In the darkest of moments, it can be so easy to reach out to someone or something to help us through that dark season. For some, it may be at that time that God seems closest. When you realise that your situation is bigger than you - and everyone else - it can be easy to reach for the God who is always there but so often taken for granted. 
    I too have found myself admitting that it is only God who can get me through whatever challenging situation that seems so much greater than me. I think that it is at those times that God gets our fullest attention because we acknowledge what we already know - He is our only hope.
    The next few verses of Psalm 27 (vv. 7-10), can be likened to a plea for help. In verse 7, the word “cry” is not a simple request to the one listening. It almost seems to be made in anguish as the psalmist begs God to hear and to answer him. Can anyone relate? Of course we can. It is in our times of despair and hopelessness that we cry out to God begging Him to intervene in a situation; begging Him to come to our rescue; begging Him to deliver us from a situation that seems destined to overwhelm and destroy us. 
    In verse 8 God encourages the psalmist to seek His face and the psalmist responds that he will. I don’t see this as a lighthearted exchange. God is asking Him to go beyond just a simple prayer and to earnestly pursue Him, to go after His presence. God is not interested in a mild relationship with us but with an intimate one. From his heart the psalmist promises to seek Him. God doesn’t want us to have a religious, superficial experience with Him, but a true, intimate relationship. Jeremiah 29:13-14a says: “And you will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart. I will be found by you, says the Lord…” God wants us to run after Him, He wants us to pursue Him and, when we do, we will not be disappointed. I believe that it is in His presence that big problems become small and insignificant and those negative situations seem like nothing because our focus is on the One who can and will work out any challenge that comes our way. 
    When I look at verse 9, it reminds me of the times when I mess up and I desperately want God to forgive me, to not give up one me. I think everyone can relate. The psalmist acknowledges that he needs God so much that he doesn’t want Him to turn away from him, even when he has messed up. He knows he can’t do it without his God. After all, God has been his faithful helper and support, a sure deliverer when he needed one. He even goes as far to admit that when those closest to him give up on him, God does not give up on him (v.10). In short, the psalmist knows that the One person who will not let Him down is God.
    This psalm as penned by David, is such a transparent description of his life. David knew what it was like to be pursued by enemies and to be rejected and betrayed by his own family. His God was the one sure and reliable person in his life. 
    No matter what you have been through, no matter what you may be going through, God is still the one sure and reliable source in your life. He will never leave you nor forsake you; He will never betray or reject you. When you cry out to Him, He will not turn a deaf ear to you, He will respond even if in His own time and way. He loves you and desires the very best for the one He has created. 
    If you have not accepted Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Lord and Saviour, I encourage you to do so today. God is never far away, He is always near, ready to listen to our pleas, ready to come to our aid if we need it. Even when problems are bigger than us, even when everyone else rejects us, God is more than able to deliver. He will never fail us!

    One thing have I desired of the Lord that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to enquire in His temple. (Psalm 27:4)
    For the past two weeks, I have looked at Psalm 27, highlighting it as a Psalm about putting our trust in God, a God who is our light, salvation and strength. No matter what we come up against or what comes against us, we don’t have to worry because our God has our back and will fight for us.
    But it is in verse 4 that we see why David can speak so highly and confidently of his God. Plain and simple, David knew what it was like to spend time with Him. His desire was to seek His face, to get to know Him more intimately. He was not content with a religious, superficial experience, but a true relationship where he enjoyed being in the presence of His God and getting to know Him in a more intimate way. 
    I believe God has the same desire for us. He wants us to desire Him, to desire being in His presence. He wants us to seek Him because as we seek Him He can and will reveal Himself to us in powerful and mighty ways. And, when that level of intimacy is there, no matter what comes against us, we will truly NOT be afraid because we will be confident that He will take care of us. Trust will come easily and naturally and our God will be the first One we will run to without even thinking about it.
    This is the confidence that David had. In verse 5 he says: “For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret of His tabernacle shall He hide me; He shall set me up upon a rock.” When trouble came, it was as if David knew what the outcome would be. The reality is, it is natural to be afraid because we are at times unsure of what the future may bring; we are unsure of how things would turn out. However, David’s attitude tells me that when your eyes and heart are focused on and entrenched in God, you will have no doubt that He will bring you through. David did not expect his God to fail … neither should we. As I love to say, He may not do things in the way we would like but He will work things out in His perfect way and timing. 
