Here we see a real secret of David’s success - why it was that he was used so effectively, why his life had so great an impact that we study him to this day. David was a man who inquired of the Lord.

“Is this the right time to go into the cities of Judah?” David asked.

“Yes,” the Lord answered.

“Where should I go?” David asked.

“Go to Hebron,” the Lord answered.

When David asked if it was time for him to go into the cities of Judah, God could have said, “Yes. Go to Hebron first.” But He didn’t do that. He gave David the specific information David asked for and waited until David asked for more.

The Lord does the same with us. He isn’t reluctant to give guidance, but there’s something more important than guidance. It’s called intimacy. If you’ve prayed repeatedly for direction concerning a given situation but still aren’t sure what the Lord would have you do, perhaps it’s because He loves you so much that He wants to keep hearing from you. He wants you to come into His presence time and again. He wants you to feel the embrace of His grace.

Corrie Ten Boom asked this pointed question: “Is prayer your steering wheel, or is it your spare tire?” Many of us pull prayer out of the trunk when we’re feeling flat or when there’s a blowout. However, prayer ought to be the steering wheel guiding us through the day, keeping us out of the ruts and ditches of life. Some days I act like I can get through my day without prayer. How dumb of me. Prayer is the highest, most important calling of any believer. It will keep you out of the ditches of depression, the ruts of predictability, the snares of seduction. At the outset of his reign, David models the absolute necessity of prayer.