God's Spelunker

I Samuel 22:5
And the prophet Gad said to David, "Do not go back to the cave. Depart and go into the land of Judah."

David's life had not turned out like he thought it would.
Forced to go on the run for his life because of Saul's threats to kill him, David, successor to Saul, had been living in a cave.
Don't you know there was a lot of down time there in that cave.
Down time that actually gave David too many opportunities to sit and think about his situation.
"I don't feel like a king."
"Kings don't live in caves...they live in palaces."
Many months would pass before David took his rightful place as ruler and King.
David never envisioned it to be like this.
He thought back to the day Samuel had showed up at his fathers house.
Samuel was there under direct orders from God to anoint the next king.
Saul had disqualified himself from being king through his acts of disobedience.

David had been in the fields tending his father's flocks that day when his brother came looking for him.
"The priest Samuel is at the house and wants to see you."
"Why would he want to see me?" David thought to himself.
What happened next was forever burned into David's memory.
Samuel praying this powerful prayer over David as he poured oil upon his head.
The understanding and feeling that the Spirit of God had come to David and was now in him and over him.


Eventually time in the cave came to and end and it was a man of God who told David....Do not return to the cave.
The cave was a safe place during this time of storms and upheaval.
It wasn't a perfect place but it was safe.
Only trouble was, he couldn't be king by staying in the cave. David had to leave and face his problems. He had to seek God's help in order to take the next step that would eventually lead to the throne.

In many ways, those in recovery face the same things that David struggled with.
Being in a rehab and going through a program is like being in the cave of Adullam. It might not be the perfect place but it is a safe place. Usually people do one of two things........they want to leave before they are ready........or they want to stay longer than they should. In the Kingdom of God, timing is everything.
David knew that he would not make any progress by staying in the cave.
He knew that there were things (People, places and problems) that were awaiting him and had to be dealt with.
David also knew that he was powerless (think back to his encounter with the giant, Goliath---"I come to you in the name of Almighty God...David knew that any power he possessed was from God).
But David also knew that prayer was the key to his moving forward.
He would seek God's council in every move he had to make.
What if we got a hold of this idea? Seeking the council of God before we made our decisions. I mean what if we truly started to live our lives like this? We might be surprised by what happens.

David heeded the words of the prophet.
He left the cave and went forward to face his problems.
God went with him and gave him instruction every step of the way.
I want to trust God like David did.
David's God was a practical God who delivered him all the days of his life.

Don't stay in the cave...
I know its a safe place but your problems are still out there waiting.
Seek the face of God and listen for his instructions.
Come out and live life to its fullest.

God on you....
mb