Psalms 18:1-3 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD, who addressed the words of this song to the LORD on the day when the LORD rescued him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul. He said: I love you, O LORD, my strength. (2) The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. (3) I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.

Not everyone has an amazing, life saving, near death, drag me out of the pits testimony… Many times I have been in a church service and a person will be sharing their testimony of how God has pulled them from a horrendous situation and now they go from church to church sharing the amazing story that God delivered them and how they became free from whatever it was that kept them in bondage. They are all very amazing stories, but sometimes I struggle with how to relate and see God working in my own life in such a way.

But my story wasn’t like that… It would be hard to fill up an hour telling my story of redemption so I will some times walk away from hearing another persons testimony and think, “Well, if I had that kind of life then maybe God could use me too.” Often, when I read the Psalms, I try to understand what the Psalmist is talking about because it is hard to relate to the struggle. Running from enemies, being trapped in caves, day and night weeping a river of tears. It can be difficult to relate since we live in such a different culture.

But more often than not, God opens my eyes to a spiritual application that at first I may not have seen. That is the case for these verses in the 18th Psalm. David is rescued from his enemies and he starts the Psalm out with: I love you, O LORD. Rather than physical enemies coming at me, I understand this Psalm when I realize that I have a spiritual enemy seeking to kill and destroy. Paul says in Ephesians that the battles we face are not against the flesh, but they are spiritual battles that require spiritual weapons to fight with. When we realize that the Lord is our rock, fortress, and deliverer from the spiritual battles, then when we call upon His name we will be saved from the evil one. That doesn’t mean that we wont see troubles. David continued to have challenges his entire life. But it does mean that when we call upon the Lord during those troubles we will be able to see Him work in mighty ways.

Prayer

Lord, help me today to call upon your name when I am facing challenges. Though my story may not seem as amazing as David being chased through the wilderness by his enemies, or a member of my church spared from a life threatening illness, I still have a testimony and it is to be shared with others to the glory of your name. Help me to magnify your name today. Amen