
wanted to help his brothers; he wanted to be respected and honored.
Teaching
Time:
Say
to your group: The Israelite soldiers, those soldiers
that were against Goliath, were getting very frustrated. They
had tried everything and they could not win. They were beginning
to lose hope. They would have to serve the Philistines. Undoubtedly
they were wondering where God was. They were afraid of what
the future would hold for them and their families. Along comes
a young man who isn’t even old enough to be a soldier,
he is just bringing food to his big strong brothers. David
offers to fight Goliath. Others laughed at him, but David
was not afraid. |
10) What do you think gave David such courage and resolve?
His belief in God; his past experiences with the lion and the
bear; his lack of life experience and lack of failure.
11)
What is significant about David refusing to wear Saul’s
armor? One size doesn’t fit all; David was very
small and couldn’t fit into Saul’s armor; we can see
that David does things in unconventional ways and on his own terms;
David didn’t need to wear any armor, he could beat Goliath
without it.
12)
What is significant about David’s words to Goliath?
He says that God is going to win the battle; he says that God
doesn’t use weapons; his power isn’t in his armor
or his weapons, but in God’s name.
Teaching
Time:
Say to your group: David goes about fighting Goliath
in ways that no one expected. He was a very young man, too
small to fit into armor, too weak to carry a big heavy sword
and yet he defeated this great giant that had everybody else
afraid. Before he goes into battle he does not say “I
am so great, I will be the one to conquer and everyone will
honor me for what I have done.” Instead he lets his
army know and the enemies know, that it is God who is winning
the battle through him. Everyone else had been afraid and
wondered how they were going to deal with this terrible giant
in their lives. David had courage and knew that Goliath was
small and powerless in comparison to God’s great strength.
We have no need to be afraid because God is bigger than all
of our fears. Even when we feel like we are only a little
child who can’t put on the armor we are offered by the
world, when we give our lives over to God, He will banish
our fears, give us strength and courage and help us to deal
with all of our adversaries. |
Reflection:
Invite the group to take a moment to reflect silently on the questions
you are going to ask. These questions can be answered or you may
choose to allow the members of the group to think about them.
13)
What are the giants in your life that cause you to be
afraid?
14)
What armor are you putting on, or what sword are you carrying
to try to protect yourself from these giants?
15)
What would make you want to be like David?
Optional
Activity Time:
As a way to make the reflection more meaningful in the lives of
group members there are two activities to engage in. First, give
the group time to write the answers to the reflection questions
in a journal they can keep throughout the study time and the week
to come. Second, send each group member home with these questions
to think about and write about in a journal during the week. When
the group gathers together the next time, break the group up into
smaller groups and give them the opportunity to share what they
have been thinking about since they last met.
Teaching
Time:
Say
to your group: We all face fear everyday. Some of
us are ruled by our feelings of fear. That isn’t how
life has to be. We can see in the life of young David that
we can make a choice to live our lives in fear and worry,
unsure of what is going to happen next, frozen by the events
of our lives, or we can live our lives in God. Living our
lives in God means there will still be things to fear, but
we can rest in the strong arms of God. Living our lives in
God means we have someone on our side who is bigger than our
fears and can give us hope when life seems hopeless. I want
to be like David because I don’t like living afraid.
I want to be like David because I can see how God gave him
strength and courage to trust and to live free, not captive
to fear. |
Conclusion:
Take time to pray together before the group leaves. Allow group
members to share insights and ask questions they may have.
Possible
Prayer:
Dear Jesus,
You know each of our fears. You know the giants in our lives
that torment us and taunt us. Will You help us to turn our
lives over to You so You can help us overcome our giants and
have hope again? Will You help us give up trying to protect
ourselves? Help us put our trust in You? We want to be like
David, trusting, hopeful, courageous and empowered by You
and You alone.
Amen. |
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