1 Samuel 17:40 tells us “Then he (David) took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the riverbed, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine.”
Goliath had been taunting the whole Israelite army and everyone was filled with fear. They were all ready to run in the opposite direction, away from Goliath; no one wanted to face him. But David was different, he ran towards the giant; he went in the opposite direction of everyone else.
David knew who His God was and he had seen victories in the past. He had protected his flock of sheep with his sling and stones from the bear and the lion. Now he was ready to protect the flock of God from this great giant Goliath.
David was a type of Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd. We know that the whole world lies in the power of the enemy (1 John 5:19) and the enemy loves to taunt the Church with his victories and sow seeds of fear into the hearts of believers. But Jesus has a plan to bring destruction to the enemy, and He uses smooth stones.
David picked five smooth stones for his sling. Now there are those who believe that these stones symbolize the fivefold ministry of the Church. There are others who believe that the other four stones were intended for Goliath’s other brothers. My feeling is that the other stones were backup ammunition, in case he missed the first time.
These stones David chose were smooth, because smooth stones have greater accuracy and aerodynamics. If he had chosen rough stones, maybe he would have missed the giants’ forehead. These were stones that had spent time in the river. When stones have water flowing over them, over time, they lose their rough edges.
Today, I believe Jesus is looking for smooth stones. People who have spent time in the river. Revelation 22:11 tells us “And He showed me a pure river of the water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and the Lamb.” The river of God is a place of great transformation. It is never a waste of time to spend time in the river of God.
God uses people who have chosen to be imbedded in the river; those who refuse to move from that place of transformation. Some get uncomfortable when the Holy Spirit begins to move, when the river of God begins to flow, others just can’t get enough of God’s presence and power. I want to encourage you today, don’t stand on the riverbanks watching others do great things for God; dive headlong into the river of God’s power and let Him use your life in a powerful way.
When you spend time in God’s presence; in the river, God has plans to prepare you. There is a holy process. God is getting you ready to be put into his sling. It’s the saints who are transformed; those who have soaked deep in God’s river, that do the most damage to the enemy.
One smooth stone changed the course of Israel’s history. The nation of Israel was facing humiliation, defeat and enslavement, and now they were victorious! All that time in the river, getting the rough edges knocked off, had paid off for that stone.
If God can use a stone, He can use you to turn the tide in this generation. That stone was carried on the wind of the Spirit and hit the mark. When God has finished His process in your life, you will become a deadly accurate weapon in the hand’s of Jesus.
David had tried on the Kings’ armor and it just didn’t feel right to him. He wanted to stick with the methods he had used in the past to destroy this giant. There are many ways to advance the Kingdom of God; we now have social media, advanced technology, so many new ways to promote the gospel and we need to avail ourselves of these things. But God still has His tried and true methods of advancing the Kingdom. There is nothing God likes using more than smooth stones – saints soaked in the power of God.
Some of the places we have been, in this ministry, may have seemed a little humble, but God has done mighty things in those places. The enemy may laugh at the Church and taunt it, it may all seem very insignificant at times, what God is doing, but I’m telling you, if you persevere in the river of God, God will use you to do great damage to the enemy’s kingdom. The enemy may be laughing at the Church, but I believe it is Christ, with His church full of smooth stones that will have the last laugh.
If you enjoyed this word of encouragement, please feel free to sign up for future words of encouragement and updates of our ministry endeavors, by joining our mailing list on the top right hand side of this page.
