Sand Mountain Sermonette 40
Psalm 3:3; Psalm 3:8
Sand Mountain Sermonette 40
Look Up!
“But Thou, O Lord, art a shield about me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head.” Psalm 3:3
Walking downtown Albertville, Alabama, with my Papaw Mabrey was always a wonderful adventure when I was a little kid. Papaw would park his familiar FORD car at some section of town and then we would get out and usually walk to two or three of our favorite spots like the little café where we would eat a delicious cheeseburger and the old feed store that smelled of old wood and feed; complete with little bins of seed and little metal scoops used to bag your own feed. And it was walking downtown that Papaw taught me one of the most valuable lessons he would ever teach me regarding the way I looked at God, myself, and other people.
Often, when we were walking down a sidewalk in or around town, my grandfather would note that I was looking down at my feet and not looking up to see where I was going or to whom I was about to meet along the way. A lot of this had to do with the fact that I was shy and afraid to talk to other folks, but no matter, as soon as my grandfather saw someone walking in our direction, he would say to me, “Now, Louie, when we pass that man walking toward us, I want you to look up, smile, and say ‘Hello” to him.” And you know what? I would look up, smile, and greet that individual every time, and if you know me today, it is usually difficult to keep me quiet!
In Psalm Three, David finds himself in a “cowering” position in life. He is broken and fearful for his own safety because his son Absalom is seeking to kill him as he usurps his father’s throne! Can you imagine? And yet, beneath the crushing blows of his adversaries, David cries out, “But Thou, O Lord, art a shield about me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head.” He also writes, “I was crying to the Lord with my voice, and He answered me from His holy mountain. I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me round about,” (verses 4-6).
As David looked around and saw his unfavorable circumstances, rather than look down in defeat, he chose to look to God as his source of confidence, courage, and consolation in the face of opposition. And, in doing so, he realized that God Himself was the lifter of his head for He was the One who would protect and deliver him in the face of his enemies.
Has life paralyzed you with fear? Are you at odds with someone; that someone being yourself, perhaps? The same God who calls us to look up and have conversation with other Christian believers as we journey through life, is the same God who will not only deliver us from our enemies but will deliver us from our own enemies of bitterness and hostility by calling us to pray for our enemies and those who come against us. Look up, your salvation in the Lord draweth near! (See Psalm 3:8).
Pastor Louie