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David & Goliath: Courage That Comes From Trusting God

Reference: 1 Samuel 17

Big Idea: Courage doesn't mean we aren't afraid. It means we trust God more than we trust our fear.

Teacher Quick Reference

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Lesson: David & Goliath: Courage That Comes From Trusting God
Scripture: 1 Samuel 17
Big Idea: Courage doesn't mean we aren't afraid. It means we trust God more than we trust our fear.
Three Main Points:
  1. Fear can make a problem seem enormous.
  2. David remembered how God had helped him before.
  3. David's confidence was in God, not himself.
  4. Courage means trusting God enough to do what is right.
  5. The victory belonged to the LORD.
Activity: Giant Problem / Bigger God
Memory Verse: 1 Samuel 17:47
Take-Home Truth:
"When I'm afraid, I can trust God and take the next right step."

Teacher Preparation

Before class:

  • Read 1 Samuel 17.
  • Pay particular attention to verses 26, 32–37, 45–47.
  • Prepare the Giant Problem / Bigger God activity.
  • Write the memory verse somewhere visible.
  • Choose an age adaptation appropriate for your group.
  • If possible, bring a small stone or smooth pebble as a visual reminder.

[!IMPORTANT] A note for the teacher David and Goliath is often taught simply as: “Be brave and defeat your giants.” That’s not quite the heart of the biblical account. David’s confidence wasn’t ultimately in himself. David’s words repeatedly point to God. The lesson is not: “You are stronger than your problems.” It is: “God is greater than anything we face, and we can trust Him.” Avoid suggesting that trusting God guarantees that every frightening situation will turn out exactly as we want. Biblical courage means faithfulness to God—not guaranteed success according to our preferred outcome.

Opening: What Feels Big?

Hold up a small object such as a pebble. Ask: “Could something this small ever be important?” Let children answer.

Then ask: “Have you ever had a problem that felt HUGE—even if someone else thought it was small?” Examples:

  • A test
  • A new school
  • Making friends
  • Being left out
  • Saying sorry
  • Telling the truth
  • Standing up for someone
  • Being afraid at night

Explain: “Sometimes fear makes a problem feel enormous.”

Then introduce Goliath. “David faced a problem that really was enormous. Goliath was a powerful warrior, and an entire army was afraid of him.”

But David saw something else. David saw the greatness of God.

The Story of David & Goliath

1. Goliath Challenged Israel

The armies of Israel and the Philistines were facing each other. Then Goliath came out. He was a champion warrior. He challenged Israel to send someone to fight him. Day after day, Goliath shouted his challenge. And day after day, the soldiers were afraid.

They looked at Goliath and thought: He’s too big. He’s too strong. We can’t defeat him.

Fear filled the army.

2. David Arrived

David was not there as a soldier. He was there because his father had sent him to take food to his brothers. David heard Goliath’s challenge. And David was surprised that everyone was so afraid.

David asked:

“Who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?”

David wasn’t pretending Goliath wasn’t dangerous. He simply understood that Goliath wasn’t greater than God.

Teaching Point: Fear looks at the size of the problem. Faith remembers the greatness of God.

3. David Remembered God’s Faithfulness

King Saul heard that David was willing to fight Goliath. Saul thought David was too young. But David explained that he had already experienced God’s help as a shepherd. David had protected his father’s sheep from a lion and a bear.

David wasn’t saying: “I’m really strong.” He was saying: “God has helped me before.”

David remembered God’s faithfulness. That gave him confidence to trust God again.

Ask: “Why do you think remembering God’s faithfulness can help us when we’re afraid?”

4. David Didn’t Fight Like Everyone Expected

Saul tried to give David his armor. But David wasn’t used to wearing it. He couldn’t move comfortably. So David took it off. Instead, he took his staff, chose five smooth stones from the brook, and carried his sling.

David wasn’t relying on impressive equipment. His confidence wasn’t in armor. It wasn’t in a sword. It wasn’t even in his sling. His confidence was in God.

5. David Faced Goliath

Goliath saw David approaching and mocked him. David answered with words that reveal where his confidence was.

“Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts…”

Then David said:

“For the battle is the LORD’S…”

That’s our memory verse. David knew something important: This battle ultimately belonged to God.

David ran toward the battle line. He took a stone from his bag. He placed it in his sling. He slung the stone. And the stone struck Goliath. Goliath fell. The Israelites saw that God had given them victory.

