Living for the Lord

Day three hundred sixty-two

This holiday was filled with some great moments, but there is one that has special meaning to me.  Like most families, some members of my family are little harder to love. They tend to say or do things that offend others, yet don't see the problem with what they are doing.  

In this case, one family member had said some inappropriate things to another member of the family and the person hung up on them. There was definitely some animosity between these two people.  I wasn't sure how the interaction would play out on Christmas Day as we all got together.  I'm happy to say that the offended member of my family took the higher road and put the incident behind them for the holiday season.  I was so proud of this person, they were such a good example to the rest of us.  

This morning I prayed with gratitude for such teaching moments and asked the Lord to bless those that were involved in this situation.  It is moments like this one that help me keep my hope for mankind alive.  When you see two strong-willed people come together and put their issues aside for the sake of others, you can't help but see the Lord's hand in it.  Thank you Lord for blessing my family in such awesome ways!

Psalm  18
At the very beginning, the Psalmist makes two great and profound declarations:

First, he declares his love for the Lord: "I will love thee, O Lord, my strength." (Psalm 18:1)


The word translated “love” here is a word that means, “to love deeply.” It is not the normal word translated love. The normal word speaks of “covenant love”. This word speaks of “tender intimacy”.  It carries the idea of a mother’s love for an infant child. It has the idea of loving one so much; you just want to hug them real close! 

We have all felt this way about someone we love. Each of us has had someone in our lives that filled our hearts with so much love that we just want to reach out and hug them and hold them.

I think this is the emotion felt by Mary Magdalene when she encountered the risen Christ (John 20:17), and by the Disciples when they saw Him (Matt 28:9). Considering all that the Lord has done for us and how He loves us, our hearts should also be filled with that same kind of love for Him (1 John 4:19).

Second, he declares his absolute dependence upon the Lord:  "The Lord is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.  I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies." (Psalm 18:2-3)


He calls God “my strength” and then gives us some examples of this strength: a rock, a fortress, and a deliverer.  These are great descriptions.  Can you picture the rock that David would need to lean on when he no longer could go on? or the fortress walls that he will count on to keep his enemies at bay? or the moment when David feels all is lost and cries to the Lord to deliverer him from his anguish?   David is expressing his faith in his relationship with the Lord. He is telling us that he is totally dependent upon the Lord for everything. Every ounce of his strength came from the Lord.

We are in the same boat as David.  The Lord has told us that "for without me ye can do nothing" (John 15:5) and with Him "...my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." (Phil 4:13) 

David bears his heart and tells us what he has determined to do.  He is telling us that he will live his life with these two great themes.  He is expressing to us that he finds his greatest delight in the Lord.  His plan is to live for the Lord, love the Lord and to lean on the Lord for everything he needs, does and is in life.  I think this is a worthy goal for all of us. He deserves nothing less!