Paul wrote these encouraging words:

However, this ultimate good is often accomplished only after we have traveled a long journey along a treacherous and bumpy road. In reality, those who are the called by God according to His purpose often face afflictions that they could have never imagined as God uses their lives to achieve the good that He has planned. A good example of this is found in David, whom Yahweh chose to be the King of Israel.

Having rejected Saul from being King, Yahweh sent Samuel to find a new king from the family of Jesse. When Jesse brought his oldest son forward for consideration, he seemed to be the obvious choice for Samuel. However, Yahweh rejected him, reminding Samuel that He looks at the heart rather than at the outward appearance:

One by one, Jesse brought out each of the seven sons that were present with them, and Yahweh rejected all of them. None of them had the kind of heart Yahweh was seeking:

That is when Jesse brought in David, a young reddish-looking boy, who had been keeping sheep in the fields. Yahweh chose him and anointed him to be the new King of Israel:

What a blessing for David! However, as the Spirit of Yahweh came upon young David, His Spirit was leaving the great and powerful King Saul. Furthermore, an "evil spirit from Yahweh" then came upon Saul to trouble him:

Saul could only find relief from the evil spirit whenever David played his harp:

The Spirit of Yahweh worked miraculously through David, giving him victories that no man could win. When David encountered Goliath, the Philistine giant, he told him that the battle he was about to fight belonged to Yahweh:

David slew the giant, not with a sword or a spear, but with only one smooth stone, which he hurled into his forehead with a slingshot (see 1 Samuel 17:49). The battle was Yahweh’s, and so was the victory!

Seeking to use David to increase his own might, King Saul soon put David in charge of his soldiers. However, after successfully winning his battles with the Philistines, David, rather than Saul, became the hero. David was welcomed home with music and dancing women proclaiming his might:

Instead of praising Yahweh for the victory, Saul was overcome with jealousy. Therefore, he again opened himself up to receive the evil spirit from Yahweh. He even prophesied under the anointing of that evil spirit, as he tried to kill David with a javelin:

Knowing that the Spirit of Yahweh was taken from him and was given to David, Saul’s jealousy soon gave way to fear:

Fearing David, Saul sought to destroy him. David became a fugitive, running and hiding from the raging king. However, the more the evil spirit worked through Saul to destroy David, the more David turned to Yahweh for strength and protection. Through his struggles and trials, David wrote Psalm after Psalm, praising Yahweh and thanking Him for protecting and delivering him from those that sought his life:

Each trial brought David a new opportunity to cry out to Yahweh for help. Each victory increased his faith, giving him another reason to praise Him!

From the time that young David was anointed King in that private meeting between Samuel and Jesse’s family, David’s life was one of trials and struggles. He was essentially on the run until he finally became the King at the age of thirty, after the death of Saul. He began as the King of Judah and then, seven and a half years later, he became the King of the united Kingdom of Israel:

As King, David still had battles, which he won by the power of the Spirit of God. However, not all of his battles were against foreign enemies. As David became comfortable is his position as the powerful King of Israel, the new battleground was in his family and within his heart.

David’s life was filled with trials, temptations, and tragedies, such as adultery, murder, and family problems, including the open rebellion by one of his sons to forcibly take the kingdom from him (see 2 Samuel). Even though trouble was all around him, David showed that he was overtaken with the pride of his position when he took the huge crown of a conquered king, which weighed "a talent of gold," and had it put upon his own head (see 1 Chronicles 20:2).

After another victory over Philistine giants, David’s pride increased even further, opening himself up to the work of Satan in his heart:

Another account of the same numbering event, reveals that Yahweh used Satan for His purpose:

By proudly trusting in his own power and might through his large army to win his battles, rather than in the Spirit of Yahweh, David had committed a great sin! Consequently, Yahweh brought a devastating plague upon Israel:

Finally, as he saw an angel of Yahweh with his sword drawn, ready to destroy Jerusalem, David finally saw the pride in his own heart. He and the elders clothed themselves in sackcloth and fell upon their faces in humble repentance:

The angel of Yahweh instructed David to buy a threshingfloor from a Jebusite to set up an altar unto Yahweh:

David obeyed. That threshingfloor was the location of the house of Yahweh that was to be built in Jerusalem:

Whatever David went through, he loved Yahweh:

Over and over again, David’s troubles brought him to the repentance needed for Yahweh to accomplish His purpose through him. If we love God, as David did, then the struggles we endure through life’s journey will also somehow work together for the good purpose for which He calls us.