With warmth and humour, Pastor Folger reminded us how deeply our American neighbours appreciate Canada, its majestic national anthem, poutine, and even Swiss Chalet’s secret sauce. He recalled his father preaching in the same meeting years earlier and expressed gratitude for the church’s beautiful facilities and its faithful new pastor. Most importantly, he opened the Scriptures to show how God prepares every leader through His own divine school of leadership, a process that begins not in palaces but in caves.
The dorm room in the school of leadership
The Bible tells us that after David was anointed king, he found himself fleeing for his life and hiding in the cave of Adullam. Far from the throne he had dreamed of, David’s first classroom was a dark, uncomfortable cave. Later he moved to the forest of Hareth, yet the conditions remained difficult. Pastor Folger compared this to his own Bible college dorm days, complete with ironing-board pulpits and weekend messes, and admitted he would still prefer those dorms over David’s cave.
God often places His servants in unlikely “dorm rooms” to test the sincerity of their desire to serve. Before any crown or palace, David had to learn to live with very little comfort, convenience, or recognition. The lesson is clear: if we long to lead God’s people, we must first prove faithful in the humble and hidden places He chooses for our training.
The courses in the school of leadership
While living in that cave, David enrolled in four essential courses that every biblical leader must complete.
The first course was forgiveness. David’s own family, who had once overlooked and even criticised him, came to join him in the cave. Instead of holding past hurts against them, David welcomed them. Leadership requires thick skin and a heart quick to forgive.
The second course was leading the lowly. Verse 2 records that “every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.” These were not the elite or the polished; they were the broken and the burdened. Pastor Folger noted that the people who usually walk through church doors today are often just like them. If we cannot love and lead the least of these, we will never be ready to lead anyone else. Those who have been forgiven much love much, and God delights to use the lowly to accomplish His greatest work.
The third course was patience. David sent his parents to safety in Moab and asked the king to keep them “till I know what God will do for me.” He had no timeline, no five-year plan, only a quiet trust that God would reveal the next step in His time. Many leaders find themselves in similar holding patterns, learning that waiting on the Lord is an indispensable part of leadership training.
The final course was obedience. When the prophet Gad delivered a clear command to leave the cave and return to the land of Judah, David obeyed immediately. The best leaders are those who have first learned how to follow. No one is fit to give orders who has not learned to take them.
The instructors in the school of leadership
God used three very different instructors to teach David in this season.
First, He used David’s family. Even those who had previously marginalised him became instruments of comfort and encouragement. God can teach us through the very people we least expect.
Second, He used the broken. The four hundred distressed, indebted, and discontented men who gathered to David were not impressive by worldly standards, yet they became fiercely loyal followers. God often uses the least likely people to shape and strengthen future leaders.
Third, He used the prophet Gad, a man virtually unknown until this moment. Gad’s simple instruction to leave the cave and return to Judah was heeded without question. We must never despise the voice God sends to correct or direct us, no matter how ordinary the messenger may appear.
Conclusion
David’s time in God’s school of leadership stripped away every illusion of grandeur and replaced it with humility, service, and dependence on the Lord. The same God who trained David is still enrolling students today. Whether you find yourself in a cave, a forest, or a season that feels far from your dreams, remember that every difficulty is part of His curriculum. Remain faithful. Embrace forgiveness. Love the lowly. Wait patiently. Obey promptly. The Instructor who enrolled you will also graduate you in His perfect time, fully equipped for the work He has prepared.
