1 Samuel 17:29 (NKJV)
“And David said, ‘What have I done now? Is there not a cause?’”

You will be despised. You will be looked down on. You will be made to feel small and irrelevant.

No matter how you conduct yourself, there will be people who will feel threatened by you, and will work to bring you down.

That’s the reality of the world we live in. Envy. Jealousy. Competition. They are everywhere. They are common language anywhere there are human relationships.

People assume they understand your intentions and they are often wrong.

We cannot stop birds flying over our heads, but we can stop them from making nests in our bedrooms.

We cannot stop the splash of negative emotions that will come at us, but we can control how we react to them.

David meant well when he inquired about what the king would do for whoever killed Goliath, but Eliab did not take it well.

Eliab became angry, and in his anger, he revealed his true assumptions about David.

Sadly, he thought David was fit for nothing more than taking care of the sheep. He limited David’s capabilities and despised what David could do.

Secondly, and without reason, he thought David was proud and deceitful.

Of course, none of these were true about David, yet they were projected as David’s character and intentions.

Though those words must have been heartbreaking, David did not react. He responded well.

Today’s devotion is focused on asking you as a pilgrim to respond well. Irrespective of the provocation, respond well.

Provocations are simply opportunities for you to display heavenly character.

Never allow your heart to respond emotionally to accusations.

David said to Eliab, “What have I done now?…I was only asking a question!”

Even in defending your motives, do it with grace, great humility, and never malignant.

We are not Eliab. We are pilgrims. Our nature is heavenly. God’s supernatural life flows in us.

We believe God to express His divine nature through us, in the midst of everyday provocations. Amen.