    The words “hide” and “secret” also tell us that God knows how to cover and protect His own in the midst of trouble. He has promised to never leave us nor forsake us and He certainly knows how to keep us safe while we go through our storm. Remember the times the disciples faced various storms? They were afraid for their very lives, yet, because Jesus was with them they were safe. Even when He was asleep on a pillow in the boat with them, they were safe because the One who could calm the stormy seas was with them (Matthew 4:35-38). Similarly, the One who can protect and deliver you is with you. You are not alone. You are safe even while you go through your storm. God is hiding you in His secret place while the battle is raging around you. You may not be able to see or feel it, but His protection, His covering are there and believe me, you are safer than you think or feel.    
    And finally, David was able to say: And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me…” (v.6) Imagine, while you are surrounded by that situation, that trial, that storm, God is so taking care of you that what is surrounding you cannot keep you down - it cannot defeat you!!! What the enemy meant for evil God is actually working out for your good! You are victorious, you are not defeated! God is fighting for you, you shall overcome! And, like David, you can offer sacrifices of joy and you can sing praises unto God! (v.6b) You don’t have to wait for the storm or trial to end. You can praise God for the sure victory now because the victory comes from Him. It is still not about you or me … it’s all about Him and what He can and will do for you!
    If you have not accepted Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Lord and Saviour, I encourage you to do so today. We all need a God who will cover and protect us as we go through life’s trials and storms. We cannot do this life alone. God is willing and more than able to guide us through trouble and to enable us to live victoriously even in the most challenging situations.

    Last week, I delved a little into Psalm 27, a song of David that speaks about trust in God in trying circumstances. I love the fact that it begins with highlighting who God is - my light, my salvation, my strength. Because of this, I don’t have to be afraid no matter what comes my way. I think this beginning is fitting because as the Psalm progresses, various challenges are highlighted yet, because we are initially made to understand who our God is, we know that we will be okay.
    Verse 2 says: “When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.” (v.2) David went through a lot of trials and opposition throughout his life. I don’t believe he used words lightly. The word “enemies” denotes trouble, distress, affliction, sorrow, even foes or adversaries. “Foes” also denotes adversaries, an opponent in a contest, conflict or dispute. These two came against him to “eat up my flesh” as he puts it, in other words to consume or destroy him. I think many of us can relate. There are situations that have come against us, even people, that seem designed to destroy us - to destroy our hopes, our dreams, our family, even our very lives. It can feel overwhelming, it can feel as if there is no way out; it can certainly feel as if we will not come out of the situation alive. But God…!!!
    In spite of how dire things seem at the beginning of the verse, it ends with an almost unexpected twist - “they stumbled and fell.” When it seemed as if the enemy would have the victory, things changed. That trouble, that affliction, that adversary that was charging to destroy, seemed to suddenly stumble and fall. Some words associated with that word “stumble” are: totter, waver, fall, cast down, feeble, weak. The word “fell” on the other hand suggests: cast down, fall away, perish. 
    Interestingly, those challenges that are too big for us, that seem so much more powerful than us, are not bigger nor are they more powerful than our God. When we put our trust in Him, He makes big problems small! He turns the tables in our favour when we least expect it and in a way that we would never have fathomed. God is able to do it and He does it!
    It is with confidence, therefore, that David says in verse 3: “Though an host should encamp against me, my heart will not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.” David was not afraid of who or what would come against him or even how many, because he was confident that His God would fight for him and would see him through. He had experienced enough enemies, enough trials, enough opposition to be ready to face whatever came his way. He had also experienced a whole lot of God’s protection, provision and care to be confident that he would make it through because his God had come through for him each time. When he was pursued by king Saul who was determined to stop him from becoming the next king, God came through for him and he still became the next king of Israel. When he faced Goliath, much bigger than him in size and certainly more experienced than him in battle, God came through for him again and enabled him to defeat him with a sling shot and a tiny stone. David knew what God could do. Do we?
