What lessons are available in the cave? Let me share four for your consideration. First, when you find yourself in a cave, remember you’re in the cave with a King. Those who gathered there may not have recognized David as such in that moment, but it was true nonetheless. This reminds us that we are not alone! King Jesus is with us in the depths and darkness of the caves of life.
Second, the king understands your situation. David understood the displacement, the distress, the discontent and the grief of all of the cumulative grief and loss. I can imagine David listening to each person who arrived at Abdullam, nodding with empathy as they shared their stories. Jesus, of course, was “a man of grief, acquainted with sorrows.” Hebrews points out that he experienced what we experience while he was here on earth. We’re not only in the cave with a King, we’re in the cave with a king that understands.
The third lesson we can learn is that we don’t have to stay in the cave forever. Caves are temporary shelters, not permanent homes. David went into the cave, but eventually emerged as God led him into the next phase of his life and leadership. Don’t forget that Jesus experienced a cave for three days. On the other side of the cave is a resurrection to something new and remarkable.
Finally, caves have a purpose. They help us discover our meaning, our purpose, our calling and our mission. Sometimes those things can only be learned in the experiences of the cave. It is critical that we don’t waste our dwelling time and miss the opportunity that lies before us as we emerge. Those who joined David in the cave experienced transformation. The entered a people who were rejected by society and struggling with personal challenges. But they emerged as an army that would become renoun as David’s mighty men of valor. God has something for us on the other side if we walk by faith. Your life, like their’s can be transformed into something beautiful and beneficial.
What is God revealing to you about you in your confinement? What are the possibilities that are on the other side?
