1 Samuel 23:4 (NLT) So David asked the Lord again, and again the Lord replied, “Go down to Keilah, for I will help you conquer the Philistines.”

The Bible says that David had great success in everything that he did because the Lord was with him (1 Samuel 18:14). When you read the story of David's life in the books of 1 and 2 Samuel, you will find that David asked God about everything, so it's no wonder that he had great success in everything that he did. When you ask God, who knows all things, what to do and how to do it, how can you ever fail? God will not mislead you and He never gets anything wrong. David knew this and trusted the Lord completely for direction and guidance. But he went further than that. The verse above comes about after David had asked the Lord if he should help the people of Keilah, whose grain was being looted from the threshing floors by the Philistines. God answered and let him know that he should go and help them. But the men that were with David were afraid to go because Saul and his army were hunting them down to kill David and anyone that was with him. They thought that they may get trapped in that walled town. So what did David do? He asked the Lord again!

David had such an intimate relationship with God that he was not afraid to approach Him again to be sure that He did indeed want him to go to defend the people of Keilah. God not only answered him again and told David to go, but as the verse above says, He let him know that He was going to help David and his men defeat the Philistines. With that reaffirmation, David and his men went boldly and confidently into battle, knowing that there was no way that they could lose.

It is such a wise and important thing to check with God about everything because He knows what we don't know, and then some. We need to learn to ask God about everything. Why shouldn't we? Our God invites us to allow Him to guide us in everything that we do. But more than that, it is also good to know that you can go back to God after He answers you to check with Him again. The reason that this is sometimes necessary is that people can plant doubts in your mind about God's answer just like David's men planted in David's mind. You may encounter doubters and naysayers that will try to discourage you from doing what God had instructed you to do and only in going back and asking again like David did will you have the assurance that you did indeed hear from the Lord and that He will be with you in doing what He has told you to do.

There is never any need to have even an ounce of doubt with what you are to do because God invites us to reaffirm His answer to us. He knows that we are weak and made of dust and so He has great compassion on us (Psalm 103:13-14). Go boldly and confidently to do what the Lord is instructing you to do after you have asked Him and if need be, having asked Him again.

Pastor Joey Vazquez