It may be a gift, or a written note. Think of what would really make the difference. This is the heart of David. This is the kind of person he was. He never forgot the good that people did to him. There was something about him that always appreciated and valued the people that he had around him.
2 Samuel 2:5-6 – “David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead, and said to them: you are blessed of the Lord, for you have shown this kindness to your lord, to Saul, and have buried him. And now may the Lord show kindness and truth to you. I will also repay you this kindness”.
Remember, King Saul was his enemy, but his son Jonathan was his friend. Saul and his sons died in the battlefield and the enemy had chopped off their heads, and hung them up on a wall. The men of Jabesh Gilead went in the middle of the night, took the bodies down, took them back, and gave them a proper burial.
This is what David had to say: Because you did this thing, may the Lord show His blessing upon you. I will repay you for it too. His heart was to bless people, and show kindness, to people who act honorably.
Do you acknowledge people who do what is right, who act honorably, and do the right thing? Its quite a challenge to do that. When you see a young person make a stand, maybe an unpopular stand, do you go up and encourage them, and speak into them: man, I really was inspired by what you did! That was wonderful! Here is something to encourage you. This is the kind of person that David was. We tend to see his battles and his victories, and how he became a king and changed a nation. We see him as a history maker, when we look at his events, but we're trying to look into his heart - what kind of person he was.
Looking into his heart, we find there's this passionate love for God, and not only did God guide him, and direct him in his life, but he also took on the characteristics of what God is like. He didn't forget his friends, and he honored those who honor the Lord. What kinds of things have you done in the last year, to express appreciation to those who you've seen act really well; who do something really good; or have helped you to get where you are?
Here's another thing that he did. He showed bigness of heart in welcoming people who had formerly served his enemy. King Saul was hounding him down, and these people served King Saul, but he showed kindness to them, honored them, and valued them. It shows a bigness of heart if, the people who once were against you – if you can not react, and reject, and be bitter towards them, but include them in your future. It takes bigness of heart to do that.
Most people, if someone has really affected you, or hurt you, then that's it - you write them off, and judge them. They're never going to come near you again - but do you have a heart big enough, that if someone has hurt you, offended you or done something that's upset you, that you can still be big enough to welcome them into your future, when they look like they've made a change?
In a small town like this, it's often very hard to live past your mistakes. But people change, and these people who were against him initially - they've turned now, and they're open to him, and he's enlarged his heart to make room to include them. How inclusive are you? Do you have your little cliques and ones you're really close to, or do you have a heart to reach out and gather up potentially other great people?
With David, many people came to him, in their droves - and he welcomed them, received them and raised them up to be loyal men, men of war who would shape the future. If you're going to have a great destiny, you're going to need great people around you. Are you big enough to welcome into your life people who may have been difficult before?