When “It” Happens to You

Imagine the rickety sound of a roller coaster car climbing up the first hill of an exhilarating roller coaster ride. As you climb, you see the whole amusement park beneath you. Life is good! A cool breeze is blowing, and the car is smoothly moving upward. When your car stops at the top of the hill, you clearly see everything beneath you. Then suddenly your car plunges downward and you experience twists, turns, and drops at an accelerated speed.

Life can be like a roller coaster ride, moving along with laughter and fun and suddenly the unexpected happens. Maybe it is a phone call or a doctor’s diagnosis that causes a sudden shock. The high exhilaration suddenly changes to an unexpected stop and then a plunging low. What do you do? How do you get the downhill spiral to stop?

Today’s society is not the only one that has experienced these devastating emotions. Bible heroes dealt with the roller coaster emotions also. One Bible hero, David, tells how he dealt with this roller coaster ride in 1 Samuel 30. David defeated the catastrophes of life by doing three things.

In 1 Samuel 30, David and his mighty men arrived in Ziklag to see it destroyed by fire and all their wives and children taken captive. After great wailing over their losses, life got even worse for David. His men began blaming David for their losses and talked of stoning him.

The Bible tells us in 1 Samuel 30:6: “But David found strength in the Lord his God” (NIV). David encouraged himself in the Lord by recalling victories God had given him in the past. He remembered how the stone was guided to strike Goliath in just the right area to kill the mighty giant. He probably remembered how God helped him defeat the lion and the bear that tried to kill his sheep. Maybe David had thoughts of no one in his family considering him to be king material, but the One who created the universe chose him to be king. David encouraged himself in the Lord by remembering God’s goodness and faithfulness to him.

In 1 Samuel 30:7, David said, “Bring me the ephod.” He put on the priest garment. David had worn an ephod when he brought the Ark of the Covenant home, dancing and praising God all the way home. The ephod represented God’s goodness to David, and he celebrated God by lifting up praise to Him.

1 Samuel 30:8, says, “And David inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall I pursue this raiding party? Will I overtake them?’

‘Pursue them,’ He answered, ‘You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue.’”

1 Samuel 30:18, says, “David recovered everything the Amalekites had taken, including his two wives.”

That stomach-churning drop in life when we hit our low point–whatever our “IT” moment might be–can be part of our journey of faith if we look to David’s example.

David did three things when “it” happened to him:

1. He encouraged himself in the Lord

2. He worshiped

3. He inquired of the Lord

When things spiral out of control remember to follow David’s footsteps. He prioritized God in his “it” moment and recovered everything he thought was lost.

Sonja White is the wife of Bishop Michael White. They have been married for 41 years. Their 3 children and their spouses have given them 6 perfect grandchildren. Bishop Michael and Sonja pastored 25 years in Western North Carolina, served 8 years as Youth and Evangelism director of WNC, and served 7 years as administrative bishop of Northern New England. They are currently in transition to serve as administrative bishop of Illinois. Sonja has taught preschool-5th grade and is currently teaching literacy.