For whatever reason, your heart and thoughts shifted, and it led you down a path that you’re not proud of or that seems so foolish looking back. And like David, you know the grace and kindness of the God who did not forsake you there or give up on you. Even in ordinary and small ways, we frequently drift from God. Every time we give in to fear, worry, anger, lust, selfishness, despair, pride, and worldliness, it’s because our thoughts and feelings have led us astray. Instead of being anchored to truth and trusting in God, our hearts and minds confused us or deceived us. Our thoughts and feelings betray us.

One frustrating thing about the Christian life is how fickle our hearts prove to be. I’m amazed how I can start my day in Scripture soaring on the truths of God’s glory, and then by lunch I doubt whether God will come through for me. I can tell others about His goodness one day and then question His goodness the next. I’ve had seasons of spiritual dry spells where it felt like the dark clouds of life hid the sun of God’s presence, and then had seasons where the rays of God’s presence felt like they beamed directly on me. I can lay down my life in selflessness toward one person but act so selfish toward someone else. My mind can rest in God’s Word, only to have a windstorm of anxious thoughts sweep through with a trail of destruction.

When I look back over the last couple of decades of following Christ, I’ve seen God change me in big and small ways. My faith has grown, and yet there are also many times I’m reminded how shaky my faith can be. It can be discouraging and disappointing. The story of a disciple certainly isn’t about our faithfulness, but it’s about the faithfulness of God (2 Tim. 2:13). We remain sinners and saints in this life, made alive in Christ by God’s Spirit, and yet still haunted by indwelling sin. We must continue to submit our mind and heart to God. We must fight temptation and resist idols. We must confess and repent of our sin rather than growing comfortable with them. We stray from God and must continually return to Him

Part of what means it to be a follower of Jesus is to be an imperfect disciple. The Spirit is making us gradually more like Christ, but we also wander, doubt, and fail. We will all have seasons in the desert as well as seasons where we’ve acted foolish, been driven by worry, or walked too much in our own fallen flesh rather than the by the power of the Spirit. But how do we respond at these times? When we find ourselves overcome by fear and anxiety, overwhelmed by discouragement, wearied by our situation in life or the sin in our heart, or far from God and longing for His presence, what do we do? How do we return to the Lord? How do we regain spiritual strength when we’re weak?

David’s Story of Straying

David’s story in 1 Samuel 27-30 has all the marks of someone straying from God. 1 Samuel 27 opens with David listening to his heart, giving in to fear, and doubting God’s promises. Instead of trusting that God would deliver him from Saul (as promised), David became convinced Saul would kill him. Instead of inquiring of God, like he had done so often before, David failed to pray to God and trusted in himself.

There’s a noticeable absence of God from this part of David’s story and a notable deficiency on his end to seek God.

This led David down a path of aligning himself with Israel’s enemies—the Philistines—and committing a host of violent acts against others (1 Samuel 27). God providentially spared David from having to go into battle against Israel, but when David and his men returned to their base of Ziklag, they discovered it had been been burned, raided, and their families were kidnapped. While his soldiers had been loyal to this point, they’ve had enough. They began speaking of stoning David.

“David was greatly distressed” (1 Samuel 30:6). David’s wandering led him deep into a dark wilderness. He hit rock-bottom.

We Are All Straying Sheep

Before seeing where the story goes next, notice how David is portrayed as a fearful, wandering sheep. I don’t think David’s beliefs had changed, but he seemed to set his faith on the back burner as he operated out of instinct. He didn’t pause to ask what God wanted him to do or to let truth recalibrate what he thought and felt. He lived in survival mode, doing what made sense to him from one circumstance to the next.

David was just like us in his foolish decisions and fearful straying. None of us are immune to the effects of anxiety, discouragement, and distress. We all let our thinking and feeling at times lead us into short-sighted choices or rash steps. We can all stray like sheep when thunder strikes. Sometimes that veering from the path can be sudden and dramatic, but other times it’s subtle and slow. It’s not until we look back that we notice how far we’ve wandered from the path.

When we see ourselves in David, we realize how encouraging his story can be. If he felt great fear, if he wandered from the path, and if he made foolish decisions, and yet God extended grace to him and still used him in significant ways, then the same can happen for us.

The Good Shepherd seeks, finds, and brings back His sheep. No matter how far we run, what valley we drift into, or what thickets we get entangled in, God patiently and lovingly pursues us. He brings us back to Himself, back to the still waters and green pastures in His presence. Any believer who has wandered from God, however far and however long, has tasted the grace and goodness of the God who lovingly brings them home. He is steadfast in love, infinite in patience, and faithful in all His ways toward us.

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