The Lord is my strength and my shield;
my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.
My heart leaps for joy,
and with my song I praise him.
Psalm 28:7 NIV
Finding Strength in My Struggles
All throughout the Psalms, we see a man who struggled with fear of his enemies, the betrayal of his friends, and the selfish sin of his own heart. Yet King David knew where to go with all of it.
He took his fears, his sorrow, and his greatest downfalls to the only One who could rescue him from danger, despair, and destruction.
And in God’s presence we see a man who was gut-wrenchingly honest, vulnerable, and willing to bare his soul before his maker, knowing he was known, loved, and listened to.
Instead of leaning on his own limited strength and man-made strategies, King David poured out his heart and eventually placed his trust in the Lord, again and again.
In Psalm 28:7, we see King David finding strength in his greatest struggles by thanking God for being all he needed, before his needs were met. His dependence and gratitude gave birth to courage and faith.
Matthew Henry’s Commentary encourages us to observe:
- “His dependence upon God: ‘The Lord is my strength, to support me, and carry me on, through all my services and sufferings. He is my shield, to protect me from all the malicious designs of my enemies against me. I have chosen him to be so, I have always found him so, and I expect he will still be so.’
- His experience of the benefits of that dependence: ‘My heart trusted in him, and in his power and promise; and it has not been in vain to do so, for I am helped, I have been often helped; not only God has given to me, in his due time, the help I trusted to him for, but my very trusting in him has helped me, in the mean time, and kept me from fainting.’ (Psalm 27:13) The very actings of faith are present aids to a dropping spirit, and often help it at a dead lift.”
In his fears, God became David’s shield of faith. In his worries, David found a reason to worship. By remembering the Lord’s faithfulness in the past, he found a song of strength and hope for the days ahead.
How can God’s faithfulness in the past help you trust Him today with your present and future circumstances?
Leave a Comment
Renee,
I look to my past and I see all the Ebenezers I have raised to God’s faithfulness. I have experienced a lot of trials in my life, but I can look back and see, that at every turn, God was faithful to never leave nor forsake me and He saw me THROUGH the trial (valley) and never left me stuck there. Sometimes the valleys were deep and wide, but still He walked with me through them. The one thing I have found, is that when I was tempted to stop and stand still, if like the writer in the commentary states, I would just take one baby step forward in faith, God honored those steps and gave me strength to continue to take more.
I have also learned to pray, with thanksgiving, in a new way. Instead of thanking God only after He has helped me through, I have begun to thank Him in the storm, or trial, or time of waiting for how He is going to answer my prayer. Kind of a thanks BEFORE the blessing approach. This helps my spirit to keep holding onto the hope that God, indeed, will answer and His answer will be good. It may take time….but God does answer. There’s so much we can learn from David about how God is okay with our gut-wrenching honesty. Even if we get angry with Him, He’s a big enough God to handle it. Thanks for this beautiful reminder, Renee.
Blessings and prayers for all of us missing our dads this day….if your dad is still living – give him some extra loving….
Bev xx
So much goodness here, Bev. “…when I was tempted to stop and stand still, if like the writer in the commentary states, I would just take one baby step forward in faith, God honored those steps and gave me strength to continue to take more.” THIS!!!
How can God’s faithfulness in the past help you trust Him today with your present and future circumstances? I honestly have to dig into His word each and every day. He alone knows my hurts and struggles. My present circumstances are only temporary. My future is in God’s hands. I have to trust in his plans for me. God is good and he blesses and comforts me.
God NEVER has failed me; only we fail Him and yet, HE is always there for us! Through my husband’s serious stroke four years ago, God has been there for me through all of the sad times. When I have cried out for some hope, HE has assured me to never lose hope in Him. May all on earth today, Father’s Day, lean on the most important Father, our Heavenly Father.
Good Morning Renee,
What a timely read for me this morning. Last evening I read an article that stated 10 reason’s your prayer’s are not being answered. And although all 10 did not apply to me, but a few of them hit the nail on the head. I will reflect on them, and await for the Lord.
Your words :
Instead of leaning on his own limited strength and man-made strategies, King David poured out his heart and eventually placed his trust in the Lord, again and again.
Jumped out of to me with such comfort. I was really asking myself this morning, do I truly trust His promises to me, do I rest in the shadow of His glory. I do trust the Lord, and I will again, and again. It is not a one time event, but over, over.
Thank you!!!!!
Renne,
Throughout my lifetime God’s faithfulness has put my trust in Him, and I will be forever grateful.
Have a blessed day all,
Penny
I am grateful for healing and the wisdom I possessed a younger woman but didn’t even realize. He has been faithful to me through much physical pain, and healing is mine. He is faithful in all areas of life but we have to let Him be, we can’t really do much of anything ourselves.
Renee,
Just look at your past & see what God has done for you. Each trial I’ve endured-whether mistakes I made or life happening-God has graciously gotten me through to the other side. As the Psalmist says “yea though I walk THROUGH the valley of the shadow of death” I will not fear for thou art with me. He will see us through all trials! I went through a tough trial in January 2016 with my aging dad’s dementia. He was hospitalized for one month. I was scared. Through it all God allowed me to witness a miracle & healed my dad. I got him back for 14 months.
Blessings 🙂
The fear of enemies, the betrayal of friends and the sins of his own heart? Sounds like a theme- even still today- among every group I encounter.
Well said:” He took his fears, his sorrow and his greatest downfalls to the only One who could rescue him from danger, despair and destruction.
Praise God! We have a place to turn when trials threaten to overcome us.
We’ve been studying Davids life in Church! So it’s neat that this came when we just left Church and were talking about David.
How I LOVE looking to my past and remembering how difficult a challenge felt and to see how God has used that on my journey. I trust that whatever challenge I face today or tomorrow He is faithfully bringing me through it to be a brighter light for his purpose in my life and his purpose for this world and his Church.
God is so good. Thanks for sharing!