Ordinary Time 
Pause
I wrote some of the worst poetry west from the Mississippi River, but I wrote. And I finally sometimes got it right.
Maya Angelou, civil rights activist,
poet, and award-winning author
Listen
But David told the Philistine, “You are coming against me with sword, spear, and scimitar, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of heavenly forces, the God of Israel’s army, the one you’ve insulted. Today the Lord will hand you over to me. I will strike you down and cut off your head! Today I will feed your dead body and the dead bodies of the entire Philistine camp to the wild birds and the wild animals. Then the whole world will know that there is a God on Israel’s side. And all those gathered here will know that the Lord doesn’t save by means of sword and spear. The Lord owns this war, and he will hand all of you over to us.”
The Philistine got up and moved closer to attack David, and David ran quickly to the front line to face him. David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone. He slung it, and it hit the Philistine on his forehead. The stone penetrated his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground.
1 Samuel 17:45-49
Think
This part of the story about David feels like a superhero movie! A little shepherd boy calls on the power of God, in whom he has complete confidence, and then proceeds to run TOWARDS the giant Philistine to face him. Wow! He has no super power like a superhero would, but he has his staff and stones. That was enough for God to complete the rest of the story.
What if we faced challenges and opportunities the way David did? How can our story be different if we choose to take the unlikely path that requires more of us than we think we have? What if we give God more opportunities to show up?
Shauw Chin Capps
Pray
Teach me, God, to call on you when I feel helpless and powerless. Give me the courage to not run away from challenges and opportunities. Remind me that you are bigger than all my fears and have already gifted me with what I need to serve you well. Amen.
Go
God’s grace offers us blank pages and invites us to continue to write our part in God’s story!
Have courage! Keep writing because we serve a faithful God who has the power to weave our story into God’s good plan for the world.
