Psalm 59:16

Psalm 59:16

A fortress of praise

One of the greatest weapons that the Lord God has given us, to equip us against the enemy is – praise. We’ve said it before and will, no doubt, be saying it again. When God is enthroned in praising hearts, when His glory is proclaimed, when fearful lips sing of His strength and might – the enemy flees. David had learned this and his psalms always seem to move from outbursts of woe and indignation against his foes, to exclamations of joy and wonder at the power and might of the Lord. Think about it, what an outpouring of angry, fearful condemnation we have experienced in this song, David is afraid but also outraged at the affrontery of Saul and his minions, to parade their arrogant threats and lies outside the walls of his home. How dare they? “Destroy them Lord in Your wrath. Destroy them till they are no more.” 

But now the fury turns to praise, “I will sing of Your strength. In the morning I will sing of Your love.” How can anyone turn so quickly from angry indignation to thoughts of love? Because David knows that, “The Lord is his fortress and his refuge in times of trouble.”  The biggest lesson he had learned, and we need to learn it too, is to vent his negative feelings at God, who will patiently listen. In so doing we find that we are able to let go of them. There is no point in expressing our frustration and angst and anger to God only to cling on to them. This is the Lord’s Psychology Manual at work again. Tell Him like it is, hold nothing back, express your feelings and your fears. But then, set them down. Pass them to Him. Let go of them. You will know when this has happened because all the negative anxiety will turn to positive praise! It’s like battling through a ferocious storm and reaching a place of safety. Once the door of refuge is slammed shut, the storm is kept out and relief floods in. Our Father invites us to battle through the storms of life and to come into His fortress where we may find “refuge in times of trouble”. When we do our weeping and wailing can turn to joy and praise. Hallelujah!

 

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