I Cannot Walk in These
“Then Saul clothed David in his own tunic, put a bronze helmet on his head, and dressed him in armor. David strapped his sword over the tunic and tried to walk, but he was not accustomed to them. “I cannot walk in these,” David said to Saul. “I am not accustomed to them.” So David took them off. And David took his staff in his hand, selected five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag. And with his sling in hand, he approached the Philistine.”
— 1 Samuel 17:38-40 (BSB)
Saul stood a head taller than anyone in Israel, so his armour may well have hung on a young shepherd like someone else's clothes. Being lent a king's gear was a huge honour, since hardly anyone in that country had iron or good bronze. Goliath wore a coat of mail weighing about fifty-seven kilos, so Saul was reasoning the human way: you meet armour with armour. David tried it on and said honestly that he was not used to it. A sling was no toy. The book of Judges mentions a company of slingers from Benjamin who could hit a target within a hair, and the stones for such a weapon were the size of a large plum or bigger. A stick, a bag and a sling were a shepherd's ordinary gear, and he had already defended sheep from a lion and a bear. God works with what he has already taught you, not with someone else's armour.
Not all good advice fits you. Somebody tells you what kind of mother to be, how to talk to a client, how to pray, how long to grieve, what a good Christian looks like. You put it on because that person has the title, the experience, or simply a louder voice. You walk around in it all day and can barely move. That boy took a few steps in a king's armour and said: I cannot walk in these. It did not stop him walking toward the problem. He went in the name of the Lord, with what he knew.
Take off someone else's armour
- 1Find something you do only because it is expected or because someone else does it that way: a tone of voice at work, a way of praying, raising your children by someone's handbook, answering every message at once. Take it off today, and do that one thing your own way, the way you actually know how.
God, I often wear what others have put on me, because I am afraid what is mine will not be enough. Show me what is not mine. Thank you for what you have already taught me, even if it looks like a stick and a sling. Be with me when I go with what I have. Amen.
I take off one suit of someone else's armour today and go with what I actually know.
Wasn't a sling just a child's toy?
No. The book of Judges mentions a company of slingers from Benjamin who could hit a target within a hair. It was a real weapon, and David the shepherd knew how to use it.
Why did Saul give him his armour?
He was reasoning the human way: Goliath wore a coat of mail of about fifty-seven kilos, so you meet armour with armour. It was also a great honour, since good weapons were scarce in Israel.
Does this mean I should not listen to advice?
No. David tried the armour on before he took it off. Advice is worth hearing, but you do not have to wear something you cannot walk in.