A Special Place In The Heart Of God

O God, You are my God; earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You; my flesh faints for You, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. -Psalm 63:1

Why Was King David So Special To God?    

King David, the second king of Israel, is honored in history mainly because Christ was born through his lineage. But what made David so special to God? 

Was it because God was so special to David? 

As a young man working in his father’s fields, he likened his soul’s thirst for God “as a deer pants for flowing streams.” (Psalm 42:1-2) When he heard the giant Philistine railing against “the armies of the living God,” he took up his slingshot and declared, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” (1 Samuel 17:37) 

And He did. 

David considered God in all his ways. He patiently waited on God’s timing after knowing that he would be king of Israel (1 Samuel 16:11-12). David respected God’s anointed king, even while King Saul attempted to kill him (1 Samuel 24:6-7). He counseled with God before taking action against his enemies (2 Samuel 5:19-25). He cherished the things of God: 

• he brought the Ark of God to Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6:17)
• he restored the priesthood and set up worshippers and musicians to continually worship God (1 Chronicles 16:4-7)
• he funded the building of the Temple that Solomon, his son, would build 
• his heart never turned to idolatry as many other kings of Israel and Judah did 

David always had a passion and thirst to be in an intimate relationship with the Lord. (Psalm 42:2)

What Kind Of Man Was King David?

David was trustworthy, kind, brave, and faithful. In the early years of his life, David knew God. I don’t know how he came to trust him so much, but the evidence is in the things he accomplished through his faith in God. Maybe as a young boy, he took to heart the stories heard tell about God’s awesome power, and they formed his way of thinking; stories like

• the creation of the world
• the great flood that destroyed everything but Noah and his family
• the exodus of his people from Egypt
• the parting of the Red Sea
• Samson and his unbelievable strength
• Elijah and the prophets of Baal
• the coming Messiah and His saving grace

These are the same stories that we can know today. Except we have so many more! We begin to understand God’s heart when we read His Word. We learn about His character, and we find His promises and desire to know Him more and more.

We find that His motive for creating us is to have a relationship with Him. When we begin to love Him, we find He has always loved us. In searching out His presence, we find He has always been close by, waiting for us to reach out to Him.

Our faith grows, and we begin to slay giants like David. We learn to call out to our Father in times of trouble and trust that He’ll always provide for us, no matter where we are or what situation we are in because He is our Provider. We begin to grow passionate about an intimate relationship with God our Father.

Reading the Bible forms our way of thinking.

What Made King David So Great?

David wasn’t perfect. His list of sins included adultery, murder, disobedience, and rebellion. However, David was always quick to repent. After discovering God’s displeasure with him for things he did due to sin, David accepted the guilt that came from offending God and turned from his sin and began to follow after God again. 

David’s greatness rested in the ability to see himself through God’s eyes and knowing that the tragedy of sin is that our sin is against our Creator. (Psalm 51:4)

Repentance brings forgiveness

When David repented of his sin, God forgave him. God doesn’t expect us to be perfect, although, through Christ, we are. But as long as we live in this shell of a body, we will sin. It may not be as serious as murder or adultery, but any individual commandment broken is as bad as another.

When we sin, we break fellowship with God; not lose our salvation, but lose our intimacy. Sin sets up a barrier between God and us, and the breaking through of that barrier depends on us, not God. 

Like a wall made of powder, this barrier can be quickly dissolved when repentance is offered to deal with our offense to God. Or it can be like a wall made out of brick and last for months or even years by our stubborn intention not to seek forgiveness. God is waiting to offer forgiveness. He is waiting to restore the relationship, the line of communication. But we humans can be unforgiving, unloving, and hard-hearted even when dealing with our own sins.

A Man After God’s Own Heart

God said that David was a man after His own heart. (Acts 13:22)  So, why was King David so special to God? It was because God was special to David. His heart longed to worship and praise the Lord, and he did that with his songs, his poems, but most importantly, his actions.

David’s trust and faith in God were exhibited in many ways throughout his life, from being able to protect the sheep he cared for to the many victories David experienced as a warrior.

David was quick to repent of his sins as soon as he was confronted. He had the right heart attitude knowing that his sin was against God. (Psalm 51:4)

My soul thirsts for God -Psalm 42:2

The wonderful thing about our heavenly Father is that He is not biased. He loves us all. David may have held a unique position in history, but we can replicate his desire and commitment to God.

We can find that special place in the heart of God by reading His Word and learning what is special to God. We can spend time in prayer and listen to Him speak to our hearts. And we can be faithful finding the Father’s will for our lives and doing it. We can enjoy the special relationship with our Creator in the same way King David experienced. 

Are you ready to go deeper in your relationship with the Father?!

Join the Conversation

I love reading the Psalms and being encouraged by David’s beautiful words concerning how great our God is. In the comment section below is one of my favorites (I have many!).

Are you familiar with the Psalms? Do you have a favorite one that you enjoy reading? Or do you have one that you have memorized that brings you encouragement? Join the conversation in the comment section below by listing your favorite Psalm. 

Don’t have a favorite? Then read the one I listed and let me know if you liked it or not.