Verse of the day: Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my
Strength and my Shield; my heart trusted in Him, and I am helped: therefore my
heart greatly rejoices; and with my song will I praise Him.
This
Psalm can be read from two perspectives. The first, from the perspective of one
who is crying out to God, and in faith praises Him for deliverance; or from the
second, as one who is praising God for deliverance, and is recounting his
prayer for God’s protection and deliverance from those that are causing him
trouble. Either perspective is comforting to the child of God because both are
reminders of God’s faithfulness in hearing us when we cry out to Him in those
moments when we need Him most. In verse 1 we see the desperate cry of one who
wants to hear from God, and the desperation that we can experience when it seems
that God is being silent with us, and appears to be still. Unlike man, when God
is silent it is not because He is not near, and it does not mean that He is not
working on our behalf. Regardless of what is going on in our lives God is still
working out His will and plan for us. The difficulties we face are all allowed
for our growth in learning who He is in times of trouble, and to mold and shape
us into who He wants us to be in Christ (to respond to life in a Christ-like
fashion). He promised that He would never leave us nor forsake us, and that He
is our Helper (Heb 13:5-6). Knowing this, in spite of finding himself
surrounded by those that would cause him harm or have evil intentions toward
him, King David was certain that God would see him through whatever the
difficulties were that he was facing. In this verse we see that even in the
midst of deafening silence King David knew that the Lord would hear him, answer
him, and was his Strength. The word does not just mean physical strength, but
personal and social. We have a personal God who is interested in the things
that affect our personal well-being. He is the source of our boldness when we
need it and the source of endurance when we are feeling like we cannot stand
against our opposition. He is our Shield, or defense; the One we hide behind
when the forces become overwhelming. Time after time King David, both before and
after he became king, found himself being pursued or opposed; whether by King Saul
or even his own son. The fact of the matter is that there are times when those
closest to us will be the ones that we are at odds with, and the ones that
persecute us and cause us the most heartache. It may be during those times that
we have the most difficulty dealing with God’s silence. However, know this,
even in those times God’s silence does not mean that God is not aware of what
we are going through. He is still working to resolve the situation, already
knowing the outcome, and working it all out for our good and His glory (Rm 8:28-29).
There were times when King David wept bitterly over what was happening in his
life (Ps 39:12; 42:3), but in his heart he trusted the Lord, even as he states
here in this verse. By faith we can trust that God hears our cries and is
working to help us through our difficulties, even when He is silent. It is in
those moments that our hearts and minds will be guarded with God’s peace that passes
all understanding, when we bring it to Him in prayer (Phil 4:6-7). It is in
those moments when we will be able to carry on with joy in our hearts, rejoicing,
and giving God the praise for who He is in our lives; knowing that He has not
abandoned us. This was why King David could sing praises unto the Lord, even
before he saw God’s deliverance. Regardless of what we are going through today,
and regardless of whether or not God is being silent, let us have a song of
praise in our hearts, and on our lips, for our God who is faithful to see us
through whatever circumstances He may be allowing. God is pleased when we offer
up, by faith, and in Christ, our sacrifices of thanksgiving and praise in the
midst of times when it makes no sense to the world that we would thanking and
praising Him (Heb 13:15).
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