THUS SAYS THE LORD – By Rev. Fr. Ssemakula Stephen.

(DAILY REFLECTION)

19th January, 2024.
No person has ever lived without enemies unless that person is a failure in all aspects. It seems the more God lifts a person, the more enemies that person gets. David had no enemies as long as he was still a shepherd boy tending to his father’s flock Jesse. However, when God gave him victory over the philistinian Goliath, he got many enemies including king Saul! He had not done any wrong, the enemity with the king was just because he had become a threat. You too at your work place, even among your family members; considering the way God is blessing you these days, you have got some adversaries. Your enemies seem more powerful than you and indeed they are. You may be battling with a manager of the company in which you work. David was hiding from a king! You know people in authority have many weaponry, infantry, and others. For David had God on his side! Wow!

David flees for his dear life from king Saul and goes with his men and he hides in a cave of Engedi. David’s hiding i n a cave reminds me of psalm 31:3-5 “You are my cave to hide, my cliff to climb…free me from hidden traps; I want to hide in you” For you when your enemies pursue you, when your land lord is chasing you out of his house, when you have many debts, where do you hide? Now hide in the Lord.
But because the king had his intelligence, he was alerted that he had gone to Engedi. David had entered into a cave deep inside it with his men. Coincidentally, also Saul the king who was very tired and panting like a dog entered the same cave alone to relieve himself.

He did not realize that David and his men were in the cave. David’s men told him to kill Saul since God had given him a golden chance to lay his hands upon Saul. Instead David chose not to harm the anointed one of God. You do not have to avenge our enemies even if you have a chance. The Lord will fight for you. You need only to be still. (Exodus 14:4).You cannot extinguish fire with fire. Hatred is overcome by love. Instead David crept over and cut off a piece of Saul’s royal robe without him noticing it. But David’s conscience haunted him. To me, conscience is the aunt of the soul. It is that inner voice of the Holy Spirit which talks to us. Informing us not to sin. It really disturb as long as it is not dead. We kill it if we continuously refuse to obey it. And when king Saul went out of the cave, David came with the piece he had cut and
told Saul how God had delivered his life into his hand but he chose to spare him and yet the king seeks his life. He prayed to God that He may vindicate him and free him from Saul. King Saul wondered at the mercy of David and King Saul said to David that he then sees that David can become a king. I pray for you that your enemies may realize that you have potential to replace them. May they realise that you right and that you are wrong. And that they can proclaim prosperity to you as king Saul did to David.

In the gospel today, Jesus calls the twelve. Jesus calls the twelve. However, before he called them, he first prayed the whole night for guidance. In everything you do, you have to first pray to God to send His Holy Spirit for inspiration. The spirit of God is our mentor and guide.
By Rev. Fr. Ssemakula Stephen.

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