Patience, Plans and Dreams

Synopsis     2Sam 2:29-3:9     11/17/2018 

The two armies finally quit the fight. This concluded the battle of Gibeon. After the battle, Abner marched his troops through the night to Mahanaim, on the east side of the Jordan. Joab returned to Hebron after making a stop in Bethlehem to bury his brother Asahel.  

The battle of Gibeon began a long-running war between the tribe of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin. As king, David led the forces of Judah. Likewise, Saul’s son Ishbaal was king over the northern tribes. Over the course of these years of war, David increased in power over the tribe of Judah. And he increased in popularity with all the Israelites.  

Because of this, Ishbaal was generally perceived as decreasing in power. Ishbaal blamed Abner and eventually accused him of a crime. However, Abner rebuked him and vowed to no longer protect him from David’s rise.  

Meanwhile, David fathered six sons with six different wives while he lived and ruled from Hebron.  

David’s Patience 

David was at war with Ishbaal and Abner. But it wasn’t a total war. He did not attempt to force a final confrontation. In the same way, he did not attempt to force his reign on the northern tribes. Instead, he focused on ruling over the tribe of Judah well. And, he matched aggression with the army that remained loyal to Ishbaal and Abner.

And he waited. He didn’t move until God moved him.  

Patience, Plans and Dreams 

I need direction in order to succeed. So, I need the “Big Story” of my life to be fairly clear. I need to have a dream that I’m chasing. I need a sense of what God is endeavoring to accomplish in me and through me.  

But I also need a plan. I need a routine of daily activity that positions me to achieve the larger dream.  

Yet, even more important than either of these, I need patience. I need to be willing to allow God to deliver my dream in His time.  

 “I wait for the LORD, my soul waits and I hope for his word. My soul looks for the Lord more than sentinels for daybreak. More than sentinels for daybreak,” Psalm 130:5-6