Dec. 10- Psalm 3

It is always encouraging to spend time studying David's life either through the more narrative books of the Old Testament or by reading many of the Psalms.  For me the encouragement comes from the fact that David was a very flawed human being, but was still referred to as a "man after God's own heart".  If an adulterous murder can achieve God's own heart status, then perhaps there is still yet hope for me.

The 3rd Psalm is attributed to David and is supposed to have been written during the time when David's own son, Absalom, had taken over Jerusalem and run David out of town.  Seth and I have had our ups and downs, but I don't believe he has ever considered armed rebellion.  (At least I nope not.)

Sometimes 21st century application of a 3000 year old event can be tricky.  One has to guard against forcing scripture to mean something it was not intended to represent.  Don't hesitate to call me on any artificial interpretation of scripture as we move through the Psalms.

Psalm 3:1-6 "many rise up against me!" "many are saying of me, 'God will not deliver him'" "ten of thousands assail me on every side"  What a pickle David found himself in.  Not only was his son rebelling, but much of the population of the kingdom seemed to side with Absalom.  As a Christian in America today, we have few, if any, who rise up against us.  Most certainly tens of thousands on the march against an individual would not only be the lead story on Fox, CNN and MSNBC, but not likely to happen in our lifetime.

However, I know that in my life, I have many situations and internal struggles that rise up against me and "assail me on every side".  Work struggles, worry about the economy, self-discipline in area of prayer and service to God, the use of sarcasm with loved ones, time selfishness, sacrificial giving and more.  These are the foes with which I struggle.  I think that the same God who was David's shield and answered him from His (God's) holy mountain, is the same God that will help me with worry, sarcasm, and self-discipline.  Psalm 3:8a- "From the LORD comes deliverance."  He will deliver us from external foes as well as internal ones if we will allow Him to do so.