Cloudy Days . . . Dark Nights

In this message covering 1 Samuel 27, 29, and 30, Chuck Swindoll explores the inevitable seasons of despondency that believers face, using John Bunyan’s concept of the “Slough of Despond” to describe David’s spiritual condition. Following a season of high victories, David hits a low point where he stops looking to God and begins listening to his own fears. Swindoll notes that while despondency itself is not a sin, the choices we make while in the “pits” often lead to misery and compromise.

The sermon analyzes David’s decision to flee Israel and live in the enemy territory of the Philistines. Swindoll identifies this as a move into the “Carnal Corral,” where David lived a life of duplicity for 16 months. During this time, the “Sweet Singer of Israel” wrote no Psalms and engaged in brutal raids while lying to King Achish to cover his tracks. Swindoll argues that carnal Christians may experience temporary relief (a “passing pleasure of sin” because the pressure is off), but they eventually face a crisis of identity and satisfaction.

The narrative concludes with David hitting rock bottom when his city, Ziklag, is burned and his own men threaten to stone him. Swindoll highlights the pivotal moment when David finally stops looking horizontally at his circumstances and looks vertically, strengthening himself in the Lord. The message serves as a warning that running from God’s geography never solves the problem, but God is always ready to receive the believer who looks up.

Message Key Facts:

• Three Causes of David’s Collapse: Swindoll outlines the internal logic that led David astray:
  1. Humanistic Viewpoint: “David said to himself…” He stopped consulting God and looked at life strictly from a horizontal perspective.
  2. Pessimistic Reasoning: “I will perish one day.” Despite God’s promises that he would be king, David focused on the bleakness of the future.
  3. Rationalistic Logic: “There is nothing better for me than to escape.” David concluded that running to the enemy was the only logical way to survive.
• The “Carnal Corral”: Swindoll uses this term to describe the lifestyle of a believer who is saved on the inside but lives like a non-believer on the outside. He notes that carnal Christians are often the most difficult people in the church because they are living in a “miserable dilemma” of duplicity.
• The Silence of the Singer: Swindoll points out that during the one year and four months David lived in Philistia, there is no record of him writing any Scripture or Psalms. Carnality stifles spiritual production and deep joy.
• Collateral Damage: Swindoll emphasizes that we never sin in isolation. When David “crossed over” into compromise, he dragged 600 men and their families (including his wife Abigail) into enemy territory with him.
• The Deception of Relief: When David fled to Gath, Saul stopped hunting him. Swindoll connects this to Hebrews 11:25, noting that sin has “passing pleasures”—often the relief of pressure—but this false security eventually evaporates.
• Four Steps Downward: Swindoll traces the emotional toll of David’s compromise:
  1. Displaced Person: David struggled with his identity, belonging neither to Israel nor truly to Philistia.
  2. Disillusionment: The benefits of carnality were eclipsed by the liabilities.
  3. Distrust: His own men eventually turned against him.
  4. Depression: It led to a despair so deep they wept until they had no strength left.
• The Turning Point: The sermon pivots on the phrase, “But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” Swindoll notes that the “Slough of Despond” is not designed to throw us on our backs, but to bring us to our knees.

Message References:

• 1 Samuel 27:1: David’s internal dialogue of doubt: “Now I will perish one day by the hand of Saul.”
• 1 Samuel 27:7: The duration of David’s compromise: “A year and four months.”
• Hebrews 11:25: The reference to the “passing pleasures of sin.”
• 1 Samuel 27:8–11: David’s duplicity in raiding the Geshurites and Amalekites while telling Achish he was raiding Judah.
• 1 Samuel 29:6: Achish’s ironic trust in David: “I have found no fault in you.”
• 1 Samuel 30:1–6: The burning of Ziklag, the mutiny of David’s men, and David finally turning back to God.
• James 1:2: “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials” (Referenced regarding the inevitability of dark days).

Message Speaker:

Pastor Chuck Swindoll