Devotional: Psalms 18

To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD, who spake unto the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul: And he said, I will love thee, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me. In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears. Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth. There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it. He bowed the heavens also, and came down: and darkness was under his feet. And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind. He made darkness his secret place; his pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies. At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire. The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave his voice; hail stones and coals of fire. Yea, he sent out his arrows, and scattered them; and he shot out lightnings, and discomfited them. Then the channels of waters were seen, and the foundations of the world were discovered at thy rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of the breath of thy nostrils. He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters. He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong forme. They prevented me in the day of my calamity: but the LORD was my stay. He brought me forth also into a large place; he delivered me, because he delighted in me. PSALMS 18:1-16

This is the beginning of a song, or Psalm, written by King David after his victory from a very low point. He himself had been anointed as the new king of Israel by the Prophet and Seer Samuel. Yet King Saul, whom David had faithfully served, was still the king and he was chasing David through the desert to kill him. Can you imagine all the thoughts that might have gone through David's mind? It would certainly be difficult in his situation not to question God. David was the least in his father's house and had no aspirations for leadership. It was all God's idea! He has submitted to God, submitted to the authority of Samuel, and even the authority of the King, Saul. His reward is a death sentence. He finds himself running for his life to the desert.

David was probably well acquainted with survival in the deserts of the Judean hills were he had kept his father's sheep. Scripture tells us he had also slain a bear and a lion with his bare hands, so we know that it was not the desert itself that David feared. Yet we know that the desert place symbolizes a dry, difficult place where we begin to feel like we are alone. We seem to loose our perception and wonder if perhaps God himself has forsaken us. Even though we may know that God has promised in His Word never to leave or forsake us, and there is no place we could hide from God's presence even if we tried, we can forget these things in the face of extreme distress. Other Psalms written by David describe every "feeling" we could ever experience in the desert place, from fear to depression, from absolute loneliness to exaltation in the presence of God's nearness as we view the night sky in wonder.

In this Psalm David has just been delivered from death by the hand of God. What a victory! David sees God as having moved heaven and earth on his behalf! David is my personal hero because whether he is facing fear or victory his FIRST thought is always God. Though he is a mighty warrior himself, he ALWAYS gives God ALL the credit. This Psalm is no exception. David joyously sings of God's deliverance and then reminds himself, and us, that God has done this because because "He delighted in me". God's infinite love for us is the reason He walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death and brings us to victory. It isn't because David had earned God's favor, David believed in, and expected God's favor. The Bible says that God considered David His friend. What an honor to be called a friend of the Most High God.

Do you know that Father God delights in you? Every time you acknowledge His blessings in your life and give Him glory, He delights in YOU. Yes, He created the stars and all the wonders of this earth and in the universe, and yet He delights in our recognition, our dependence, our obedience, our love for Him. We are so blessed to have the Bible as we go through our desert places and come under the attack of the enemy. We can read through the Psalms and allow the Holy Spirit to remind of God's faithfulness, even when we are weak and fail. How grievous it is to hear someone say, "Oh, I am in a desert place and the Word is so dry I cannot read it." This is like refusing life saving water because your throat is too dry to swallow. Don't give into the enemy's lies!

I pray that today you will delight yourself in the Lord that He may delight in You. May you love, serve and glorify Him in ways that make Him sing, dance and rejoice over you.