1It happened in the spring of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the people of Ammon and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem. (2 Samuel 11:1-27)
The reason Jesus was always in the right place at the right time while He was here on earth was because He was the Living Word. He obeyed the Word of God and walked in the Spirit. In the Old Testament, there never was a better example of the opposite of this than this time in David’s life. He had become the king of Israel, and it was the time when kings went to battle; but he decided to stay home. That one decision to disobey and subsequent decisions to disobey brought sorrow to his family and nearly cost him the throne.
Of course, David must have had deeper problems than just not being in the right place and doing what he was anointed to do. His relationship with the Lord must have been in decline for some time. Failure to be in touch with God causes restlessness, which often propels us into the wrong place at the wrong time.
Successful people often abandon the very things that brought them to the top. When Saul was little in his own eyes, the Lord promoted him (1 Sam. 15:17), but when he became a success he abandoned his dependency on God. Solomon did the same thing. He started out in great humility and sought only to be faithful to God, but his success corrupted him. This is also what happened to David.
David had reached a point of success where he no longer had to seek God. He no longer had to fight his own battles. He had others who would do it for him. This left him free to draw closer to God or wander away, and he chose to wander away.
Hard times aren’t the true test of what’s inside you. Everyone seeks the Lord when their backs are against the wall. Life’s greatest test is success. Make fellowship with the Lord your first priority—in both good times and bad—and you will maintain the success He has given you.
