The Cry of a Refugee

The Psalm is number 59, the human author is the future King David, and his age is 20 or 21.

Though a courageous servant in King Saul’s army, and in fact the king’s son-in-law, an evil spirit has come upon Israel’s first monarch (1 Samuel 16:14), and he is engulfed by such an ocean of jealousy that he seeks David’s death. 1 Samuel 19:11 tells us Saul “sent messengers to David’s house to watch him, in order to put him to death in the morning.”

This sends David on his decade-long life as a refugee, constantly moving from place to place, always a step or two ahead of Saul and his army, the threat of death his constant companion.

As usual, David puts his fears, tensions, and hopes into writing, becoming an open scroll for future generations to read, learn from, and identify with.

The Stunning Conclusion

When coming to the end of Psalm 59 – verses 16-17 – it is hard to believe just how young God’s anointed (1 Samuel 16:12-13) is. For him to lament his dark circumstances – which he does throughout the first 15 verses – is one thing, but to conclude his meditation the way he does reflects the heart of a much more mature man. After pouring out his heart in anguish and agony, David concludes:

But as for me, I will sing of Your strength;

Yes, I will joyfully sing of Your faithfulness in the morning,

For You have been my refuge

And a place of refuge on the day of my distress.

My strength, I will sing praises to You;

For God is my refuge, the God who shows me favor.

In other words, David was saying, it was God all along who had sustained him.

As I reflected upon these verses, it occurred to me that this should be the conclusive affirmation of every believer – whether at the end of the day, end of a year, or end of a life.

What God Has Done

Though we grow weaker as we get older, cannot we always sing of, or proclaim, God’s strength He has given to us? In our weakest of times, both physically and emotionally, has God not always given us the strength we needed to endure?

Every morning when we arise, especially in the midst of challenging circumstances, can we not attest to God’s faithfulness – that it is He who has given us the breath of life, as well as the fortitude, to go forth another day?

Can we agree it was never our own hands that protected us, but our mighty God’s hand 100 percent of the time? If he had not been our refuge from birth – in the good times let alone in the days of distress – would any of us have the ability to withstand the rigors of life?

Can we agree that it is the Lord who has been our strength throughout all these long years – even in the days of our mighty youth when there was seemingly no mountain we could not climb or body of water we couldn’t swim in our own strength?

From ages 19-21 I was an ultra-marathoner – 30-plus miles a run – and believed in those days of my atheism that I had done so in my own strength. I now know all these years later that it was God who carried me every step of the way and protected me as I traversed the streets of dangerous New York neighborhoods.

And is not God our refuge who has shown us favor throughout all the wilderness moments of our lives? Can we not say it was God all along who gave us every good thing – most of which we don’t deserve?

It’s easy for me now at age 67 to recognize all this, and it took long enough! How incredibly insightful for David – the man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14) – to understand this at 21!

But whether young, middle-aged, or old, it is imperative to understand completely, joyfully, and gratefully that it is God alone who has authored all the good in our lives.

It was – and is – God who had done it all.

It was – and is – God all along.

David Ettinger was born and raised in a Jewish family in New York. After moving to New Mexico as an adult, he suffered through many trials. The nudge of the Holy Spirit caused him to examine his heart and in 1986 he surrendered his life to Jesus and has walked with Him ever since.David holds a BA, and MA, in English from New Mexico State University. He began his journalism career writing for The Roundup, the university paper. After graduation he became the sportswriter for the El Paso Times. He has held many other positions as both writer and editor with major publications. David is active in providing his skills with Zion’s Hope, Inc., in Winter Garden, Florida. His publications include Lifeway publications, Single Parent magazine (Focus on the Family), Zion’s Fire magazine, and Real Life magazine. In addition, he served as managing editor for Zion’s Fire and Real Life. David’s book, Overcomers: 30 Stories of Triumph from the Bible, is available online. David is proud of his son and grandson. Please read his testimony here, on his website. 

Featured Image by Beate from Pixabay