For three years in college, I served as youth pastor at First Baptist Church of Samson, Alabama. It was the largest church in a small town.
The youth group had about twenty teens when I got there. One of the teens was Reagan Farris. You’ll recall that I mentioned him earlier as the friend who spent the night at my place after we stupidly watched a horror movie together. He served for several years alongside me as co-student pastor here at Eagle’s Landing and is now pastor of a church plant in New Orleans, Louisiana. But at the time I got my start as a youth pastor, he was a high schooler, and I didn’t know him any better than any of the other students in the group.
Not long after I started in my new role, I took the group to a youth conference where speaker Roger Glidewell shared the story of David and his mighty men in 2 Samuel 23. The account says, “These are the names of the mighty men” (verse 8), and it chronicles King David’s thirty-seven men who were the most valiant soldiers for the army of Israel. Three men draw particular attention.
The first is Josheb-basshebeth. He was the chief of the three men and was famous for killing eight hundred enemy soldiers with his spear in one battle.
Next to him was Eleazar, who stood with David against the Philistines when the rest of Israel’s fighters bailed. He fought so long and so hard that his hand froze to the sword. I love how the Bible says, “And the LORD brought about a great victory that day” (verse 10).
Shammah was the third mighty man. The Philistines had set up camp near a field of one of Israel’s crops of lentils, and yet again the Israelites fled. Except for Shammah. He “took his stand . . . and defended” the lentils from theft and struck down the Philistines. Once again, Scripture says, “The Lord worked a great victory” (verse 12).
Three men. Three courageous deeds that set them apart for posterity.
One of their most amazing feats comes when David and his army are besieged in a cave as the Philistine army runs roughshod over Bethlehem, David’s hometown. His heart aches for his fellow villagers as the standoff wears on for days. While hidden, David and his band of misfits plot their next move. In his tired, homesick grumblings, David says aloud, “Oh, that someone would give me water to drink from the well of Bethlehem that is by the gate!” (verse 15).
The mighty men give each other glances that need no words.
“You ready?”
They fight through the lines, go to the well, draw a cup of water, fight back through the lines, and go to David. “Here is your water, sir.”
At the youth conference, Roger told this story with passion and then brought his voice low for his closing point. He looked out over a roomful of teens and left them with one question. “What if,” he said, “there were mighty men and women for God in our cities?”
Our students went home wide-eyed.
Along with Reagan, I had three other ninth-grade guys named Jack, Rory, and Brent (not their real names). I remember the night we returned from the conference. We gathered to pray before going home.
By this time, our youth group had grown to about twenty-five students. The upperclassmen were the cool kids, so cool that they showed little spiritual leadership. This small band of freshmen comprised the serious students who wanted to pray.
We gathered in a circle near the door to the gym and held hands as they started praying for friends. Right in the middle of it, little backwoods Brent, the smallest guy in the circle, said, “Lord, we just want to be mighty men for you.”
I got an idea and waited for the word “Amen.”
“Guys, I think I’m looking at the mighty men of this city,” I said. “You guys think you need to be older, bigger, and more mature, but I’m telling you, I’m looking at the mighty men right now.”
I suggested we gather again the next day and pray for their school. They spoke at the same time. “All right!”
We met at 7:00 a.m. on the front steps of the church right on Main Street. As cars whizzed by, we sat and prayed that God would give us boldness to do something for him. I was brand-new in ministry and had no idea what I was doing. All I knew was that I loved God and I kind of liked these students. I was just settling in and still trying to figure out my own daily quiet time.
That day marked the beginning of our regular morning prayer meetings, and almost immediately we heard results of the courage they fueled. The boys started sharing the gospel at school, and students responded. Within just a few days, Reagan came back and startled everyone. “I just led Brad Smith to Jesus.”
Brad was a gang member who played on the high school basketball team. But Brad didn’t quit the team to live for Jesus. He took Jesus to the team, and the influence of the Mighty Men grew.
Reagan, Jack, Rory, and Brent started going one by one to their friends and sharing the love of Jesus. They didn’t try to argue people into heaven during the middle of a science class discussion on evolution. They weren’t debaters. But when the opportunity arose, they asked questions and didn’t embarrass people.
The results were promising as several students gave their hearts to Jesus through the work of the Mighty Men.
And then it happened.
One morning I arrived at our prayer time and sensed a negative vibe. The boys were sitting on the steps in front of the church. They all stared at the ground. No one said a word. As I approached from the parking lot, I could feel the weight.
“Hey, guys. How’s it going?” I said. “Everybody good?”
“Yeah, yeah, we’re good.”
A lot of empty nods. They were the Mighty Men. They thought they were always supposed to be good. I glanced at all four boys.
“Guys, what’s going on?”
One by one, they started talking.
“I was at the end of my last class at school yesterday, and the teacher said something,” Brent said. “I had my Bible with me, and I wrote a verse, and she made fun of me in front of the whole class.”
He finally looked up with a long face. He didn’t have to finish the story. I could tell he had not answered the teacher’s mocking because he didn’t know what to say.
“We’re the good guys . . .” he said, voice trailing off.
Reagan spoke next.
“My Paw Paw is dying.” He had to choke back tears. His war-hero grandfather, who also had been his household’s hero, was near death. Reagan was close to Paw Paw. How do you share Jesus from the heart when it’s deflated?
I hadn’t noticed Jack’s face until he finally lifted his head. I saw one of his eyes had swollen almost shut. His infected eye was a mess.
This group of ninth graders poured out their hearts about all of these inexplicable roadblocks they had hit, and their eyes looked at me with an unspoken question.
“What are we going to do?”
On top of their woes, I had endured a brutal week at school and work. I had damaged my vocal chords, and my doctor had discouraged me from talking and had forbidden me from singing. So I had lost a chance to sing a solo at the Florida Baptist Convention. I’d had to stand offstage and watch another guy sing my song.
I wasn’t exactly a student ministry veteran at this point. I wasn’t much of anything. I was a college kid. Still, somehow at that moment God slipped his glasses on my eyes and put a guard over my mouth so I didn’t say anything stupid.
The boys’ heads were still down and their shoulders still slumped, and I was as surprised as they were to hear the words that tumbled out of my mouth. “Do you guys see what’s happening here?” I said. “We come together to take a stand for Jesus and love on all of our friends, and what are the chances that all of us are going through something difficult at the same time? This isn’t coincidence. This is spiritual.”
I’ll share what happened to the Mighty Men in chapter 15. But first, let’s check out how all of us are susceptible to wanting to give up through fear and frustration — even one of Jesus’ closest friends.
The Mighty Men were ready to give up too. Right then, on those front steps beside Main Street, the Lord moved and gave me the words to say. I’ll never forget how those guys responded. They finally looked up from the ground and one by one began to nod, jaws set. They sensed, correctly, that God was about to breathe into the Mighty Men anew.
Point to Remember
When we start to thrive in the Lord, we will face opposition.