Psalm 18

Psalm 18:33, "He makes my feet like hinds' feet [able to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble]; He sets me securely upon my high places."

Psalm 18; what a beautiful passage of Scripture! As I opened up my Bible today and read Psalm 18, I fell in love with the words I read! It started off by sharing how God was David's Rock, Fortress, Deliverer, Strength, Shield, the Horn of his salvation, and his High Tower. Then it talks about how David was in trouble, and God came to his rescue. The way it is written caused me to picture a mother bear coming to defend her cubs. When God heard David's cry, He came quickly to his rescue. God came and fought for him. He fought off his enemies.

In the next section, David says how God came to his rescue because He was rewarding him according to his righteousness. Verse 24 says, "Therefore has the Lord recompensed me according to my righteousness (my uprightness and right standing with Him), according to the cleanness of my hands in His sight." When I read all of David's comments about him being in such right standing with God, I was a little confused. He just knew that he knew that he had pleased God. When I think about it, though, I realize that God has made all of us right with Him if we have asked Him to be our personal Lord and Savior. We are now right with Him, not because of anything that we deserve, but rather because of His mercy and grace. What a precious thing that David was able to come so boldly to God, without feeling as if he had done too much wrong to be in His presence. David knew his mistakes, but He also knew his God!

Then David goes on to say in verse 28-29, "For You cause my lamp to be lighted and to shine; the Lord my God illumines my darkness. For by You I can run through a troop, and by my God I can leap over a wall." This verse caused me to think about life. It brought to my mind how sometimes when I look at the world, it seems so dark! I thought about the darkness I've seen in the past couple months after being surrounded by people at the college who don't know Jesus. Their world is so dark, but God illumines my darkness. He makes my world bright, and He is the One who enables me to be able to do anything He asks me to do in life.

Finally, I reach the verse which I wrote at the top of the devotional. Psalm 18:33 is so amazing! "He makes my feet like hinds' feet [able to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble]; He sets me securely upon my high places."

This verse shows me how now matter where God has me in life, he will enable me to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble. God has put me through a "refining fire" (as my mom calls it) in the past few months. There were many things that God brought me through in that short amount of time. I think the greatest thing He has been doing is He's been helping me see more and more exactly who I am in Him. There have been times of testing and trouble. I've had forks in the road where I could've chosen to go one way or the other, and God strengthened me to choose the road that leads to life. There have been situations where I very well could've been in harm's way, but God put up His shield of protection around me  and made my feet like hinds' feet. He set me securely upon my high places.

With everything that came my direction, God kept me right in the middle of His will.

I believe that the reason I love Psalm 18 so much is because I can see how God came through in my life just as He did in David's life. He's been "...my Rock, my Fortress, my Deliverer, my God, my keen and firm Strength in Whom I will trust and take refuge, my Shield, and the Horn of my salvation, my High Tower." (verse 2) He has come to my rescue when I've been in trouble. He has lit up my world, so it isn't dark; and He has made me to stand firm even in my high places.

In the past few months, God has strengthened me in Him and has helped me realize that I want to go through this life fully and completely surrendered to Him. I desire to be used by God for great things, and I don't want to go anywhere that He isn't leading me to.

The same God who was there for David and Who has been there for me is there for you today too. He has a wonderful plan for your life that you won't want to miss. Trust God today to make your feet like hinds' feet. Remember that no matter what comes your way in life, if you hang on to God, He will certainly make be able to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble!

Dear Heavenly Father,

Your relationship with me becomes more and more important to me every day! As I go out into the world, I see how I need You, and I don't want to spend even a moment without You. Lord, this refining fire that I've gone through has caused me to desire Your will to be done in my life, and it has caused me to only desire to be who You made me to be. Lord, as I follow You, please make my steps firm. In Jesus' Name I pray.

Amen.