‘I love you, O Lord , my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the Lord , who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies. ‘ Psalm 18:1-3
I am captivated by the power in this proclamation. This is a Psalm of David, spoken to the Lord on the day the Lord delivered him from his enemies’ hands and the hand of Saul. This was an extremely trying time for David. Saul was enraged and paranoid by thoughts of David plotting revolt. David’s scheming was non-existent, but the danger from Saul was very real. David keeps his mind focused where it needs to be. He doesn’t look to himself and his own capabilities for security and rescue from this threat. He calls on God and God alone. Had he relied on his own abilities, he likely would have compounded his distress.
Isn’t this just as true for ourselves and our day to day lives? We may not have a paranoid, power crazed, lunatic king chasing after our heads. No, what we have is a relentless adversary in satan, dogging our every step. He is after us day in and day out. So, ask yourself, do you call upon the Lord in these times of distress? Or, do you rely on your own cunning and abilities? I know that when I rely on the latter, I nearly always fail. Without God, I’m simply vastly under equipped for the battle.
We all have struggles that we deal with. For some it may be finances, temperament, lust, dishonesty, greed, pride, envy, gluttony or any number of others. These become strongholds of sin or stubbornness, places we retreat to and cannot climb out of. We get stuck, maybe because of convenience or shame or pride or even comfort, but we’re stuck. When that happens, the devil, has you where he wants you. He wants you to think that’s where you belong. Stuck, locked away in a stronghold of sin, shame, pride, or self indulgence, unworthy of God’s grace and redemption, afraid or too arrogant to call on the Lord.
NO MORE!!! David says, “the Lord is my rock and my fortress…MY STRONGHOLD!” As I read these words over and over, went through the rest of chapter 18 and then read the words of 18:2 yet again, I wanted to scream it! THE LORD IS MY ROCK…MY STRONGHOLD!!! What power! What freedom! What peace! What confidence! I can see the evil one shrinking before these words, God’s powerful proclamation shared with us through His son David.
As I mature in my faith, my willingness to call on the Lord and recognize my shortcomings and humble myself grows. I will not fully mature in Christ until I join Him in eternity and that’s ok. Why? Because I have Him to fight my battles for me. All I have to do is ask. Simple. The Lord is your rock and your fortress and your deliverer, your STRONGHOLD! Next time, ask and take refuge. God Bless you all!
In full pursuit of the greatest Trophy
