One of my favourite Bible characters is David. He is one I can relate to on so many levels. I think for our purposes, what most of us share in common with him are- HIS PAIN and HIS CREATIVITY.

The first time we hear of David in the Bible is in I Samuel 16. We are quickly informed that he is a shepherd boy, who spends his time in the bushes with the sheep. At first glance, it looks like a normal job for a young man till we quickly realize, he is in the bushes because he’s not wanted at home. His is a son who has been reduced to a servant. His father Jesse doesn’t count him among his sons… or if he does, was quite embarrassed to present him to the prophet Samuel. To put it simply, David was an abandoned young man, who received more love from his sheep than from his family. We are not surprised when we learn later that, David will fight and kill lions and bears to protect his sheep. His herd was all the family he really had in the world. We can conclude that David had pain. True but he focused on his talent and his job but never on his pain.

For the creatively endowed, those moments of pain and rejection can be your best friend if you put your mind to it. What better place to rehearse, discover and learn new moves if not where there is no one. If you play your harp to sheep, you can afford to make mistakes and not be embarrassed about it.

I remember the story of the two friends whose girl friends broke up with them at the same time. One jumped over a bridge to end it all. The other wrote about his love experiences and quickly became a bestselling author. What do you do with your pain?
One other thing we learn from the David story is, when God is on your side, the distance between the wilderness and the palace is actually very short. David never attempted lobbying anybody. He was just focusing on his sheep and his music. Yet in just one chapter, he gets secretly anointed to be Israel’s future king and also recommended to be King Saul’s harper.

I believe God has appointed people like Saul’s servant who recommended David and the Prophet Samuel all over the world to look out for his children. His only requirement is that we be so good at what we do that we won’t embarrass him when we stand before kings. Christians with mediocre skills are an embarrassment in every sphere of society; especially when they are rather loud about their faith.

Are you skilled enough to stand before kings or are you nagging, hurting and complaining instead of rehearsing. Focus on God. Focus on your job. Focus on your talent. DO NOT focus on your pain.