Psalm 3:3
You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head.
There was a night when David had nowhere left to run. His own son had seized the throne, and the hills around him echoed with enemies who jeered that even God had abandoned him. Yet, from that wilderness, he still found the strength to pray: “You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head”.
Three images hold that prayer together. A shield: when the arrows of accusation fly toward us, God Himself stands between us and the dark. A glory: not the kind of applause that fades by morning, but the value or worth God placed in us when He made each one of us. And the One who lifts our head: shame wants us to keep our eyes on the ground, but His grace gently lifts our face back up to Him.
We have all experienced our own wilderness in some form or another. Sleepless nights, the bills that keep piling up, the friendships that fell apart, the diagnosis no one saw coming, the prayer that seems unanswered, the layoff we were not ready for, and many such. We probably even heard loud voices saying we are finished.
But the God who covered David is covering us too. So let the night stretch long, and the storm speak its threats. We will continue to lift our eyes to God, trust in Him, rejoice in His love, and sing, “My song shall be of Jesus!”
