David Speaks to my Heart.....

A few weeks ago I was reading through and meditating on 2 Samuel chapter 22, "David's Song of Praise". David sings this song of praise after God gives him victory in two battles. David had to clear the blood stain Saul had left from when he massacred the Gibeonites because the "blood stain" caused a three year famine in David's kingdom. So David went to the Gibeonites and asked what he could do to make things right. The Gibeonites requsted that David's army kill seven of the descendents of Saul to make amends. So David's army completed the task and buried the bones of the seven descendents and God answered their prayer to revive the land from the famine. And after this battle, the Israelites were in battle again with the Philistines. There was a giant man on the Philistine side who had six fingers on each hand and six toes, but despite his extra extremities, (haha!) God gave David victory as David's brother killed the giant.


So that's the background to 2 Samuel 22. It's good to know why David was singing this song of praise. I would really encourage you to read this chapter which this song of praise can also be found in Psalm 18 with only a few differences.

My favorite part of the Psalm is verses 17-25 in The Message, here it is:

"But me he caught-reached all the way

from sky to sea; he pulled me out

Of that ocean of hate; that enemy chaos,

the void in which I was drowning.

They hit me when I was down,

but God stuck by me.

He stood me up on a wide-open field;

I stood there saved-surprised to be loved!

God made my life complete

when I placed all the pieces before him.

When I cleaned up my act,

he gave me a fresh start.

Indeed, I've kept alert to God's ways;

I haven't taken God for granted.

Everyday I review the ways he works,

I try not to miss a trick.

I feel put back together,

and I'm watching my step.

God rewrote the text of my life

when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes."

I like these verses as they are a powerful testimony and it made me think that some of you might not know my testimony. So without going into too much detail, I would like to share what God has done for me in the past few years!


Most of you know I grew up with awesome parents who strive to follow the right path and live daily in communion with our Father. They are such a great example for me and I look up to them both so much. I am so grateful to God for my upbringing and parents, I am a lucky girl! But despite my parents doing almost all the right things (sorry guys, your not perfect, but close!), I decided to follow my own desires as this world teaches us at a young age. Its all about what you want and with my selfish attitude, I liked the message of the world better than the message from God. So at the age of 18 I started heading down the path of what I wanted. And there was a specific moment when I was 20 that I had a choice, I was at a fork in the road and the signs said "God's way" on one and "my way" on the other. I tried to compromise and have both, but when I couldn't have both at once, (as you can't walk on two paths at once), I chose MY way. I turned my back on God and walked away from him. But thanks to God, He didn't give up on me. He tugged on my heart for two years, calling me back to Him.


So at the age of 22 I started to feel the void and this is where I feel connected with David's words. I felt a void and called on God "In my distress I called to the Lord; I called out to my God. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came to his ears". (v. 7 NIV). God took hold of my life, he reached down and saved me from "the void in which I was drowning" (v. 18 MSG). Then I had another opportunity to choose God's way or my way, and this time, I chose God! It was the hardest thing I had to do in my life because this involved letting go of MY plans and a person (specifically a boy, of course), I loved. But I realized God loves me more and that my relationship with this guy was hollow and doomed as God was not involved. So, "God made my life complete when I placed all the pieces before him" (v. 21 MSG). I placed the broken pieces of my life at His feet and with joy, He took the mess I had made, and put me back together.

Now I am a new girl (yep, I'm 25 and still a girl!) in Him. God has forgiven me of my past and "he gave me a fresh start" (v. 21 MSG), and "God rewrote the text of my life" (v. 25 MSG) when I chose His way instead of mine, when I realized how much I need Him, when I realized how void my life is without Him, "when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes" (v. 25 MSG).

And now I strive daily to follow His path and lean on Him because, "As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him." (v. 31 NIV) He pulled me out of the mucky water where I was living, he has cleansed me and given me a fresh start, even gave me an undeserving opporunity to be used for His Kingdom expansion in Peru. "It is God who arms me with strength and makes my ways perfect" (v.33 NIV).

God has given me victory from my past! Horrray to our Savior!