Like many of us today, David battled discouragement. As a young man, he lived in the shadow of his older brothers. Later, after his anointing, David caught the ire of King Saul, who spent years trying to kill him. When he finally became king, David’s family was such a mess that he was on the run again. So, yes, David knew discouragement! In today’s devotional, Dr. Michael Youssef digs into how David dealt with discouragement.
If you would like more insight into today’s devotional topic, listen to Dr. Michael Youssef’s sermon Encouraging Words in Discouraging Times, Part 1: WATCH NOW | LISTEN NOW
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[00:00:00] You are listening to My Devotional, the daily devotional from Dr. Michael Youssef and Leading
[00:00:06] the Way.
[00:00:08] Cling to the Rock of Ages by Dr. Michael Youssef
[00:00:14] Like many of us today, David battled discouragement. As a young man, he lived in the shadow of his
[00:00:20] older brothers. Later, after his anointing, David caught the ire of King Saul, who spent
[00:00:26] years trying to kill him. When he finally became king, David's family was such a mess that
[00:00:31] he found himself on the run again. So yes, David knew discouragement.
[00:00:38] In Psalm 28, David gives us a roadmap for dealing with discouragement. He didn't wallow in his
[00:00:45] pain or feel sorry for himself. He brought it to God and dealt with it. He says,
[00:00:51] To you, Lord, I call. That's in Psalm 28, 1.
[00:00:56] David confidently became boldly before God with his request. This confidence, of course,
[00:01:03] didn't come from anything David had done. Rather, David's confidence was in God himself.
[00:01:08] That's why he calls the Lord, My Rock. David's world might have been falling apart, but not the
[00:01:16] rock. No matter what is happening in your life right now, God is the rock that does not move. He is
[00:01:24] invincible and immutable. Next, David presents his reasoned case to God.
[00:01:32] Do not drag me away with the wicked. Repay them for their evil deeds and for their evil work.
[00:01:39] David asked the Lord to bring justice to his situation. Now, our culture struggles with these
[00:01:45] words, considering them judgmental. But the Bible is clear. Godly people call evil, evil, and sin,
[00:01:54] sin. You see, David's request is not based on his self-righteousness, not even the righteousness of
[00:02:01] his cause, but on the character of God. In fact, at the beginning of this psalm, David approaches God for
[00:02:08] help. He confesses his need for God's mercy. He prays that God would protect him from being dragged
[00:02:14] away with the wicked, but he wants justice done. Likewise, we need to pray that God would raise up
[00:02:20] godly leaders who will administer justice. Finally, David rejoices. Praise be to the Lord,
[00:02:29] for he has heard my cry for mercy. We can have confidence that if we pray according to his will,
[00:02:36] God will answer. We also know that God works all things for our good. So when we come to him with our
[00:02:43] discouragement, we can leave it there with him and depart rejoicing. Let's pray together. Lord,
[00:02:51] thank you for David's example of dealing with discouragement. We rejoice in your faithfulness. Help us to
[00:02:58] bring our disappointments to you, trusting in your justice and grace. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
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[00:03:14] with a friend who needs to hear it. My devotional is a ministry of leading the way with Dr. Michael Youssef.
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