A Winning Opinion

October Teaching Letter from Denise Renner

Dear friend,

We are already in the final months of the year, and I am so grateful for the time that we have gotten to share with each other. I pray that all of these teachings that you have watched, read, or listened to have been so powerful in bringing you closer to God, because that really is what He wants. He loves to be close to His people and to reveal Himself to them, and I am always honored to have a chance to help other believers step into that plan.

Today I actually want to talk to you about the opinion that God has of you and the power that comes with it, because understanding that is going to change the way you live. Friend, I want to take a look at the story of David and show you what taking the time to know God’s opinion of you and your situation and making the choice to line up with it can do, because God’s opinion holds amazing power, even power to help you kill a giant.

[If you started reading in your email, begin here]

When Samuel was looking for a new king for Israel, he came to Jesse’s house, and one by one, Jesse brought his sons before Samuel. The prophet looked at these big, strong, handsome young men, and he thought each of them must be the Lord’s anointed, but each time, the Lord rejected them. Finally Samuel had to ask Jesse, “Are these all the sons you have?” 

At last, Jesse called for his youngest son, David, and you can imagine them all waiting there after Samuel had rejected all these handsome, strong young men, thinking, “Oh, sure, it’s going to be the little one.” They had opinions about David, but when he came, Samuel knew right away that this was the one. They had all chosen wrong.

Friend, other people are always going to have opinions, but God is not looking at what they think. Jesse’s opinion was that one of his older sons was probably going to be the one chosen by God, so he didn’t even call David, but his opinion didn’t match God’s, and God’s is more powerful than anyone else’s.

Of course, if we’re going to walk in that power, we’re going to have to make the choice to line up with that opinion, and for David, the chance to make that choice came when it was time for him to face Goliath.

For forty days, the Philistine giant Goliath had been intimidating the armies of Israel. Each day, he came out and mocked and challenged them and blasphemed God, and they were all so scared of his massive size that they didn’t do anything about it.

But then one day, Jesse sent David to the battlefield to deliver some food to his brothers, and when he heard the giant, he wasn’t afraid like the rest of them. He even got angry and said, “…who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?” (1 Samuel 17:26).

He was aligning himself with the vision of God, not the vision of these other men, but of course, someone else had an opinion about that. When David’s older brother Eliab heard what he was saying and how he wasn’t scared of the giant, he got so angry that he started scolding him, “Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the insolence of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle” (1 Samuel 17:28).

This was David’s older brother, friend, someone with authority over him, and he was just coming against him and trying to put him down, but look at David’s response: “And David said, ‘What have I done now? Is there not a cause?’ Then he turned from him toward another and said the same thing” (1 Samuel 17:29).

David turned. Friend, if we’re going to follow God and line up with His opinion of the situation, sometimes we just have to turn from the insults. Remember that you have better things to do than argue with that person. You don’t have to waste any bit of your precious time, energy, or thought on them — you can just turn and continue on with what God has put in your heart to do.

Of course, if you’re going to do that, especially against the opinions of people in authority, you’re going to need to be firmly rooted. That’s why it’s so important to spend time with God. Friend, He wants us to experience Him, so we need to be making space for Him to reveal Himself. That will let us build up experience over time so that when we face opposing opinions, we have something to lean back on. 

That’s what David did. When King Saul questioned if he’d be able to defeat the giant, David told him, “The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine” (1 Samuel 17:37).

He knew what God had done before, back when David was just a shepherd protecting his father’s sheep, and he was able to declare that to keep himself aligned with the plan of God, even when the king, the highest authority in the land, was afraid for him.

He was so aligned with God’s opinion of this situation that when he faced Goliath and that giant cursed him and threatened him, he was able to say, “No, you will not kill me today. I will kill you and cut off your head, and God is going to be glorified” (see 1 Samuel 17:43-46). He saw God’s vision, he declared it, and then he carried it out. With a little sling, he flung a rock into the giant’s head and killed him, and then he cut off that giant’s head, just like he’d said he would!

Friend, I want you to see that none of the other opinions in David’s life mattered. Jesse thought that David was probably not the chosen one, but God thought that David was a king. Eliab said that David was prideful and childish, but God said that he was a giant killer. King Saul’s opinion was that it was too dangerous, but God’s opinion was that a giant could fall to a young shepherd. Friend, other people might have plans for you, but God’s plan for you is so much higher!

Maybe your opinion of yourself has been influenced by something that happened to you, something someone said to you, or the way someone treats you, and those other voices have made it hard for you to stand up and align yourself with God’s view. Friend, I want you to remember David’s story. I want you to remember that God’s opinions about you trump anybody else’s. Take the time to sit still with Him today and let His opinions wash over you so that when all those others come, you can be like David — always moving toward the glorious purpose God has for you to fulfill.

Friend, I want you to be able to grasp God’s opinion of you and vision for your life, and if you’ve been struggling to do that on your own, then I hope you will reach out to our amazing prayer team. We want to be there for you to pray against any barriers that the enemy may be trying to use to stop you from knowing the truth, so call at 1.844.473.6637 or email denisesocial@renner.org if you want support as you pursue God and His view of your life!

I also want to take a moment to remind you that my weekly program is live every Monday at 7 AM CT on Facebook and YouTube and every Wednesday at 12 PM CT on Facebook. I am always believing that God has something to say to you through these messages, so I hope you will join me for TIME With Denise Renner this week and that it will encourage you with God’s powerful truth.

We are moving forward together,

Denise Renner