My Stronghold

“The Lord is my light and my salvation—
whom should I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
whom should I dread?” – Psalm 27:1, CSB

King David wrote Psalm 27 as his heart's cry and prayer to God in the midst of life-threatening dangers. Scholars consider that it may be David wrote this prayer when his own son was trying to kill him. Danger was ever-present around David—and it can be ever-present around you and me as well.

Even the early church experienced ongoing battles. We find the apostles writing to the first followers of Jesus: “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against evil, spiritual forces in the heavens” (Ephesians 6:12, CSB). 

So where are we to turn in the middle of this struggle?

My Light

This summer, I got to do a hike with some friends to a waterfall in Colorado. On the way back, one of our group pointed out a little cave on the side of the path. Now, I am from Mexico City, and in Mexico City, there are no caves. So here I am trying to get into this cave, and we didn't go any further than 20 feet inside the cave when we thought: Let's not find a bear for ourselves today. It's getting cold. There's a lot of mold. Let's just get out of here.

It was dark in that cave. But then one of my friends pulled out a flashlight, and all the sudden, the discomfort fled. All of us pulled out our phone flashlights in the cave, and we felt better. We are not made for darkness. We are made for light! When David says, “The Lord is my light,” the light makes such a difference. Think about it. In this Psalm, David is saying, “The Lord is my light.” Whenever there is darkness, if the Lord is with us, we have sunshine! On a cloudy day, if we have the Lord with us, we have daylight! He is going to keep us safe.

My Stronghold

“The Lord is the stronghold of my life—whom should I dread?” The idea of fearing and dreading really is the same. Knowing who the Lord is, chases all the fear away, out of our lives. We need to know who the Lord is. He is our stronghold. He is our fortress around us. He pushes the attacks back from around us. We have Someone bigger than us on our team, and with one word, He can cast all our enemies away.

When we're in the middle of a battle, God is our STRONGHOLD. We are going to be okay. We just need to know who God is to stand victorious. As we read more of this Psalm, we see David first declaring who God is for him, before beginning to talk directly to God, praising Him and declaring his trust in Him—purposing that he will seek God's face. In the middle of all the arrows flying, the sound of swords, the clash of war, people shouting to intimidate him, David is seeking God's face. David just needs to know who God is to stand victorious.

Knowing who God is for us will testify and proclaim His faithfulness into our lives. He will encourage and sustain us when the battle gets heated around us. David knew who God was when his life was surrounded by enemies. We are also in a daily war. And we are going to know our God in the middle of this war.

Challenge:

How do you need to trust God as your light and your stronghold today? Take a few minutes to read the rest of Psalm 27 below. Ask Jesus to show you who He is for you in the midst of what you are facing right now, today. Ask Him to draw you closer to Himself through what you are experiencing.

Psalm 27 – My Stronghold

Of David.