Our Giants:

“Goliath Must Fall,” by Louie Giglio is a very good reminder to face all of our fears. This book describes all the different giants we as people often develop.  There are things in my life and everyone else’s lives that go from being a little problem to a really big addiction or harmful area in our lives.  We don’t always think of them this way, but these are our giants.   

One of the giants the book mentions is the giant of rejection.  Rejection is a hard thing to get over at times.  There are times we don’t want to even think about our rejection, long enough for us to really notice it is a giant.  But when past rejection comes in our thoughts, it can cause great pain.  Because this whole book was looking at the story of David and Goliath, we get to see David and his bouts of rejection.  Granted, I don’t believe it is ever described as David feeling rejected, but how could he not be.  He was the only one of the brothers in his family who wasn’t chosen to go to war.  He was also the only one who was not considered for the prophecy to someday become king.  He kept getting overlooked.  He was the littlest brother.  He was the small one of the family, and therefore in his family’s eyes, he wouldn’t amount to much.  What a huge amount of rejection, young David had to face.  

I personally have struggled with rejection.   I had never thought it was something I struggled with, until there were a few big events I wasn’t invited to with friends, and I was left heartbroken.  A big part of the reason I started therapy was because I was struggling with being anxious and insecure in the heart of rejection, especially after these nonexistent invitations happened.  I would come close to anxiety attacks when I would think of the possibility of being rejected by those I love once again.  It was getting to a place where I did need help, which is why I did seek out professional help with my therapist.  

A great verse that can comfort us in our heartbreak of rejection is John 14:18 which says, “I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you.”  God will not leave us rejected or alone, but he will comfort and care for us.  He has not rejected us and he will never reject us.  He will always love you, no matter what you have done or no matter who else you feel has rejected you.  Getting back to David, it is a good reminder that God overlooked everyone else’s rejection.  God had decided David as king, and he chose David as the one who would be the winner over the big battle and giant named Goliath.  

Another big giant mentioned in this book was the giant of comfort.  Sometimes we as people care far too much about our comfort over everything else including our call and mission to be Christ followers.  I personally can care a lot about comfort.  I am so happy I decided to take up the nonprofit job and move to a bigger town because I knew I was going to be having a pay decrease and yet I was going to be in a bigger town where it was going to be more expensive to live there.  I was very nervous I would not be comfortable and live comfortably.  However, I really believed this is where I was meant to be and what God had planned for me, so I did decide to go even amidst my discomfort. 

I am not through this suggesting we make bad decisions.  Just because comfort shouldn’t be our main priority, does not mean people should necessarily go out into situations we feel are taking us away from God.  However, we should be more willing to speak to someone who we wouldn’t usually talk to.  This could be choosing to pray over someone when they tell you about a struggle they are having, or this could be choosing to share your faith in front of a group of people.   

One quote from the book that really struck out to me from the chapter over comfort was “In fact, the gospel is rooted in a place of discomfort-Christ’s discomfort. (Giglio, Louie “Goliath Must Fall, pg. 120).”  This is an amazing reflection.  Jesus had a lot of fear and a lot of discomfort, and this created the best story in all of history that has left us with so much love, peace, and joy.  He is now asking us to risk a bit of fear and a bit of discomfort for the sake of others to know the Gospel.  

My challenge for you this week is to think about your giants.  What is the thing that holds you back?  Is it fear? Anxiety? Comfort? Money? Relationships?  Addiction to substances? What is the thing that is holding you back from a more intimate and beautiful relationship with Christ and his mission for your life?  It is not an easy thing to fight against, but it is important we know how to name our giants if we are ever going to fight them.  We can also know God is with us every step of the way, to make us a David.