Only God can stop this 1 Samuel 20:1-2NLT — David now fled from Naioth in Ramah and found Jonathan. “What have I done?” he exclaimed. “What is my crime? How have I offended your father that he is so determined to kill me?” 2. “That’s not true!” Jonathan protested. “You’re not going to die. He always tells me everything he’s going to do, even the little things. I know my father wouldn’t hide something like this from me. It just isn’t so!” You are Lord forever and ever. Nothing changes you. Whether the winds blow or not, you remain, God. I lift my hands and heart to you this morning. I pray for peace around the world, especially in the Middle East. Lord, there is too much death and suffering of the innocent souls. Only you can stop this. In Jesus's name I pray, amen. Only God knows the future to the last minute. There are times when he allows certain situations to happen in order for certain outcomes to come to pass. This is the reason Paul wrote to the church at Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 5:18) that in everything, give thanks to the Lord. This morning, the Holy Spirit has directed me to talk about bitterness. Bitterness is poison. At times you don't realise that you have it in you until you open your mouth. David was at Naioth in Ramah with Samuel. We all know what happened at Naioth when Saul finally found David. David escaped from Saul again. Amazingly, he escapes from Saul but fell into the hands of Jonathan, Saul’s son. David poured out his bitterness to Jonathan. In teams of facts on the ground, David was correct. Saul wanted to kill David. David had been on the run for sometime now. However, verse 2 brings into light some powerful truth that even in our lives we tend to miss when we are confronted with trying times. We always miss the fact that God brings the opposite to what is threatening our lives. Allow me to present Jonathan as the Holy Spirit in our lives. When our legs can't carry us anymore, the Holy Spirit finds us. Read Jonathan's reply to David, and I quote, “That’s not true!” Jonathan protested. close quote. Jonathan did not say, “That's not correct”. It is correct that your enemies are after you, but it is not true that they will kill you. Hallelujah!! Bitterness forces you to be blind to the ability of God's power to protect you. Bitterness drives you to dwell on the negative and fail to see the outcome of what God wants you to enjoy. Correct, they don't like you!!! But it is not true that they control the outcomes of your life. OMG, verse 2 crushes verse 1 to pieces. You have the Holy Spirit who knows every plan and every secret of the devil and his agents. Listen, your church is not full of saints. There are agents of the devil in there. Planted for a purpose to destroy the present and the future of many lives. But, thank God for the Holy Spirit. He gets to hear everything, including the small, small detail. YOU WILL NOT DIE, both physically and spiritually. Your future is in the hands of God. David had even forgotten the event in his father's compound in 1 Samuel 16. He forgot about the anointing. He even forgot about the event in chapter 17. That is the danger of carrying bitterness in your heart. It forces you to forget about the successes you received at critical moments before. Who told you that the road to the top lies bare of challenges. How can you be a king who hasn't dodged arrows of hardships? Are you forgetting that experience is the best teacher? Listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to your life. Siyana ne godo- leave that bitterness. Look at Saul, 42 years of rulership, only to commit suicide at the end. Those after your life, shall only realise when it is too late that they were after their own lives. What do we need to do? Pray that God gives us clean hearts that does not host bitterness, even as a visitor. We need eyes that will cause us to see beyond the negative things happening in our lives, currently. See, the River Jordan has been opened for you to cross over. Elder Josphat Murape +260976749389 18/6/2025