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Strong and Mighty; Strong to Save Us (Psalm 18
The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock,
in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
Psalm 18:2
David was a warrior. Before becoming king, David and his men had been spared from destruction. He knew this salvation was from the Lord and sang this Psalm, which is also recorded in II Samuel chapter 22 among David’s last words. This is a celebration of God’s strength in salvation.
“I love you, O Lord” — a fitting start for this psalm — is uniquely intense. The phrase as used here usually expresses the love of God toward man, rather than man toward God.
It is a long psalm. There is a lot on praise here, as David:
- Sets the theme of pure praise for God, with a focus on God’s strength (1-3)
- Remembers the dire straits he was in and his call for help (4-6)
- Recounts how God showed his fearsome power and passion against his enemies (7-15)
- Tells how God rescued him — David makes no claim of his own power in this (16-19)
- Contemplates how God rewards those who seek him (20-27)
- Praises God for many specific events — rescues — in his life (28-48)
- Caps off the Psalm with a commitment to praise (49-50)
This Psalm not only reminds us of God’s faithfulness, it is a model for our focus on God’s provision. You may also model praise prayers on this Psalm.
When you need to practice praise :
- Set your focus by expressing your love and awe of God and his handiwork
- Remember being a condemned sinner (Romans 3:10), hopelessly unable to save yourself
- Recount how Jesus on the cross felt the Father’s fearsome wrath against your sin when he said “why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46)
- Tell of how He rescued you by his great might “that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead” (Ephesians 1:19-20)
- Contemplate how your faithfulness — by the power of the Holy Spirit — brings you closer to God because God “is the rewarder of those who diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6)
- Praise God’s for his power in specific provisions you have seen. Whether we see dramatic rescues in our life or daily provisions, the providence of God is at work — as David observed, “God’s gentleness made me great” (Psalm 18:35)
- Commit to praise
[perfectpullquote align=”full” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Praising God reminds us that everything is not about us. So…
Praise the Lord. He is able to save.[/perfectpullquote]
– Andy Nordquist
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