{ Day 258 }

David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. … All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him. —1 Samuel 22:1-2

After the praises and promotion in Gibeah, David’s career took a sharp turn. He lost all favor in Saul’s court. Saul rose up to kill him and enlisted three thousand men to chase, capture, and murder him. Seldom has there been such a dramatic reversal. David, probably confused and exasperated, at least initially, fled and made his headquarters in the dark, damp wilderness cave of Adullam. There he gathered four hundred men together, and for about seven years they and their families wandered the wilderness. Gibeah had tested him with praise and success. Now Adullam was testing him with hardship. God put David in Adullam for seven long years to firmly root his identity in God. The lessons of this season, though extremely difficult to learn, would prove to be his protection when he became king of Israel. In the same way, God doesn’t want us to get our identity even a little bit from our anointing or earthly success but from being loved by God and being a lover of God. Our ministry can fall apart. The people who admired us can leave. The blessing of the Spirit can lift off our labors for a season. We can lose our building, our home, and our financial base, but if we love God and He loves us, we are still successful. This is the sure inheritance the Father has promised us.

{ PRAYER STARTER }

Father, I’ve spent time in Adullam. I have lived on the backside of the desert in my spiritual life. Help me never to forget that even in the wilderness You love me, protect me, and bring me to a mature, intimate relationship with You.

We must remember when we suddenly are shoved
into an Adullam season that God has a
divine pattern for maturing us.