Devotionals

1 Peter 2:20; 3:17

Matthew 6:33

Life is a lot like a coin; you can spend it any way you wish, but you can spend it only once. Choosing one thing over all the rest throughout life is a difficult thing to do. This is especially true when the choices are so many and the possibilities are so close.

Psalm 27:14

David’s cry for help doesn’t end with an account of God’s sudden and miraculous provision. Instead, the songwriter commits to doing what comes least naturally to people in fear. He committed to doing nothing. He chose to wait on God. Read that again—aloud.

Exhortation to Wait

Wait for the LORD;
Be strong and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for the LORD (Psalm 27:14)

1 Corinthians 15:19-22

Read Revelation 21:4; 22:3, 5

What gives a widow courage as she stands beside a fresh grave?

What is the ultimate hope of the disabled, the amputee, the abused, the burn victim?

How can the parents of children who have brain damage or physical handicaps keep from living their entire lives totally and completely depressed?

Why would anyone who is blind or deaf or paralyzed be encouraged when he or she thinks of the life beyond?

How can we see past the martyrdom of some helpless hostage or devoted missionary?

Psalm 27:7–12

While David’s first response to fear wasn’t a panicked plea for help, he didn’t live in denial. He merely chose to celebrate God’s power to recall His past triumphs. Eventually, however, David did ask the Lord for what he needed. No longer panicked, he expressed his desires with intense emotion.

Psalm 27:4–6

When fear has us in its icy grip, we quickly turn toward self-preservation. We hope to avoid loss, escape pain, or cheat death. Not David! His composition, preserved for us as Psalm 27, gives priority to eternal matters. Verses 4–6 revolve around the idea of David’s desire to maintain constant, intimate fellowship with his Lord.

Psalm 27:1–3

As David faced his fears and expressed them to God in Psalm 27, he began with worship, celebrating the power and faithfulness of his God.

Declaration of Praise

The key to the entire song is verse 1. It consists of two similar sentences, each ending with a rhetorical question.

Psalm 27:1–14

Psalm 26:9–12

As David concludes his song about the grinding pain of unjust treatment and his chosen responses, he then commits to patience.

    1. Resolved: I will patiently stand and wait for relief (vv. 9–12)