Dear Friend,

Thank you so much for choosing to spend this time with me today. I have something on my heart I want to share with you that I think affects each of us at some time in our lives — maybe even right now. Being influenced by the negative opinions of others around us, or even the negative opinion of ourselves, can be detrimental. Those negative feelings, thoughts, or words can detour us from taking hold of our God-given assignment. But God has a better plan!

I want to start by sharing a very familiar story in the Bible — David facing Goliath. In First Samuel 17, we read that David, a lowly shepherd, had already decided that he would be the one to take down the Philistine giant who was threatening the Israelites. But David’s older brother, Eliab, mocked him and said, “Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know the pride and insolence of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle” (v. 28). Eliab was trying as hard as he could to crush David’s confidence. Then David replied to his brother in verse 29: “… What have I done now? Is there not a cause?”

But I love what verse 30 says about David’s response to his older brother:

Then he turned from him [Eliab] toward another and said the same thing; and these people answered him as the first ones did. — 1 Samuel 17:30

David didn’t snap back. He didn’t let Eliab draw him into the fight of a fleshly argument. He didn’t get bitter. He didn’t yell at his brother. He didn’t cry to himself, I need support from my big brother. Doesn’t he realize what I’m about to do? He didn’t think, Oh, Eliab is probably right. I need to be back with the sheep. All this scripture says is that David turned.

There was the older brother, full of ridicule, criticism, and rejection toward the younger brother. David heard Eliab’s words. But then the younger brother did an about-face, and he turned from those words.

That was a huge accomplishment on young David’s part. Eliab’s opinion of him could very well have stopped the younger brother. What if David had gotten his feelings hurt? What if he had swallowed those words and decided to believe them?

As the youngest brother, David had probably been raised to yield to his older brother and respect his words. But in this high-stakes situation with a giant that had to be defeated, David turned from Eliab and gave no attention to his words that were meant to shut down the younger brother’s confidence and stop him in his tracks.

Here’s what you need to know: There will be times when you have to face a giant in your life. For instance, the Lord may ask you, with the supply He has given you, to do something for Him that seems impossible to accomplish in the natural. And as you are getting ready to face your enemy, it is very likely that right before it’s time for you to chop off the giant’s head, the devil will send an “Eliab” to you with an opinion that temps you to feel discouraged or inadequate for the task.

Most likely we’ve all experienced this at one time or another. We’ll be preparing to step out of our comfort zone to give from our supply. We’ll be all fired up, excited, and ready to go — and then someone walks up and says something that deflates us.

At that point, we have a choice: Will we listen to the negative opinion and say, “Oh, that’s right. I need to go back to the field and tend the sheep. I’m not as anointed as that other person”? Or will we turn from that negative opinion and do what God has told us to do?

If that ever happens to you, do what David did — simply turn from the voice of the naysayer and refuse to receive that opinion! Go tell someone else what you’re going to do — or simply voice your intention to God! And whether anyone else believes you, don’t let yourself relax your grip on the assignment you have received from Him!

Every one of us has a responsibility to turn from different people’s opinions when their opinions do not match the word of God or go contrary to what He has clearly instructed us to do by His Spirit. We have to continually keep ourselves aligned with and in agreement with His opinions — because if we don’t, someone else will be telling us who we are, what we can do, and how far we can go in life.

Friend, it is never anyone else’s place to tell us who we are, what we can do, or how far we can go in life. That plan was put inside our spirit many years ago by God, and as we continue to push past the negative opinions of those around us — and even the negative thoughts we have about ourselves — we are agreeing with God’s plan and His opinion about us. It is in that agreement that we find power to move forward, past the obstacles of negative opinions. Just imagine that Jesus is on the other side of whatever it is you are going through, and He is cheering you on, saying, “You can do it! I am in you, and you can do all things because I am strengthening you.”

The Bible says, “No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn” (Isaiah 54:17). That is what we see acted out in the life of David as he turned from the opinions of his older brother who tried to discourage him from doing what God had called him to do — kill the giant. That same power of the Holy Spirit is inside you to defeat every weapon that is set against you and to silence any voice that rises against you in judgment.

Thank you again for spending this time with me. If there is any way that we can pray for you, please let us know. You can call us at 1.800.742.5593 or email us at prayer@deniserenner.org and there will be someone from our team waiting to pray with you. And if God has done anything special in your life through this teaching, please let me know! I continue to hear from many of you who have read Unstoppable and are experiencing freedom and victory, and I am so thankful for each and every response, comment, and testimony. I love your responses, and I read them all.

I also want to invite you to watch my program TIME With Denise Renner on YouTube, Facebook, or Telegram!

Moving forward together,

Denise Renner