Sunday, 1 July 2018
Present Day King David:
The Psalmist, the Expressionist, the King
King David was a great warrior, a zealous worshipper and most notably “a man after God’s own heart.” On Sunday we also learned that he was somewhat of a social media activist and influencer in his day. King David is credited with writing many of the Psalms, a collection of beautiful, honest, emotion filled poetry that chronicles a lot about his life, his revelations and his relationship with God. He was a man ahead of his time and his Psalms were what would today be viral social media postings. King David used the material available to him to tell of the goodness and greatness of his God. Can we honestly say we are doing the same? Are we using the mediums available to us to tell of the goodness and greatness of our God?
As he shared this fresh perspective regarding King David with us on Sunday (1 July 2018), Pastor Dada challenged us to reflect on what our social media feeds look like. If someone were to stumble on our pages would they know that we are Christians? Would they be able to tell that we love God? Would they be able to figure out where we worship? If the answer is a resounding “no” to all these questions then Pastor Dada strongly suggested that we repent and do better at representing our God.
King David declared in Psalm 35:18, “I will give You thanks in the great assembly; I will praise you among many people.” Our social media pages are one of the greatest assemblies we have and they are literally right at our fingertips. Social media remains one of the most efficient ways to connect with many people at the same time. “Are we using what God has given us to promote the Kingdom of God?” Pastor Dada asked. He further explained that while people often envy the relationship King David had with God they fail to realize how zealous David was for God. “David had a powerful heart for God. In the midst of his flawed humanity he showed us that it is possible to love God with all our hearts, souls and minds as he did.”
We live in an age where we can reach any corner of the Earth through the world wide web. Are we reaching out? What are we saying? Pastor Dada encouraged us to take our Christianity seriously, use the tools at our disposal in the right way and play our part in sharing the good news of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. King David shared what he knew and had experienced about God to evangelize. He was passionate about everything he did – giving, worshipping, praising and writing (aka modern day social media postings). Let us do the same.
May the Holy Spirit open our hearts and minds to see we have the power to change the world at our fingertips. We are shining lights and light influences darkness. Light leads. Let us strive to use every platform to spread the love and light of God, let us use our gifts and skills to serve our Father and to direct others to His House. Let us ‘own’ our God and ‘own’ the House of our God, both online and offline.
Remember what God promises us in Matthew 6:33, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” Likewise, Pastor Dada encouraged us to truly seek spiritual gains, to seek deeper intimacy with God and to esteem the things of God. He reminded us “spiritual gains translate into the physical gains we are looking for.” He encouraged us to be zealous for God and spend time in prayer and Bible study and let “heaven direct us to the physical places we should be and the people we should meet” to receive all we would otherwise spend our time and energy seeking.
King David, who we all know was wealthy, successful, a great warrior and well-loved and taken care of by God famously said in Psalm 27: 4, “One thing I have desired of the Lord, That will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple.”
What is your personalized version of King David’s declaration above? Share it on social media and tag us @shininglightkb (Instagram and Twitter) and Shining Light KB (Facebook), using the hashtags #ShiningLightKB #ZealousForGod #ZealForMyFathersHouse.
Looking forward to meeting online and in the house of our Lord. May God bless and favour us all.
Zeni Christine St. John