“The Lord who saved me from the lion and the bear will save me from this giant!”
— 1 Samuel 17:37 (paraphrase)
A long time ago there was a shepherd boy named David. He was the youngest in his family. Every day he watched his father’s sheep out in the fields. David loved God, and he loved to sing songs to Him.
One day David’s father said, “Take this food to your big brothers. They are with the army.” So off David went.
When David got there, he heard a loud, scary voice. It was a giant named Goliath! Goliath was bigger and taller than anyone. Every day he shouted mean things and made God’s people afraid. All the soldiers were shaking. Nobody wanted to fight him.
But David was not afraid. “I will go!” he said. “God helped me when a lion and a bear tried to hurt my sheep. God will help me now too.”
David did not wear the king’s big, heavy armor. Instead he picked up five smooth stones from the stream and held his sling. Then he walked right up to the giant.
“You have a sword and a spear,” David called out, “but I come in the name of the Lord!” David put a stone in his sling and — swing, swing — let it go. The stone flew straight and true, and the giant fell down to the ground!
God’s people cheered and cheered. God had used a brave shepherd boy to win the day. And David remembered: it wasn’t the stone that did it — it was God.
The Big Idea
When something feels too big and too scary, you don’t have to be afraid. God is even bigger, and God is always with you.
Reflect & Discuss
- 1.What made David brave when everyone else was scared?
- 2.Is there something that feels like a “giant” to you? (the dark, a test, a new school?)
- 3.How can you ask God to help you be brave this week?
A Prayer
Dear God, thank You for being bigger than anything that scares me. Help me to be brave like David and to remember that You are always with me. Amen.
The same story, told for…