1 Samuel 17:38-40
Then Saul clothed David with his armor. He put a helmet of bronze on his head and clothed him with a coat of mail, and David strapped his sword over his armor. And he tried in vain to go, for he had not tested them. Then David said to Saul, “I cannot go with these, for I have not tested them.” So David put them off. Then he took his staff in his hand and chose five smooth stones from the brook and put them in his shepherd’s pouch. His sling was in his hand, and he approached the Philistine.
COMPARISON (Covetousness) - wanting what someone else have
> Envy, Idolatry "I'll praise God once I get what they have"
- when you put anything before God
> Robs us of discernment and ability to perceive our season like 2 women being pregnant, one is 9 weeks, the other is 9 months. Maturity is recognizing we're both pregnant. Can you applaud when someone else wins?
> Comparison robs you of the ability to perceive your oil. There are levers to OIL:
* King Saul - flask of oil
* King David - ram horn of oil
*Jesus - alabaster box of oil
If we don't understand our oil, we'll end up trying to get in the room that we don't have oil for.
Example: Moses and Pharaoh - God told Moses to go through on dry ground. Pharaoh saw it and tried to do the same thing and he ended up drowning, because this is what happens when you try to follow a Word God didn't give you.
> Comparison is the mother of infertility / keeps from giving birth to your gifts.
The reason why you can't give birth to your gift is because doubt keeps making you miscarry and why you're doubting is because you're so focused on everybody else. You're looking at their platform, views, at what they're doing. People don't post their failures, inadequacies, insecurities. Could it be they're not better than you? They're just a better editor than you. You're comparing an edited version to God's handiwork.
> There's something God wants you to do, who cares what they're doing. You don't know what's behind the curtain and here you are feeling inadequate and they could be giving you false advertisement
> Comparison is the spawning pool of insecurities
> Could you be insecure because you feel as though you being out of dress code is a problem? So what you're not like everybody else. You're out on dress code on purpose. You cannot be part of the pollution and then be the solution. You cannot be God's example and the devil's sample at the same time. God has called you to be light, not shade; salt not sugar.
Galatians 6:4
Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else
You match in the Kingdom of heaven, as a Kingdom ambassador, as a Kingdom trendsetter, not match with culture. God doesn't want you to be in uniform with your peers, God is making you His billboard, His example, His blueprint. You're so busy looking at everybody else that you're not looking at all the gifts God has put on the inside of you.
1 Samuel 17:38-40 Then Saul clothed David with his armor.
> David is about to fight but Saul begins to dress David with his own tunic.
You have to be careful with who you are allowing to put stuff on you because wardrobe come with warzones. You know why your lust is raging, because somebody put their wardrobe on you. Why you're so bitter, complaining about everything, could it be your mother put her wardrobe on you?
How to be free from people pleasing?
There's only one you in this earth. How do we get exhausted? We get exhausted when we haven't recognized that everybody's going to have a different version of you in their heads. Let's say we walk in a room with 20 people. There are 20 different 'you' in everybody's head. We get exhausted is when we go to each person and try to recreate the version of 'you' in their head. Freedom happens when you get to the place 'I don't care.' I don't care what version of me that you have of me in your head. The version of me that you have in your head is not my responsibility.' When you get to the place of as long as I'm the me that God created for me to be. It doesn't matter if anyone doesn't like me. I like me and God loves me. I love me. That you, that God called you to be.
The truth that freed me is "I'm not for everyone". Whatever version of me that you have in your head, that's your business, but I know the version of me in my head. And this is dangerous when you don't have an accurate version of you in your head, you'll keep on following the trends because you don't have your own version of you this is why your feelings get so hurt when somebody tells you their opinion because you care more about the version that they have of you than the version God has of you in His head. Before you were in your mother's womb He knew you and all that matters is what God knows me. The best well-known is hearing well-done!
> Saul sees David is ready to fight, and so Saul puts his uniform on him. He puts him in dress code. He puts him in dress code with the rest of the soldiers because this is how you're supposed to look when you fight. Could you imagine if David struggled with security - he possibly would have thought 'You know what, everybody else is dressed like this, so since they have shields and they have armor, sword, maybe I should be in dress code too.' I think David would have lost if he would have went out there in Saul's armor because you will always lose fights wearing Saul's uniform.
1 Samuel 17:39 David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. “I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.” So he took them off.
Quintessential question - Have you just adjusted to what someone put on you? Have you adjusted to their opinions or do you have a David posture - "I'm taking this off."
1 Samuel 17:49-51 Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him.
>>> A lot of us would be content right there
But there was no sword in the hand of David. Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it.
>>> A lot of us, there's some problems that have come back in 2020, that were your Goliath and you thought because the stone stuck in his head it was dead, but it really was unconscious - 'I thought I was over this.' David said, 'I'ma chop off his head.' Head is symbolic of authority. 'You have no more authority over my people.' There's some things in your life that you've allowed to have authority- comparison, insecurity. By the power of God, chop the head off!!!!
How do we become cured from comparison?
1) A FOLLOWED FOCUS
When you have a focus, goal, vision, you won't compare yourself to others.
I'm so focused on what God called me to do. Did you hear? No. Have you seen? No.
You're so focused on what God called you to do that you really have no time to focus on the gossip or mess.
John 21:20-22
Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, “Lord, who is the one who betrays You?” Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, “But Lord, what about this man?”Jesus said to him, “If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? You follow Me.”
Jesus is saying, mind your business, why are you worried about them? But you can't mind your business if you're on everybody else's business.
2) SURROUND YOURSELF WITH CREATORS VS WATCHERS
The people who are most critical will always have something to say are the watchers - they're on the bench, they have so much to say, they always try to give somebody advice. Here's my problem - can we look at you and tell you your advice works? Not judging but if you're so wise, all the advice you have why we don't see any fruit in your life? Why your tree so fruitless?
Creators - especially if they're not insecure - they give the most encouragement.
3) DEACTIVATE THE INNER CRITIC
You're subscribed to your own criticism.
4) VALUE THE PASTURE
We live in a generation that everybody wants to arrive quick, fast.
1 Samuel 17:34
But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it. Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them
Pasture season is PRACTICE - Nobody knows your name, no platform, no follower, nobody's coming to your business, nobody's making an order, but you're learning how to perfect that slingshot. You're learning how to improve your gift. So many of us want to hurry and get to the palace because you have oil for it. If you overlook what God is teaching you in this pasture, you won't be ready to fight Goliath in the battlefield.
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