“I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.” (Psalm 16:8)
David says that going through tough circumstances, which could be compared to hell, he was not moved. Moreover, his heart was glad, and his glory rejoiced, and his flesh rested in peace.
Have you had similar attacks from the enemy? Have you had moments in your life when you felt like your path was passing near the gates of hell? Your soul was pressed when you felt the incredible pressure of the enemy.
At one time the enemies of David whispered, “God has forsaken him; Pursue and take him, for there is none to deliver him.” (Ps. 71:11) This is an old tactic of the enemy – to sow doubt into your heart in a difficult time in your life. The enemy can send thoughts like these constantly: “God has abandoned you. Your struggle is in vain. Look at yourself, you’re not getting anywhere. All of God’s promises are mere empty words. Your hopes are not justified. If God delights in you, He would not have allowed you to get to this place.”
This is the way satan came to Job. Through the words of his friends and wife, satan whispered to this righteous man, “All of this is happening to you because God has forsaken you. And if God Himself has left you, then there is no more hope left. You will die.” This tactic was used against David as well, and he continues to use it against every believer.
However, in spite of the opposition of the enemy, David was adamant in his hope. Notice how he responds to the challenge of his enemies, “I shall not be moved!” (Ps. 16:8) Where did David get this confidence? Where did he get so much faith and hope to stand firm during such trials? He answers this question in the same Psalm, “I have set the Lord always before me.”
In another Psalm David says:
“Though an army may encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war may rise against me, in this I will be confident. One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord.” (Ps. 27:3-4)
Being in God’s presence consistently gave David that ability to be unwavering in faith. That great desire to always set God before him was what gave him the victory in spiritual battles. Only in the presence of God we become confident that God is able to lead us through the valley of the shadow of death and is able to give us the ability to stand firm.
A spiritual drought can harm us only if we are not attached to the vine. As long as we are continually nourished by the power of the Holy Spirit, the enemy is unable to harm us.
I see how our generation has plunged into a spiritual haze. The decline in morality and no thirst for seeking the Lord are signs of a spiritual drought. Even though many Christians continue to go to church, they have been detached from the Vine. They are no longer nourished by the Lord’s life-giving sap of grace; they have the knowledge but no power. They learned theology, but lost their faith; they have kept the form, but have not obtained the life of the Spirit. They have become like dry branches, comforting themselves that they are still branches. They forgot the words of Jesus, “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.” (John 15:6)
Being attached to the Vine is a lot more than attending church regularly, and being called a Christian. Being attached to the Vine means having a connection with the Lord continually, having a constant thirst to know more of God and to be closer to Him. Abiding in God is not praying much and often, but it is to become a prayer.
Pavel Gurzhiy