6. Where Was David’s Courage?

Was David courageous because he wasn’t scared? The Bible doesn’t tell us that David felt no fear. Instead, we see something more important. David trusted God. He remembered God’s faithfulness. He knew that God was greater than Goliath. And he acted on that trust.

Main Point: Courage isn’t pretending you’re not afraid. Courage is trusting God enough to do what is right while you’re afraid.

Three Things to Remember

1. Fear Can Make Problems Look Bigger

Fear focuses our attention on the problem. Goliath looked enormous to the soldiers. But David remembered God. When we’re afraid, we can stop and ask: “Am I looking only at my problem, or am I remembering God?”

2. Remember What God Has Done

David remembered the lion and the bear. He remembered God’s help. We can remember God’s faithfulness too. That doesn’t mean pretending every situation is easy. It means remembering that God has not changed. Ask: “Can you think of a time God helped you, encouraged you, or answered a prayer?”

3. Courage Comes From Trusting God

David didn’t defeat Goliath by believing: “I’m amazing.” David trusted: “God is greater.” That is the heart of biblical courage. We don’t have to pretend we’re powerful enough to handle everything. We can trust God.

Age Adaptations

Preschool (Ages 3-5)

Younger Children

For younger children, simplify the lesson to three ideas:

  • Goliath was scary. The soldiers were afraid.
  • David trusted God. David knew that God was greater than Goliath.
  • David obeyed God and stepped forward. David trusted God instead of running away.

Simple Question: “Who was David trusting?” Answer: God!

Simple Take-Home Truth: “God is bigger than what scares me.”

For younger children, avoid making the takeaway: “God will always make my scary problem disappear.” Instead: “When I’m afraid, I can trust God.”

Upper Elementary (Grades 4-6)

Older Children

Older children can explore the difference between: confidence in myself vs confidence in God

Ask:

  • What’s the difference?
  • Why is “just be brave” sometimes unhelpful?
  • Can someone be courageous and still feel afraid?
  • Why did David remember the lion and bear?
  • What did David say about who would receive the glory?
  • What are some situations where following God takes courage?

Challenge: Have students write down one situation that makes them nervous. Then underneath it write: God is with me. Then: What is the next right thing I can do?

Emphasize that trusting God doesn’t mean we know exactly how every situation will turn out. It means we don’t have to let fear decide our response.

Discussion Questions

Understanding

  1. Who was Goliath?
  2. Why were the Israelite soldiers afraid?
  3. Why was David at the battlefield?
  4. What had God helped David do as a shepherd?
  5. What did David use to fight Goliath?

Thinking

  1. Why do you think David wasn’t as frightened as the soldiers?
  2. What did David remember when he faced Goliath?
  3. Why did David refuse Saul’s armor?
  4. Where did David say the victory came from?

Personal Application

  1. What is something that makes you afraid?
  2. What can you remember about God when you’re afraid?
  3. What might courage look like at school?
  4. How can you trust God without pretending that you’re not afraid?

Activity Time

Activity Resource: Giant Problem / Bigger God View Standalone →

Type: Visual discussion activity
Time: 10–15 minutes
Group Size: 3+
Materials:

  • A small smooth stone or pebble
  • Paper
  • Pencils or markers

Purpose

Help children identify fears and problems while shifting their attention toward God’s greatness and faithfulness.

Setup

Give each child a piece of paper. Ask them to draw or write something that sometimes feels “big” to them.

Younger children can draw a picture. Older children can write a word or short description.

Examples:

  • Fear
  • School
  • Friendship problems
  • Being left out
  • Making a difficult choice
  • Something they are worried about

Activity

Hold up the small stone. Say: “David’s weapon looked small compared with Goliath. But David’s confidence wasn’t really in the stone.”

Ask: “Where was David’s confidence?” In God.

Have children write or draw their “giant problem.” Then have them write underneath: GOD IS GREATER.

Discussion

Ask: “Does writing this mean the problem isn’t real?” No.

Explain: “David knew Goliath was real and dangerous. Trusting God doesn’t mean pretending our problems aren’t real. It means remembering that our problems are not bigger than God.”

Upper Elementary (Grades 4-6)

Older Child Variation

Have older children write:

  • My problem: _______
  • What fear tells me: _______
  • What I know about God: _______
  • My next right step: _______

This helps move the activity from vague encouragement toward practical faith.

Take-Home Connection

Let children take their paper home. Encourage them to look at it during the week whenever fear returns.

