Are you fighting a battle right now? Maybe it’s a battle against anxiety or depression. Maybe it’s a battle against finances or weight loss. Maybe it’s a battle against a clingy sin that you just can’t seem to shake off.
Maybe you’re not the one entrenched in the muck and mire of the battlefield, perhaps it’s someone you know.
All I know is that fighting any kind of a battle can leave us feeling exhausted, hopeless and even defeated.
If you, or someone you know, is feeling that way, let me bring you some words of strength, hope and victory. These words come right out of the Word.
Psalm 3:3 tells us, “But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high.”
King David penned these words, and in a sense, it’s as if he’s giving us two names of God within them. God is a Shield and Lifter of heads.
Why is that significant? Because if anyone understood battle and the impact it had on the human soul, it was David.
As we think of the battles we are facing (or perhaps the battles that those whom we love are facing), there is tremendous comfort and hope in knowing that God is our Shield. He’s like an impenetrable force-field surrounding us. The Creator of the universe keeps us safe. Knowing and internalizing this truth is a weapon in and of itself for the battles we fight.
Remembering God’s Truth and promises can give us strength exactly when we need it.
The following quote from Corrie ten Boom reminds us that God’s promises are true no matter what problems, circumstances, or battles we face.
“Let God’s promises shine on your problems.” –Corrie ten Boom
As we think of a physical shield and how it has been used as an instrument of protection, it’s helpful to know that in ancient times, it was typically made of tough, thick hides that were adhered to a rim. The wearer was able to attach it to his left arm and thrust it in front of his body when attacked.
The shield was most useful when arrows and spears were being deployed. It was not nearly so useful for other weapons such as cannonballs or muskets. Though it didn’t protect every part of the body, it protected the vital parts against certain weapons.
Just as a physical shield does not protect the one who wears it from everything, neither does God protect us from everything. There are certain wounds we will experience on the battlefield.
2 Corinthians 4: 8-9 puts it eloquently and accurately as we think about the Christian life, 8 “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”
When we are intentionally and actively living out God’s will for our lives, we will encounter battles. And when we begin to feel hopeless, lonely, or defeated, we combat it with the truth that God is our Shield and the Lifter of our heads.
“But you, Lord, are a shield around me, my glory, the One who lifts my head high.” Psalm 3:3
When we feel down and depressed, our very posture changes. Imagine yourself with your head hanging low and God coming up and ever so gently lifting up your chin with His finger. Your head raises up and the direction of your gaze shifts from your circumstances to His loving eyes.
When God lifted David’s head, He helped to relieve his distress, to take away his troubles. He does the same for us.
Friend, keep the images of the Shield and Lifter of your head in your mind, that the Holy Spirit might bring them to the forefront when you need it most.
With this Truth in mind, let us go be radiant this week.
Go Be Radiant 