Have You Been Pushed Around? God Is Your Defender—If You Want Him

Have you ever wanted a defender? Someone to stand up for you? One of the pastors at my church, Kenny Francis, preached a wonderful sermon on Psalms 118. The next morning I was re-reading it and was simply amazed at how God spoke [again] through the same passage. That is the richness of God’s Word. You see, “amazement” at God’s Word is a recurring process when our heart is wide-open to God redirecting us. The key challenge is to get our heart ready BEFORE we read His Word. When we’re going through hard times—it’s often more difficult to do this. Weariness often overtakes us—especially during painful transitions (like the one I’ve been going through in the last several months). My mind is often numb with exhaustion during my quiet time with God. So He must prepare me. Often that means I must ask Him to forgive me for my lack of trust in Him. God knows. God forgives.

God’s merciful forgiveness towards me is far greater than what I would ever tolerate in a relationship with someone else!

So, God had prepared my weary heart and thus, the wisdom of Psalms 118 truly spoke to me! In fact, it leaped off the pages and refreshed my soul like a long drink of cool fresh water in the desert. Because I suspect there are some of you who also need this refreshment, I’d like to share these encouraging thoughts:

1. When our greatest fear is losing our strong sense of God’s presence, we become more and more grateful for His personal mercy towards us. His presence is more than enough.

Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Let those who fear the Lord now say, “His mercy endures forever.” 

2. An immense sense of God’s presence minimizes the damage to our heart from the actions of others or from difficult circumstances. 

The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes. You pushed me violently, that I might fall, but the Lord helped me. The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation. 

3. To MAINTAIN a strong sense of God’s comforting and strengthening presence, we must choose living in His righteousness instead of the sin of our own way

The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tents of the RIGHTEOUS; the right hand of the Lord does valiantly. The right hand of the Lord is exalted; the right hand of the Lord does valiantly. I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord. Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will go through them, and I will praise the Lord. 

4. Living according to God’s standard produces rejoicing and satisfaction —irrespective of our circumstances and the evil actions of others against us.

This is the day the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. You are my God, and I will praise You; You are my God, I will exalt You. Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.

‭‭from Psalms‬ ‭118‬:‭1‬, ‭4‬, ‭6‬, ‭8‬-‭9‬, ‭13‬-‭17‬, ‭19‬, ‭24‬, ‭28‬-‭29‬ ‬‬

My friend, no one pushes God around; and when we’re with Him—He defends us! 

When we’re close to God, no person or circumstance can rob us of the irreplaceable fruits of His Spirit. When we are born again, God’s gifts to us—beginning with His great mercy which is renewed every morning—take up residence in our soul and spirit. When we commit to live according to His Spirit instead of according to our flesh, or the standards of this world, we gain a strong sense of His holy presence. 

In God’s presence we find great comfort from all who hurt us; He is our defender and the strength of our soul.

We would love to hear your thoughts about this devotional. Did God speak to you or challenge your daily walk with him? Or is there a topic that you would like Kimberly to cover or expound on? Please share with us in the comments below.

To learn more about Kimberly Faith and the mission of Faith Strong, click HERE.

Out Now – Essential Faith, Volume II. Find it on Amazon by clicking HERE.

To learn more about Kimberly Faith’s ministry Fostering By Faith, click HERE.