Episode 55: Being a David in a Goliath World

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 I was recently inspired by a conversation I had with a friend about the talk Camille Johnson gave this past October General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, "Invite Christ to Author Your story."

I am a Relief Society teacher in my ward and I had the opportunity to have an amazing discussion with the sisters of my ward about this talk and since that time it had been on my mind. Then one of my good friends sent me a Marco Polo about doing an episode on this talk.  I knew then it needed to happen.

There were so many applicable parts of this talk but what I felt really standing out to me that I think applies so well with the world right now is the story of David and Goliath that she talked about. There are many Goliaths out there in the world right now and it is easy to feel inadequate compared to the power that those Goliaths has over us.

For example, I think of the internet and the scary things our kids encounter that are beyond their years. The wars and cyber wars, or disease and cancers that can make us feel powerless. So many battles to fight on all fronts. It is overwhelming.

So how is it that we can muster the courage of David to face these Goliath things in our lives? I want to read a portion of the talk that I don’t think I could say any better so I will just use Sister Johnson’s words.

“For David to overcome Goliath, the boy had to take on the giant. The comfortable narrative for David would have been a return to tending sheep. With a desire to let God prevail, with an ear to the Holy Ghost and a willingness to let the Savior be the author and finisher of his story, the boy David defeated Goliath and saved his people. The sublime principle of agency does, of course, allow us to write our own stories—David could have gone home, back to tending sheep. But Jesus Christ stands ready to use us as divine instruments, sharpened pencils in His hand, to write a masterpiece! He is mercifully willing to use me, a scrawny pencil, as an instrument in His hands, if I have the faith to let Him, if I will let Him author my story.”

I love the example that David did something that took courage but he didn’t go alone. He went WITH Christ, our Heavenly Parents and the Holy Ghost. He allowed Them to help him defeat the giant. He didn’t dive in by himself or shrink to the task because of his feeling of inadequacy. He allowed Christ to author his story so he could be His hands.

I asked my friend, who inspired this if I could share a portion of her thoughts that I feel are so fitting with what I am trying to convey. When speaking of her friend who recently lost her husband in a tragic manner and is now raising her five kids on her own, Lee Ann shared the following. 

"The Savior can write the story afterwards. She can write the story of pain and sorrow and hatred and anger and never moving on. She can pass that on to her kids. Or if she allows the Savior to write that story, or her story from here on out as far as she handles that situation, it is going to be a story of faith and overcoming the hardship."

Hardships like that are inevitable in this mortal life. Those parts of our stories are not what we, or the Savior, are writing. Difficult experiences happen to all of us regardless of our most faithful efforts. What we can do is allow the Savior to, as Lee Ann puts it, "write the story afterwards." She continued by saying,

"How do we allow the Savior to write our story after the hardship? Obviously we are not going to write a hardship in and I don't think that's necessarily what He wants for us in any way. But He does want us to turn to Him. He does want us to receive revelation. He does want us to build a relationship with Him. And that's the story the He is writing for us. Its the aftermath the either we write or He writes. Not necessarily what happens to us, but how we handle it."

So how do we do that? How do we handle these situations that are completely out of our control and take the Savior with us to help author our story the way David did? 

There are three ways I have found that we can take the Savior with us as we are living in a fallen world. A state of life where others can use their agency righteously that it affects us, and when our when our bodies are in a fallen state.

1. Stop Trying to Create a Straight Path

Yes we are headed towards God and we have a direction we are pointed. However, there are inevitable roadblocks in the way because of the fallen world we live in. 

What I see happening with women that I work with is when they encounter detour because of those roadblocks, they start blaming themselves.  They being to feel like they aren’t good enough or that they are somehow inadequate because a roadblock is there.

That is exactly how the "natural man" inside of us and satan wants us to feel while participating in the Plan of Salvation. Of course they would want you to feel this is all your fault, you don’t have anything to offer, or that something is wrong with you because you are having to detour.

When you expect a straight path that was never meant to be there, then you will forever be disappointed when you can’t force it to be that way. The point here on Earth isn’t to prevent opposition from occurring by making our path as smooth and simple as possible. It is to learn that when we are on these curves and detours we are doing it WITH Christ and not on our own.

We are not meant to overcome this struggle alone, we are meant to do it WITH the Lord helping us author our story. When we stop expecting a straight path we start to recognize that the plan is to live in a fallen world so that we will NEED Christ in our lives.

If we had a straight path with no opposition, we would have no need for a Savior. Not having a straight path is an opportunity to let the Savior in.

2. Ask

Sister Johnson encourages us to, “Ask questions to which you do not know the answer, knowing God is willing to make known His will for you through the Holy Ghost." And I would like to add, ask for help each day for the small things. Start relying on the Savior, Our Heavenly Parents and the Holy Ghost for the little things then when the big things come you will know how to ask and how to receive. 

I think as women we get in this mode of feeling like we have to take on the world alone and we forget that we have a powerful force at our disposal. We only use the powerful force when we are hanging on the edge of a cliff by one finger. 

Why not ask NOW? Why not ask for help with the simple things and start to see that God is with you even when you aren’t fighting Goliath. 

3. Let Him Use Your Potential

We have agency to choose how our story goes. We can choose to stay in our comfortable place of go and fight. David had the same agency. He could have chosen to stay with his sheep where he was comfortable or choose to fight the giant. He was a young boy, not a warrior. He didn't even have a sword. So he took the weapon and  talent that he already and went to fight Goliath. But he didn't go alone. He went WITH Christ.

What is your giant you are avoiding or not fighting because you feel scared, inadequate or fearful? Can you muster the faith to let Him use you and your talents. Christ knows your potential perfectly because he Atoned for everything you ever felt.

Our Heavenly Parents know our personal talents and strengths and created us with those in mind for a purpose. Are you willing to let God use your potential to fight the Goliaths of the world?

Your talents are important tools no matter what they are.  Decorating, organizing, having compassion for others or seeing what needs to be done and doing it are ALL needed in this world and our Heavenly Parents gave you those talents and potential so They could use you.

Will you let them use you to fight the goliaths of the world? I hope that you feel inspired to let Christ in and write your story WITH you. He can help you be as a David, using your talents and your skills to fight the Goliaths in your life.