No Matter What, I Belong to God


Psalm 27
Of David.
1The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
2When evildoers assail me to eat up my flesh, my adversaries and foes, it is they who stumble and fall.
3Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war arise against me, yet I will be confident.
4One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in His temple.
5For He will hide me in His shelter in the day of trouble; He will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will lift me high upon a rock.
6And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me, and I will offer in His tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the Lord.
7Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me!
8You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to You, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”
9Hide not Your face from me. Turn not Your servant away in anger, O You who have been my help. Cast me not off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation!
10For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the Lord will take me in.
11Teach me Your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.
12Give me not up to the will of my adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and they breathe out violence.
13I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!
14Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

This is a spectacular psalm. It is, in fact, my go-to psalm. When I want to connect with God through His Word, this is the first passage that comes to mind every time. Every verse is worthy of meditation, prayer emphasis, and study.

From the very first line we are reminded that because we belong to God and with God we have no reason to fear anyone else. Fear of others will paralyze your life and remaining in God’s presence is the antidote for that fear. Now I realize it is easier said than done to live a life without fear since it can grip all of us from time to time. So the question arises, how long do you let fear control you? How quickly are you able to realize your standing in the stronghold of God and His protection is yours? It isn’t whether or not fear assails but how you handle it that matters. God hasn’t changed. He’s always there but sometimes we forget that stronghold and try to go it alone – that’s when fear is given a place of power in your life. It need not be that way – ever. (Again, easier said than done.)

The admonition to seek God’s face has always fascinated me because we know that His face is not available to us this side of the veil. He is too holy and glorious. We are too sinful. But still we are encouraged to seek His face. I believe that is because we spend a great deal of time seeking His hand. We want God to do something for us rather than be simply worshiped by us. Notice the tenor of the psalm. David comments about all the places God hides him from his enemies. He doesn’t ask for it, God simply does it. So instead David turns his energies toward worshiping God and seeking His face.

Finally, David asks God to further instruct his heart as to the ways of the Lord. That’s a great prayer right there. “Teach me Your way, O Lord.” That is what I want every single day of my life; that God would teach me His way so that my own ways fade into the background, unexplored. I pray that our time would be so consumed with learning of God and His ways that we don’t have time to pursue the junk our minds can conceive. Teach me Your way, O Lord!

Because the Psalm are so very lyrical there have been countless songs written with them in mind. Chris Tomlin wrote and sings “Whom Shall I Fear” based on the ideas found in this psalm. I share a link to that song with you today so that you can be inspired by the ideas we find in David’s words for us today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOkImV2cJDg

Comments

  1. UnknownAugust 21, 2015 at 7:44 AM

    You had me read this when we were going through our grouling court battle with Mckenzies biological father. It was what gave me the courage to give all of my worries to God and JUST TRUST that God would protect McKenzie. After doing so amazing things started happening in that courtroom! thank you for your wisdom! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Carolyn BiraAugust 21, 2015 at 10:29 AM

      I always love to hear the stories of how God intervened in a life with His Word. That is a great example of exactly what this Psalm is trying to teach us. Thanks for sharing, Angie!

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