    Just as God did not fail others in the past, He will not fail you now in the present or in the future. Just as God came through for you personally in the past, He will continue to come through for you in the present and in the future. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. I think sometimes that our problem is that God may not always work things out in the way we pictured in our minds. But, that’s a minor thing. He does work it out and it is always in the way that He knows is best. 
    Our God is faithful. He is trustworthy. He is solid and He is sure. His promises to us are in Him yes and in Him amen (2 Corinthians 1:20). He will never fail us! He loves us too much to fail us. He loves us too much to allow the enemy to destroy us. God created each of us with a beautiful plan and purpose. Whatever comes in the way of that, He will deal with it just so that His purpose for us will prevail.
    If you have not accepted Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Lord and Saviour, I encourage you to do so today. God loves you. He wants what is best for you. No enemy, no adversary, no problem, no affliction, no distress, no sorrow can separate you from God’s love for you. God will fight for you. He will defend you just because ... He. Loves. You! 

​Trust Him.   

     As I go through various trials and tests,  I am more and more noticing that God is teaching me to do something very important - trust Him. I would love not to have to face some of the challenging things I face but I realize that it is through these challenges that God is teaching me to trust Him, to trust His ability - not my own - to save me. 
    David wrote many psalms out of his times of distress, discouragement and despair. It seemed that one enemy or another was plaguing his life. Yet, he chose to look to his God and to have the confidence that God would see him through; that God would help him survive whatever attack he was facing. 
    Psalm 27 is one of those songs that he wrote that is a reminder of God’s ability to protect and keep His people in times of trouble. 
    The Lord is my light and my salvation whom shall I fear?
    The Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid? (v.1)
The Psalm starts off by highlighting who God is - He is light, salvation and strength. When you think about it, troubling times are dark times. We find it difficult to see the end of our situation, we find it difficult to see a way out and we feel discouraged, even hopeless. Yet, in those dark times, the one spark of light is our God. He is our hope, He is that light that guides us - even though we may not realise it - as we navigate dark, dreary seasons. He lights our path and guides our steps day by day, even minute by minute. 
    He is our salvation. Strong’s concordance offers alternative words - liberty, safety. I like the word “safety” because it tells me that when I am going through difficult times, I can feel safe because God is with me and will take care of me. I can almost picture Him wrapping His arms around me, cradling me, even as the walls of darkness and danger, at times, seem to close in on me.
    “He is the strength of my life…” It is never about my strength, it is always about His. In fact, my strength comes from Him. I cannot face challenges alone, I cannot successfully navigate the “valley of the shadow of death” (Psalm 23:4) by myself. I need His strength to carry me through. Have you ever been through times when, as you go through those dark valleys, you literally feel weak - physically, emotionally, mentally, even spiritually? Those times seem to drain the very life out you and you are not sure you will even make it. It is at these times of weakness, that God proves Himself strong.
    The word “strength” also signifies a fortified place, a defence, a fortress, a rock, a stronghold (Strong’s Concordance). Think about it, no matter what you go through, as a child of God, you have your own fortress, your own fortified place, that you can run to in times of trouble. It does not mean that you will not feel the negative effects of difficult times, but your confidence lies in the reality that God is nearer than you think or feel, and He is protecting you from things that you don’t even know about.
    Paul in his letter to the Corinthians states: “That is why for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong (2 Corinthians 12:10). Paul understood that in his weak times, in his difficult seasons, God’s strength is what pulled him through. He did not have to do it on his own; he did not have to rely on his own strength or ability. God would happily and willingly come through for him and give him the strength he needed to make it through. 
    We all go through difficult seasons. No one is exempt from them. Yet, we can be confident that God, who is our light, salvation and strength, will enable us to survive whatever comes our way. He has promised to never leave us nor forsake us. He will not leave us alone to face challenges; He does not expect or command us to make it through without Him. He knows we need Him and He is more than willing to come to our aid when we need it. 
    If you have not accepted Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Lord and Saviour, I encourage you to do so today. God is big enough and more than able to handle whatever difficulty comes your way. He will never leave you alone to fend for yourself but desires that you run to Him freely and confidently so that He can help you when you can’t do it on your own.