The Lord Is Our Shield

-March 21, 2022-

Good morning, happy Monday,

“But you, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts my head. I cried to the Lord with my voice, and He heard me from His holy hill.”

(Psalm 3:3-4).

David wrote Psalm 3. The title of this psalm is: “A Psalm of David when he fled from Absalom his son. The heading over it is: The Lord helps His troubled people.” David had a close walk with the Lord and trusted fully in Him. He had his share of troubles, just as we all do, yet He clung to the Lord. For years he was pursued by king Saul to kill him, and later by his own son Absalom, who took the kingdom from him and also wanted to kill him.

David was fearful, yet he relied on the Lord. He wrote, “But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head.” A shield is defensive in nature, and protects one from harm and death. When Paul describes our spiritual armor in Ephesians 6:10-18, he mentions the shield of faith with which we can quench all the fiery darts of the evil one. David fought against literal people; our fight is against principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world, and the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Our invisible enemies, the devil and his demons, are far more dangerous than any physical ones.

In David’s case, he found the Lord himself to be his shield. Just as David never went to battle against his enemies without his sword and shield, we must put on the full armor of God. When David says, “You are a shield for me, it can also be literally rendered, “You are a shield around me.” In other words, in our world of science fiction and high technology, we can say God is our force field all around us at at times. He has our back to protect us from every attack.

When David felt down, God lifted up his head. He cried to the Lord in prayer and God answered him. Psalm 6:9 says, “The Lord has heard my supplication; the Lord will receive my prayer.” Of all our spiritual arsenal, prayer is of the most vital importance. In Ephesians 6:18, Paul wrote, “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.”

May the Lord be our shield all around us and lift us up. Let us pray for His help as we are surrounded by troubles. They come in all sizes, shapes and colors. We need not yield when God is our shield. The hymn writer wrote, “Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge — take it to the Lord in prayer! Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer! In His arms He’ll take and shield thee — thou wilt find a solace there.”

Have a blessed day trusting in the Lord. stay safe and healthy.

In His everlasting care,

Dean