I was led to meditate on the story of Mephibosheth. The story is simple but the lessons from it are plentiful. We are going to pull it apart little by little. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the story, pull up a seat and enjoy this series. It’s a good one….

We first meet Mephibosheth in 2 Samuel 4:4. His grandfather King Saul and his father Jonathan have been killed in the war between Saul and David. The palace is being overrun and Saul’s servants have heard that the king and his heir are dead. At this time, Mephibosheth is about five years old. His nurse picks him up to flee the palace. She drops him and he was crippled as a result of the fall.

And Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth. (2 Samuel 4:4 KJV)

The bible cites what went on and then gives Mephibosheth’s name.  We are going to focus on the first part of the verse. Mephibosheth is first described as Jonathan’s son who was lame of his feet. The nurse took Mephibosheth up and fled. In her haste, she drops him in such a way that he becomes crippled for life. Ask yourself, how are you walking out in faith crippled?

Let’s take a moment to consider Mephibosheth. He’s five years old. He used to run around the palace and play with other children. Now, through no fault of his own, he’s crippled. Suddenly, he can no longer walk, run or play on his feet. Not only that. He is being uprooted from his home and doesn’t understand why. His father and grandfather are dead. I suspect he possibly had to spend a portion of this time in hiding. It was customary that new rulers killed their predecessors’ family and staff when taking a kingdom by force.

Going through that seems unimaginable. However, some of us do it all the time. Being physically crippled is obvious. Most of us will never deal with a physical injury. However, most of us are quite familiar with being crippled emotionally and spiritually. Whether by someone else, ourselves, or a hurtful situation we understand the concept. Those things keep us from moving forward in joy and in purpose. Sometimes those things uproot us in relationships with those around us. Sadly, when we pretend like nothing’s happened, we don’t realize that we are in hiding.

How Do We Overcome?

Our experiences are powerful. We’ve even renamed what has crippled us as hang-ups. We’ve given it a name as a crutch to use as an excuse for having it. Since we’ve given our infirmities crutches we need to decide to throw them away. We need to believe that we have been healed. God never intended for us to move through life on crutches. He intends for us to lean on Him. 1 Peter 5:7 (KJV) says Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. Not some things but all things. The good, the bad, the ugly, the easy and the hard. God cares for us. It is His pleasure to intervene on our behalf. He already knows what’s going on with you. So, give it all to Him.

Give your whole self to God. Romans 12:1 (KJV) says I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. Dedicate your activities to God. Remind yourself that you can do all things in Christ. God empowers us to walk in our purpose. Those things that keep us on crutches have to go. So, let them go.

While you are giving yourself and your cares to God, trust Him. Proverbs 3:5-6 (KJV) says Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Trust God’s plan for you. Don’t stray from the path He’s set before you. Resist the urge to go your own way when what He’s asking of you doesn’t make sense. There will be discouragements that will try to derail you but trust God.

Lastly, don’t fall into worry. Mephibosheth had no idea what was in store for him and neither do we. God’s timing isn’t always our timing because He exists out of time. We exist in time. If we feel like He’s taking His time; when it seems like it’s taking longer than we think He should, we tend to fall into worrying. Follow Philippians 4:6 (KJV) Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. Trust that God’s got you. Isaiah 49:16 (KJV) says Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. When worry sets in, pray. God always hears you. ~ Selah