Psalm 18:2-3 “The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and I have been saved from my enemies.”
Do you see God as your deliverer, the one who saves you from your enemies? Or does that concept seem distant and Old Testament-ish? I believe it’s as relevant for us today as it was for David when he penned Psalm 18. Especially when someone falsely accuses us.
I received an email the other day from a person I hadn’t seen in years. In it, he launched a venomous attack against me. Even though I knew his accusations were false, it still landed on me like a gut punch. His spitballs of judgment made me feel dirty, like I’d done something wrong, even though I knew what he said wasn’t true.
My first reaction was to become my own Perry Mason or Jason Bull. I found myself in full defense attorney mode. But no amount of internal arguing could lift the burden this man had laid on my shoulders. I could not “think it off.”
I had to “pray it off.”
My prayer went something like this. Lord, deliver me from letting this man’s indictments crush me. I know you love me enough to not give me a free pass when I sin, but this does not feel like conviction from the Holy Spirit. You are not the accuser. You are my shield and defender. Save me from this instrument of the enemy.
God answered my cry. And he taught me how important it is to immediately lay situations like this at his feet. Some issues cannot be talked through, thought through, or smoothed through. They have to be prayed through. God calls himself our refuge and stronghold for a reason. He did not build us to fight our enemies on our own.
Let’s learn from Psalm 18. David cried out to God with unshakable confidence even though the “cords of death entangled” him and “the torrents of destruction overwhelmed” him (v. 4). He didn’t fall prey to false guilt, but stood firm in declaring God shows his faithfulness to the faithful (v.25). He exalts the God who is worthy of praise (v. 46).
Friend, when the ugly voice of false accusation comes against you….Pray if off!