Craft Time

Activity Resource: Five Smooth Stones Pouch View Standalone →

Materials:

  • Small pieces of brown felt or construction paper (about 6x6 inches)
  • Yarn or string (about 12 inches per child)
  • Hole punchers
  • Gray pom-poms or actual smooth pebbles (5 per child)
  • Black permanent markers or crayons

Purpose

To give children a tangible reminder of the five smooth stones David took into battle, and to reinforce that their true weapon is trusting in God’s name.

Setup

Finished Stones Pouch

  1. If using construction paper, you may want to pre-punch the holes around the edges to save time.
  2. If using real pebbles, ensure they are clean and dry so the marker will stick to them.

Instructions

  1. The Stones: Give each child 5 stones (or gray pom-poms). Have them write one letter of the word T-R-U-S-T on each stone (one letter per stone). For younger children, you can have them just draw a cross or a smiley face on each stone.
  2. The Pouch: Have the children take their square of brown felt or paper. If the holes aren’t punched yet, help them punch holes all the way around the outer edge, about 1 inch apart.
  3. Lacing: Give the children a piece of yarn. Show them how to weave the yarn in and out of the holes (like sewing).
  4. Closing the Pouch: Once they have laced all the way around, have them place their five stones right in the middle of the flat square.
  5. Tell them to gently pull both ends of the yarn. The felt/paper will bunch up and create a perfect little shepherd’s pouch! Tie the ends in a bow.

Discussion While Crafting

  • “Did David bring a giant sword or a heavy shield to fight Goliath?” (No, just a sling and 5 stones).
  • “Was David trusting in his stones to win the battle?” (No! He told Goliath he was fighting in the Name of the Lord).
  • “Whenever you open this pouch and see the word TRUST, remember that no matter how big your ‘giant’ is, God is bigger!”

Memory Verse

1 Samuel 17:47 (KJV)

“For the battle is the LORD’S…”

Teach the Meaning

Ask: “What does David mean when he says the battle belongs to the LORD?”

Explain: David isn’t saying that we never have to act. David acted. He stepped forward. He used the tools he had. But David understood that the ultimate source of victory was God.

Memory Verse Challenge

Have children repeat:

“For the battle…”

Then:

“…is the LORD’S…”

Then:

“…and he will give you into our hands.”

For younger children, focus on the first phrase: “For the battle is the LORD’S.” Add simple motions:

  • battle → gently make fists
  • LORD’S → point upward

Knowledge Check

Knowledge Check

Question 1 of 5

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Application

Ask: What is one thing that feels “big” to you right now? Give children time to think.

Then ask: What can you remember about God when you’re afraid?

Remind them: David didn’t make Goliath smaller. David remembered that God was greater.

When fear says: “You can’t do this.” We can remember: “God is with me.”

When fear says: “This is too big.” We can remember: “God is greater.”

Then ask: “What is the next right thing I can do?”

Take-Home Challenge

This week, when something makes you afraid:

STOP

Take a breath.

REMEMBER

Think of something true about God.

TRUST

Tell God what you’re afraid of.

TAKE THE NEXT RIGHT STEP

Do what is right instead of letting fear make the decision.

A simple prayer:

“God, I’m afraid, but I trust You. Help me take the next right step.”

Closing Thought

Goliath looked enormous. But David’s God was greater. David didn’t need to pretend he was the strongest person on the battlefield. He needed to remember who God was.

We will face things that scare us too. Some problems will feel very big. Some fears will feel very real. But courage doesn’t mean saying: “I’m not afraid.” It means saying: “I am afraid, but I trust God.”

Closing Prayer

Father, thank You that You are greater than anything we face. When we are afraid, help us remember who You are. Give us courage—not because we are strong enough to handle everything ourselves, but because we can trust You. Help us do what is right even when we are afraid. Teach us to remember Your faithfulness and to take the next right step. Thank You for being with us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Teacher Quick Reference — One-Minute Version

DAVID & GOLIATH: COURAGE THAT COMES FROM TRUSTING GOD
1 Samuel 17

Big Idea

Courage doesn’t mean I aren’t afraid. It means I trust God more than I trust my fear.

Memory Verse

“For the battle is the LORD’S…” — 1 Samuel 17:47

Three Points

  1. Fear can make problems look enormous.
  2. Remember what God has done.
  3. Courage comes from trusting God.

Opening

What is something that feels bigger than you?

Activity

Giant Problem / Bigger God

Ask

  • What is one thing that feels big to you right now?
  • What can you remember about God?
  • What is the next right thing you can do?

Take-Home Truth

When I’m afraid, I can trust God and take the next right step.

Closing

Pray for courage to trust God rather than letting fear decide.