A significant rock in the Bible holds a lesson for us today.
IT’S WORTH CONSIDERING
In 1 Samuel 23 we find one of the many accounts of David trying his best to escape from
Saul. Despite the king’s promises to protect David, he tracks David down wherever he goes. In verses 25-29 we find David and his men hiding out at a place called “The Rock” in the wilderness of Maon. When King Saul’s spies told him where David was, he pursued him to the mountain. David and his men were on one side; Saul and his men were on the other. Knowing where David was, Saul splits his army to surround David and his 600 man army. At the last minute, a messenger came to Saul with urgent news. The Philistines had made a raid on the land. Saul had no choice but to give up pursuing David and return to fight the Philistines. From that day on, the place was called the Rock of Escape.
AS I SEE IT
When I read that passage, the first think I thought of was the tradition in biblical times of
standing up or piling up stones at the site of some significant event. When children would ask about them, the parents would tell of the mighty thing that God did there. It was just like the Ebenezer , the stone of help. This reminds me that I need to do the same thing. I think we all need to establish some sort of “monuments” to remind us of what God has done for us. It’s pathetic how quickly we forget. For some people, journaling serves that purpose. That doesn’t work for me. I’m not a journaler. If you have any “monumental” ideas, let me know.
The Rock of Escape stands in sharp contrast to the Rock of Rimmon. It was named after a Syrian pagan God and was the place another group of 600 men fled under greatly different circumstances. They were guilty of a horrible crime and did not have the protection of God. Instead of fleeing to God and pleading for mercy, they sought refuge away from God. What a mistake!
I see three lessons we all can apply when things get rough:
1. When we seek refuge in The Great Rock (God), it will become our Rock of Escape no matter how bad things look.
2. It’s not over until the Lord says it’s over. God will keep our enemies from succeeding against us (Isaiah 41:11-13; 54:17).
3. Don’t easily forget what God has already done for us. The place is still called “The Rock of Escape” to remind people of what God did for David. If He did it for David, He can do it for us.
ON THE LIGHTER SIDE
Within hours of the recent news that Tesco’s ‘all beef hamburgers’ contained 30% horse meat, These British quips hit the internet:
Anyone want a burger from Tesco? Yea or neigh?
Not entirely sure how Tesco are going to get over this hurdle.
A woman has been taken into hospital after eating horse meat burgers from Tesco. Her condition is said to be stable.
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