EXPERIENCE

Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God – 1 Samuel 17:36

EXPERIENCE is another important avenue of learning, and an enhancer of Light. Experience refers to practical contact with and observation of facts or events; the knowledge or mastery of an event or subject gained through involvement in or exposure to it. Experience is actually more than what happens to you; it’s what you do with what happens to you. Yet, there is the tendency to trivialize the place of experience. Revelation knowledge, though superior to Sense knowledge, does not deny or obliterate the role of the latter. Our God-given senses are not useless or worthless. God will not waste precious ‘revelation’ on matters He has given us ‘common-sense’ to solve or resolve! Although we are not meant to be led through life by experience, but in Faith, by God’s Spirit, experiences can contribute to comprehending and confirming God’s leading.

Of course we must define the limits of experience: it may give us a certain level of confidence and comfortability in proven situations, and can hinder growth and development when people become complacent and dependent in this situation and refuse to step out, move forward, think outside the box, or try new things! In Luke 5, Jesus being not a fisherman would have been described as inexperienced. But, the experienced fishermen were going through a difficult period, having toiled all night without catching any fish. Jesus gave them a divine revelation to launch out into the deep during the daytime, which was contrary to what they knew to be proven. At first, they doubted His ability to advise them on matters of fishing. However, because of their obedience, their situation changed, and the solution was clear. That depicts the limit of experience.

Consider another event: Apostle Paul did not have any experience in ship navigation. However, through divine revelation, he gave advice which was ultimately ignored in deference to that of the helmsman and the owner of the ship – the experts in their field. But when the storm came, their experience or expertise could not save them, and they were shipwrecked. Experience will help you to operate the ship, but it takes revelation to prevent you from getting shipwrecked! God wants leaders to lead by divine revelation, complemented by experience. No two seasons are the same. Every season brings new challenges and issues. Solving a problem today may give general experience on dealing with a specific matter; but you cannot use yesterday’s past experiences to solve today’s specific problems, particularly when new circumstances emerge!

God can sanctify and use your experience, as in the case of David (1Sam. 17:34-36). Originally, Saul would not allow him to fight Goliath, as he considered David to be too young and inexperienced to fight a formidable enemy as Goliath (17:33). Meanwhile, like many youth in Israel, David had worked as a shepherd, responsible to look after sheep and to protect them from wild animals, such as lions and bears, which were among the fiercest wild animals common in Israel in those days – much stronger than humans (1 Kgs. 13:24; 2 Kgs 2:24). Only the bravest could kill a lion (Jud. 14:5-6; 2 Sam. 23:20). David however shared his experience of killing both a lion and a bear, and considered he was able to defeat Goliath. This is what the story of David teaches: Slay your lion and bear before you take on Goliath. Scale your goals to your measure of faith.

Surely, there is a place for Experinece in the scheme of life. Benjamin Disraeli, said: “Experience is the child of Thought, and Thought is the child of Action. We cannot learn them from books.” According to Paul J. Meyer: “It is okay to lose if you used the experience to learn something of Value.” Experiences can be precious; cherish them!