The LORD is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
When the wicked came against me
To eat up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.
One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple.
For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.
And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me;
Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD.
Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice!
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
When You said, "Seek My face,"
My heart said to You, "Your face, LORD, I will seek."
Do not hide Your face from me;
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help;
Do not leave me nor forsake me,
O God of my salvation.
When my father and my mother forsake me,
Then the LORD will take care of me.
Teach me Your way, O LORD,
And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies.
Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries;
For false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.
I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!—Psalm 27
I spent some time yesterday meditating on and praying through Psalm 27. Each time I opened my Bible and began to read my eyes would fill with tears of gratitude for the Lord’s lovingkindness in giving us His word. Truly, He is my strong refuge, to which I may continually resort.
Sounds good so far, right? Sadly, just before bed last night, instead of reading Psalm 27, I stupidly clicked on an article that outlined all that the writer felt was wrong in our government and in our world. Here is the thing…even though the article said nothing new…nothing that I wasn’t already aware of, it didn’t matter. By the time I finished reading that “barrage of awfulness”, I was just about catatonic with fear. If ever I needed Psalm 27’s exhortation to trust, it was then.
Beloved…God is so faithful. It was at that moment, right when I needed them the most, that the words of Psalm 27 filled my mind and I was able to walk in faith not fear. My heart took courage as the Spirit of God used David’s song to strengthen my heart.
I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!—Psalm 27:12-14
The rest of the evening was spent watching the the heavens declare the glory of God through the lunar eclipse. My sleep was sweet.
With that said, Psalm 27 seems to be broken into three parts. Verses 1-3 speak to David’s complete confidence in his God. Verses 4-6 speak of David’s love and fellowship with Him, and verses 7-12 are dedicated to prayer. The last two verses, which were the ones that God’s Spirit brought to mind last night, seem to be David exhorting himself and his listeners to trust God, despite how things might look in the present moment. For me it was a reminder of the power and sustaining nature of faith. A timely prompt from the Spirit of God not to lose heart but to keep on continuously believing.
Praying today that come what may, I, like David, would honor God with my faith. That God would give me that one desire above all other desires:
One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple.—Psalm 27:4-5
My soul, wait silently for God alone,
For my expectation is from Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation;
He is my defense;
I shall not be moved.
In God is my salvation and my glory;
The rock of my strength,
And my refuge, is in God.
Trust in Him at all times, you people;
Pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us.
Selah—Psalm 62:5-8
