David was a young boy when the Lord had Samuel anoint him as king over Israel. David was probably between ten to fifteen years old when this happened (1 Samuel 16:13). It doesn't give us an exact age, but David was so young that he wasn't even considered when they lined up his seven brothers (1 Samuel 16:9). Yet, God passed over the first seven brothers and chose David, the least of the least.

David was anointed with oil in front of his seven brothers, and the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him. From that day forth, David began to grow into his destiny. Difficult obstacles appeared, and divine doors opened. David killed lions, bears, giants (1 Samuel 17:36), and tens of thousands of Philistines (1 Samuel 18:7). He played music for King Saul and became his armor-bearer (1 Samuel 16:21). David loved, and he lost (1 Samuel 18:19).

At thirty years old, David finally became king. Yet, there was a gap of fifteen to twenty years between the promise and the fulfillment. God used this time to refine David, train him, establish him in the people's eyes, and thoroughly test his character. You could randomly choose a day from David's life, and most of them would look pretty mundane. Yet, when we read the book of highlights, it is pretty exciting. David's life was not an easy one. Sometimes, he defeated giants; sometimes, he tended sheep, and sometimes, he had to run from his family.

When I was young, the Lord told me that I would be in ministry one day, but I seemed to end up in everything except that. I was a mechanic, painter, musician, and a carpenter. I worked with computers. It was twenty-five years later before I was suddenly pushed into ministry. It hadn't been in my plans the day before it happened, and it caught me totally by surprise, for I had long given up on it. Yet, I use the skills I learned back then to do what we do today.

We often want it all, and we want it now. We can't seem to look past today while God is looking at our entire life span. It was a long road from the promise to the fulfillment. The day is coming when what the Lord has promised you will be fulfilled. The thing that you have almost given up on can yet come to pass. That day is still coming.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, please help me be as faithful as You are. Lead me into all that You have for me. Please help me to stand strong in the face of adversity. I put my trust in You. Have Your way in my life. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!

Note: Today is Thankful Thursday at the Ministry Events group! This event gives us an opportunity to encourage each other by posting thoughts, moments, and prayers of gratitude for Him, His creation and all that He does in our lives. All are welcome! To join, just click on the group name and then the join link on the page that will follow. As always, if you have a prayer need, we are here for you! We and the prayer team are ready to lift you up at our private prayer page: RHM Prayer Network.