July 19: My strength, rock, and deliverer

I love You, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my mountain where I seek refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I was saved from my enemies.    (Psalm 18:1-3 — Holman Christian Standard Bible)

Here David, the king of Israel, expresses his thoughts about God at a time when he has been victorious over all his enemies. Similar to the situation of Israel today, he ruled at a time when Israel was surrounded by enemy nations. When he became king, Israel had just suffered a terrible defeat; King Saul had been killed in battle and the nation was in shock. And yet, through trust in and obedience to God, he became the greatest king that Israel ever had. The Bible even calls him "a man after God's own heart.” After forty years as king, the nation of Israel was the dominant power in that region of the world, and his son, Solomon, was able to live in peace and prosperity because of the great victories his father had won.

The words of this psalm are not empty words that someone thought up, they come from someone who knew, who had experience, who had proved their authenticity over and over again. David calls God his strength, rock, fortress, deliverer, mountain, shield, horn, and stronghold. Many times David had tested this on the front lines of battle, when attacked by people who wanted him dead and his people destroyed. Over and over again he faced overwhelming odds and superior forces, but God was always his Rock, and he always came out on top.

God wants you to know Him like David did. He wants to be your strength and shield — your deliverer and fortress. David’s secret was that he dedicated his life to God — God's enemies were his enemies; God's interests were his interests. Only when you adopt this attitude will you be guaranteed to experience God’s help in amazing ways. Your enemies may not be people; your battle may be against sickness, financial failure, fear, depression, anger, a bad marriage, the past, or rebellious children. Whoever or whatever your enemies are, God wants you to be victorious so that you can praise Him just like David.