Facing Giants

“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.”~Proverbs 23:7 (NKJV)

I am a list maker.  I create lists of items I need to buy, places I need to go and things I need to do.  You will find lists on my phone, on sticky notes, on notepads around my house and work, and just about anywhere I find the need to make a list!

One of the most effective uses I have found for my list-making obsession is when I am facing a decision where I’m just not sure what to do.  In addition to praying, I make a list of pros and cons.  Seeing my thoughts on paper often provides clarity amid all of the rambling thoughts in my head.

There have been many changes at my workplace over the past year and I find myself very wishy-washy about my job.  It is no secret that I don’t have a passion for what I do, insurance, but I know that I am blessed with a very good job.

That said, there are days that I love my job, days when I hate it, and lately, days when I feel both emotions in the same eight hour period.  I took the opportunity this week to make a list of things I love about my job and things I loathe, and something very interesting happened.  Some aspects of my job were on BOTH sides of the paper.  How could I possibly love and loathe the same thing?

One example of this is that I love how quickly my workday goes by.  I am super busy and it makes the time go by very fast.  If you’ve ever had a job where you had to pretend to be busy, you know just how long of a day that makes.

On the other side of the paper, “things I loathe,” was “excessive workload.”  I have honestly never worked in a place where so much is expected of its employees.  The piles of work are never-ending.  In the time it takes me to get one thing off my desk, four more things have been added.  It is non-stop and very stressful.  I loathe that.

Most of us are familiar with the story of David and Goliath found in 1 Samuel 17 (NLT).  Goliath was described as a Philistine champion who stood over nine feet tall!  Saul, the king of Israel, and his army, were terrified of Goliath and none had the courage to face him.  That was until David came along delivering some food for his brothers.

We all know how the story ends.  Young David takes down the giant with a stone, a slingshot and the power of God (1 Samuel 17:45-47 NLT)

Goliath was the exact same giant when Saul and his army looked at him as the giant that David saw standing before him.  Goliath did not change.  It was the attitude with which David faced Goliath that differed from Saul and the rest of his army.

Saul and his army thought “He is soooo big.  We can never kill him!”  David thought, “He is soooo big.  I can’t miss him!”  Same giant.  Same battlefield.  Different mindset.  Different outcome.

That “giant” pile of work on my desk does not morph into something different throughout the day.  It does not change.  It is my heart, my attitude, that changes.   I am much happier with my job, and life in general, when I have a good, positive attitude.

David’s attitude and his heart for God led him to be the greatest king Israel ever had.  God called David “a man after his own heart.” (Acts 13:22 NLT) Saul, on the other hand, was a man after people’s praises (1 Samuel 18:6-8 NLT) and his life ended by suicide (1 Samuel 31:4 NLT)

We may not get to choose the “giants” that we must face throughout our lives, but we all have a choice in the attitude with which we face them.  What are the “giants” in your life?  Are you facing them with fear and negativity like Saul or with faith and confidence like David?

I challenge you & I to add something worthwhile to our permanent “to-do” lists. Let’s be more like David, facing our “giants” with our focus on God and a positive attitude.