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1 Samuel 27:8-12
By Christine Poole

How many of us have heard the 'don't follow the wrong crowd' speech? Unfortunately for me, I've had to sit through this speech more times then I care to remember.

Being a teenager, I have to listen to it at least once or twice a month. You know it. It includes advice on what to wear, what to listen to, how to behave, and who and what to avoid. This 'wisdom' is almost always followed by the 'I remember growing up as a kid' litany. As you listen, you can feel the cloud of doom descend.

Most of the time, I know that what was said to me is correct but, thank God, wisdom comes with age. At 15, I?m smarter than I was at 12. One thing I?ve learned is to listen more - to 'the speech.' So many unfavorable situations in our lives come from not listening to the wisdom of others.

Now David, in the Bible, didn't have this how-to-live-your-life speech. I?m not sure if he was lucky or not. But he did find himself in a troubling situation.

In 1 Samuel 27, David was living with the Philistines, his enemies, to hide from King Saul, who wanted to hurt him, and to help the Israelites, his fellow kinsmen. He was among his so-called enemies. It was not the best place to be.

To make King Achish trust him, David raided many settlements and 'struck the land, leaving neither man nor woman alive.'

Things turned out okay for David. The Philistines ended up rejecting him and he returned to the Israelites and became their king. But in the meantime, he was in a strange place living between two groups of people.

The only thing he could do, was to stay as blameless as he could in the eyes of God. David listened to God. David obeyed God.

Sometimes we?re torn like this too. We all have groups of friends. I have some friends who are a party group, others in a trustworthy group; for every need in my life, there are friends.

But recently I was at a very important party. I counted on my 'party friends' to come and start the fun. As the party started, everyone was talking, laughing and catching up like we had been apart for years. But as more and more of the 'party people' came, things started to get crazy.

I had my fun for a while but then the dancing got wilder and wilder. I didn?t know who to hang out with - my party friends or the 'I?m-too-cool-to-dance' group.

Both groups seemed to be having fun. I didn?t know where I wanted to be. Everything just felt uncomfortable and wrong. The dance floor seemed to be the only option.

To make myself feel better, I ran between the two groups - just like David did. Then in the end, I did what I thought was right - I chose to be a beautiful wall flower and watch everybody dance.

David ran between the Philistines and the Israelites just like I ran in between my friends at the party. He was feeding off of his two groups, trying to have his cake and eat it too. So was I, and I learned that can make you sick. It was definitely most uncomfortable.

But I don?t think I was alone. Maybe this question comes up at one time or another for all of us. Where are we supposed to be? Who are we supposed to be with? What are we doing here?

If we can't answer wisely, then we need to do what David did - stay strong to our beliefs, even if it seems totally wrong to our friends. We must listen to God.

Christine Poole is a member Northwood-Appold UMC in Baltimore and co-executive vice-president of the Conference Council on Youth Ministries.

A DEVOTIONAL
for the Discipleship Adventure

Celebrate: In your congregational worship or in your devotional time today, name times when you have acted like David did in this passage, and pray for forgiveness.

Connect: Share with a faith friend your need for forgiveness. Pray together.

Develop: This is a difficult passage. Read a commentary or The Interpreter?s Bible entry about this time in the life of Israel for some perspective.

Share: Talk with a teen about a time when you did something that you regretted and then sought forgiveness. Share with the teen how you felt when you were forgiven - and the effect it had on your life and your faith.