Dodging The Spear

Whatever Saul asked David to do, David did it successfully. So Saul made him a commander in his army, an appointment that was applauded by the fighting men and officers alike. But something happened when the victorious Israelite army was returning home after David had killed Goliath. Women came out from all the towns along the way to celebrate and to cheer for King Saul, and they sang and danced for joy with tambourines and cymbals. This was their song:
"Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands!"
This made Saul very angry. "What's this?" he said. "They credit David with ten thousands and me only with thousands. Next time they will make him their king!" So from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David. The very next day, in fact, a tormenting spirit from God overwhelmed Saul, and he began to rave like a mad man. David began to play his harp, as he did whenever this happened. But Saul, who had a spear in his hand hurled it at David, intending to pin him to the wall. But David jumped aside and escaped. This happened another time, too.
1 Samuel 18:5-11

Have you ever had a boss that just seemed like he was out to get you? I have, let me tell you. I'm a pretty loyal person. I mean, I can put up with a lot and still respect a person. But, eventually, my patience wears out.

I recently left a job that I had spent three and a half years in, largely because of my boss. I was a good employee, I worked hard, did more than my job required, rarely was sick, was never late, and took overtime when it was offered. I was loved and respect by all of the people at my rank or lower, and trained many of the people who came to work there. I was one of the best and brightest. Then my current boss left, and a new one appeared. For 3 months, everything was good. Then it all changed.

Write ups, denied promotions, and impossible tasks began to pile up. There was nothing I could to please this guy. Success was met with more tasks and deadlines, so much so that a once successful employee was lucky to come up for a breath once every week or two. Frustration grew until I was consumed with my job, even when I wasn't there. I prayed for relief, but it never came. I even went to my boss, but that did no good. After a year of this, I was fed up. I couldn't do it anymore. I was just about to walk away (something that I had never done) when an opportunity arose. I ran to this opportunity, full speed. A transfer and promotion later, my life was changed. I was happy again. I didn't hate my job anymore; I loved it more than I ever had before. But I never would have transferred if the situation in my old job hadn't been bad. God saw everything, and He had a better plan all along, same as He did for David.

See, I think that if Saul hadn't chased David off, that David would have been there to save Saul on the day that he died. But God had other plans. He wanted David to be king, and He set everything up for that to happen. Never forget that God has a plan for YOU, no matter how small you feel at the moment. Don't be afraid to ask Him about it, because it's going to be better then the stuff that you are going through now. Not that it will be easy, but walking in His will is far more gratifying than walking alone.

I stopped in at my old job after two months of being gone, and boy, let me tell you that I was happy that my old boss didn't have a spear. Maybe, had I been listening for God's voice, I wouldn't have had to go through all that garbage. Learn from my mistake, and when you talk to God, really listen to what He has to say.

Sam