How do you begin? You start by doing the four things David did to defeat the giants of delay, discouragement, disapproval, and doubt in his life. If you want to be a person of great faith—with a great dream and a great life work—do those four things too.

Remember how God helped you in the past. David said in 1 Samuel 17:37, “The Lord who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear will rescue me from this Philistine!” (NLT).

When you remember the ways that God has helped you in the past, you have confidence for the future.

Use the tools God has given you in the present. God provided David with tools that tapped into his strengths: “Then Saul gave David his own armor . . . ‘I can’t go in these,’ he protested to Saul. ‘I’m not used to them.’ So David took them off again. He picked up five smooth stones from a stream and put them into his shepherd’s bag” (1 Samuel 17:38-40 NLT).

Don’t wait for something you don’t have—money, education, or connections. Use the tools God has already given you to face your giants with confidence.

Ignore the dreambusters. Later in life, when others were speaking against him, David had to encourage himself in the Lord: “David was seriously worried, for in their bitter grief for their children, his men began talking of killing him. But David took strength from the Lord” (1 Samuel 30:6 TLB).

Encouraging yourself in the Lord does not mean just having a positive mental attitude. It means cultivating a bedrock trust in God’s grace, provision, security, and power.

Expect God to help you for his glory. David stormed the battlefield, shouting, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty . . . This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands . . . and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel” (1 Samuel 17:45-46 NIV).

When I was a young man, I made the decision to rely on God as I pursued the dream he’d given me. In the mountains of Northern California one night, I got down on my knees and prayed, “God, I’m not the smartest guy, the best educated, or the most talented. But I’m going to trust you. And I will do anything—anytime and anywhere—in faith, even when it doesn’t make sense to me.”

And what an adventure my life has been! I now stand up and speak to a crowd every week that is about five times bigger than the town I grew up in—all because I expected God to use me for his glory.

God will use anyone who trusts in him and expects to be used by him—not because of who you are but because of who he is.