Thoughts on Psalm 18

“I love you, O Lord, my strength.  The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.  He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.  I call to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies.”

I love these words and the promise found here.  As I read this verse this morning, I remembered specific times when words were more than a promise, I lived them!  I continued to find reminders in this Psalm of His response to me as I called on Him in verses like verse 6 from the NASV,

“In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried to my God for help; He heard my voice out of His temple, and my cry for help before Him came into His ears.”

When I call out to God for help I am acknowledging that I can’t do it by myself.  He hears "my" voice.  This verse tells me – "He hears me.”  He knows it is me, not just “a” voice crying out.  That means He knows all about me and He knows where I’m coming from in my distress.  The verse goes on to say, “my cry for help comes before Him into His ears.”  The Amplified Bible says “into His very ears.”  Oh how I love how personal that is to me, to you, as we call out to Him.

I continued to read Psalm 18 as the verses that follow describe His response (my paraphrase): 

The earth trembled, the foundations of the mountains shook – he was angry

Smoke rises from his nostrils and his mouth spits fire.  He parts the heavens and comes down with dark clouds under his feet

He soars on the cherubim on the wings of the wind,  Darkness is his covering as dark rain clouds the sky.

As hailstones and bolts of lightning come he shoots his arrows and scatters my enemies.

               

And just as the valleys of the sea are exposed and the depths of the earth lie uncovered. . .

He reaches down from on high and takes hold of me as he pulls me out of deep waters.  

              

He rescued me from my enemy, from those who were too strong for me.

My enemy had confronted me in my distress, but the Lord was my support!  He rescued me because he delighted in me.

As I read these words it was for me better than any action movie I’ve ever seen, more riveting than any account I’ve ever read from the most exciting book.  Why, you ask?  Because this is real and I know - that’s My God. 

He Loves Me.          He Is My Strength.          He Is My Rock.          He Is My Deliverer!

“The 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?”  Psalm 27:1