Everyone makes mistakes—even great leaders. David was no exception. When he left his home base unguarded, the results were devastating. The city was burned, and the women and children were taken captive. To make matters worse, David’s troops turned on him. They wanted to stone him for his tragic lapse in judgment. David didn’t grow defensive or offer excuses. He turned to God for strength, wisdom, and guidance.
“Now it happened, when David and his men came to Ziklag, on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the South and Ziklag, attacked Ziklag and burned it with fire, and had taken captive the women and those who were there, from small to great; they did not kill anyone, but carried them away and went their way. So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep. And David’s two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the widow of Nabal the Carmelite, had been taken captive. Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. Then David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, ‘Please bring the ephod here to me.’ And Abiathar brought the ephod to David. So David inquired of the Lord, saying, ‘Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?’ And He answered him, ‘Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all'” (1 Samuel 30:1–8, NKJV).
God answered, leading David on a rescue operation so successful the initial loss was soon forgotten.
Eventually, we all mess up. Leaders disappoint. Good intentions fail. Strategies that seemed foolproof fall flat. When others stumble, we should offer grace, forgiveness, and support. When we’re at fault, we should seek to make things right with those we’ve hurt and turn to God for help and direction.
The content of this article comes from “The Warrior’s Bible” (2014) and is copyrighted by Life Publishers International. Used with permission.
