David was chosen to be king in his teens but only made it to the throne aged thirty. There are more lessons to learn:

(1) God calls the person. Despite being unappreciated by his family and overlooked by the prophet Samuel, God picked David. He also picked Deborah to lead the nation in a male-dominated society. Let's stop trying to figure God out, and stop comparing ourselves to others! 'Doesn't a potter have the right to make a fancy bowl and a plain bowl out of the same lump of clay' (Romans 9:21 CEV)? (2) God decides the plan. 'He who has begun a good work in you will complete it' (Philippians 1:6 NKJV). Who began it? So who should our confidence be in? God! God's plan for David involved years of ducking Saul's spears and living in caves with misfits who redefine the word 'dysfunctional'. God trains us in a small sphere so we can handle a bigger one. (3) God knows the span of time required. Endurance means standing firm under pressure. The Bible says we inherit the promises through faith, endurance and patience (see Colossians 1:11-12). This means being like Joseph, who refused to let go of his dream; it's what helped him through all sorts of trouble, including years of unjust imprisonment. But the day came when a whole kingdom was handed to Joseph.

So what now? Keep your eyes on the 'throne' - your place in God's Kingdom - and don't give up! God is with you and he wants you to succeed.

God described David as 'a man after my own heart'! Wow, high praise. Over the next few days we'll look at David's life. We'll see that David's humble start didn't stop him reaching dizzy heights. He was a shepherd who ended up as a king! The chances of that happening were next to none in those days - shepherds were so low on the ladder they couldn't even witness in a court of law as their word wasn't considered reliable; yet by age 30 David was wearing the crown.

But the story's not all success. During his 40 years in leadership David experienced devastating failure.

There are two lessons we can learn: (1) Don't rush to judgement. It is not over until God says it's over. David's story is a warning to the self-righteous, a testimony to the justice of God that won't allow us to escape our sin's consequences, and to his love that will never let go of us. (2) God can bring good out of it. He can take every experience we've been through, both positive and negative, and make it work for good, either our good or the good of others. When we chase God's purposes despite our flaws, he makes 'all things work together for good' (Romans 8:28 NKJV).

So what now? Have a read of David's life from 1 Samuel 16. It's a great story of a man's journey with God. How can you apply what David learned to your life, and be a man (or woman) after God's own heart?

Lifeguards know more than just how to stand next to the pool or how to glare at people doing dive bombs. They know how to save people from drowning! If a lifeguard is trying to save us, we need to stop kicking around trying to save ourselves. When we're struggling in water we tire easily, sink faster and can drag others down with us. That's why a lifeguard tells us to stop struggling and trust them.

It's true with God too: he doesn't need our help to save us! The Bible says, 'God's mercy is great, and he loved us very much. Though we were spiritually dead because of the things we did against God, he gave us new life with Christ... And he raised us up with Christ and gave us a seat with him in the heavens...you have been saved by grace through believing. You did not save yourselves; it was a gift from God. It was not the result of your own efforts' (Ephesians 2:4-9 NCV).

When Nicodemus came to talk to Jesus about salvation, he thought Jesus would give him a list of religious do's and don'ts. What this top religious leader failed to grasp is that God is not impressed with our good works; he loves us but, in his eyes, 'each of our good deeds is merely a filthy rag' (Isaiah 64:6 CEV). Humbling!

So what now? Paul writes: 'His grace...is a free gift' (Romans 3:24 NCV), and he's offering it to you today. Will you truly accept it?

How's our attention span? In this day and age it's so easy to be distracted. It's no surprise, given the amount of phone/internet/media related interaction in our daily lives.

Let's start today on a practical note: let's cut out attention-grabbers during our devotional time. We may have heard the classic challenge: 'What if we spent as much time reading the Bible as we did on social media/watching TV?' This may seem such a clich but it's a fair point. Let's keep notifications and texts out of sight to honour him. From there, we can invite him into our other time. Our Bible and prayer time with him set us up for the rest of our day, including what we read online and send to others.

Practical tip two: reading the Bible daily is good for us. Doing it in the best time for us makes it better and easier. Are we a morning or evening person? When we're most likely to take in what we're reading is the best time to get stuck into Scripture. There will always be something pressuring us or trying to distract us. But when we determine to focus on God, our relationship with him will only grow.

So what now? Read a passage in the Bible (maybe some of SoulFood below), then open a newsfeed and spend time praying for the people and situations that pop up, based on what you've just read in God's word. Brush up on your God stuff.

We've heard we should act like Jesus. But we're also supposed to smell like him! Before we rush to the shop to buy 'eau de travelling preacher from a hot country in the 1st Century AD', let's look at what the Bible means by 'aroma of Christ': 'We are...the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved, and those who are perishing. To one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life' (2 Corinthians 2:15-16 NIV).

When the Roman army won in battle, they paraded their defeated foes through the streets in chains. And as part of the celebration they burned incense on a series of altars throughout the city. That way those who couldn't see the procession knew the army had won, because they could smell the incense. The aroma symbolised their victory.

As followers of Jesus, we carry 'the aroma of the knowledge of him' (2 Corinthians 2:14 NIV). Our life should be so full of God's presence that people around us sense it. After all, we are the most compelling evidence that Jesus is alive. God uses his people to make himself known. The more time we spend with Jesus, talking to him, reading his word, listening and worshipping him, the more people will say, 'There's something different about you.'

So what now? Be aware of yourself, wherever you go and whoever you're with. Are you the 'aroma of Christ'? Does your scent make the atmosphere sweeter?

News flash: we're not perfect! We do generally accept this, but it can be hard when others point out our weaknesses and blind spots. When someone mentions something that we could have handled better or improve at, we so easily take it like an arrow to the heart. Actually, we need people who'll be honest with us. We are prone to acting before we use the brain God's given us, so when someone lets us know what we could be doing better, it really is a blessing, not a curse.

Sometimes we need others to 'proof-read' us. Sure, it depends on how they do it: there's a difference between 'You suck at this!' and 'Hey, that thing you did, that's not cool,' but generally, we don't get offended because of the way someone's criticised us, but because they've dared to suggest we're not perfect. Let's ask God to help us be humble in the face of correction.

And sometimes we will have to correct others to help them, but let's make this because we love them and want what's best for them. And let's use uplifting words when we deliver our message - words that bring honour and dignity.

So what now? Super-wise Solomon said, 'To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction' (Proverbs 12:1 NLT). Ask God to help you to respond well when confronted about your attitude or behaviour - to listen and consider the correction; to wisely process the feedback; to genuinely attempt to change if what is said is true.