1 Chronicles 12:8-15: a reflection

8Some Gadites joined David in the stronghold in the wilderness, mighty men of valor, men trained for war, who could handle shield and spear; whose faces were like the faces of lions, and they were as swift as the gazelles on the mountains: 9Ezer the chief, Obadiah the second, Eliab the third, 10Mishmannah the fourth, Jeremiah the fifth, 11Attai the sixth, Eliel the seventh, 12Johanan the eighth, Elzabad the ninth, 13Jeremiah the tenth, and Machbannai the eleventh. 14These of the sons of Gad were captains of the army. He who was least was equal to one hundred, and the greatest to one thousand. 15These are those who went over the Jordan in the first month, when it had overflowed all its banks; and they put to flight all who lived in the valleys, both toward the east and toward the west.

These are warriors who came to join David during his fugitive years, and one detail stands out at the end of the list: they crossed the Jordan in the first month, when it had overflowed all its banks. They came to David at flood stage, when the river was swollen over its banks. They did not wait for easier conditions, for the waters to go down, for a safe crossing. They faced the flood to reach him.

Notice the wholeheartedness in that. Joining David then was risky enough; he was a hunted man, not yet king. And these men added to the risk by coming at a dangerous time, through a flooded river, because their commitment to him was not the kind that waits for convenient conditions. They came through the flood because they were determined to stand with him.

There is a question in that for our own commitment. We often wait for easy conditions before we act on what we believe, for the obstacles to clear, the risk to drop, the waters to recede, and call our hesitation prudence. These men crossed the flood. Wholehearted devotion to God and his cause does not always wait for the river to go down; sometimes it faces the flood to get where it is going. Where have you been waiting for easier conditions before you fully commit? Consider the men who crossed the swollen Jordan to reach their king, and do not let the flood keep you from coming.

Lord, the men who joined David crossed the Jordan at flood stage, not waiting for easier conditions. Where I have held back from fully committing to you, waiting for the obstacles to clear and the risk to drop, give me their wholehearted resolve. Help me face the flood to get where you are calling me, and not let difficulty keep me from coming.