THE LORD OUR STRENGTH

 

MAY 30, 2023

Psalm 18:1-6, 16-19 

I love you, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I have been saved from my enemies. The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me. The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help.

From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears…He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes, who were too strong for me. They confronted me in the day of my disaster, but the Lord was my support. He brought me out into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me.



I do not know how you feel after reading those words above, but for me they describe my experiences and walk with the our Gracious God.

 Psalm 18 has some powerful imagery of what the “slippery slope” that difficulties in life can drag us into. When we face hard times and what seems like defeat. If you have ever been weighed down by the tragedies of life, you know exactly how this feels. I suspect the words of today's Bible reading resonated in your spirit. What were your times when you felt “The cords of death entangled; the torrents of destruction overwhelm. The cords of the grave coiled around you; the snares of death confronted you?”

If you do not fined these words relatable and you haven’t experienced these kinds of spaces in your life, keep this Psalm in mind, for one day you may very well find yourself blindsided by extreme adversity.

Please notice what the Psalmist is saying here, that in such overwhelming times, we need to remember that God delights in us, and that our Maker will be our strength when our strength is gone. When life is beyond what you can handle, this is the moment that God breaks in, and with the Psalmist we say: “In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. . . . He “reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. The Lord was my support. He brought me out into a spacious place.” That is when and where the real living begins.

Cry out to Him and allow the one "who rejoices over you with singing"(Zephaniah 3:17), to be your Strength, your Rock, your Fortress, your Deliverer.