Lessons from Psalm 23 - David's Confidence

“Even when I walk through the valley of deep darkness,

I will fear no evil…”

Psalm 23:4

Psalm 23 is what biblical scholars call a song of confidence.

We all need a song of confidence sometimes.  Because we all encounter trials, we all face fears, and we all find ourselves in places and moments where deep darkness seems to drown out every ray of hope.  Those places where plans and dreams fade to black, where everything we thought we knew, both present and future, is up for grabs.

What will you do when your greatest fear looks you in the eye?  When words you never wanted to hear reach your ears, how will you respond?  Will you cope?  Or will you crumble?  Will you have a faith that stands?

Six weeks ago, a diagnosis delivered in the tight confines of a doctor’s office gave birth to my greatest fear.  The possibility of losing my wife looked me in the eye and refused to blink.  On March 15, 2012, my wife Heather was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in her right eye.  My wife.  My best friend.  My partner in family and life and ministry.  Melanoma.  Cancer. 

For a few lingering, slow-motion moments, I was ok.  I told myself it would be ok.  I gave her a reassuring look.  And then more words came.  Words like “chest scans” and “liver function.”  I knew what they meant.  I’d been down this road before.  My knees went weak.  My head got light.  I needed to sit down.  This couldn’t be happening.  Not her.  Not now.  Not like this.

You see, for my family, cancer has been the bully in the schoolyard for the past 15 years.  Occasionally he moves on and picks on someone else, but not before he has left broken hearts and shattered dreams in his wake, claiming the lives of people we love.  He is heartless and care-less.  He doesn’t limit his territory to dark alleys or the wrong part of town.  His patterns are unpredictable.  He doesn’t give a rip about character or karma.  He finds you in your bed at night, and refuses to relent in spite of the day.  As far as I’m concerned, if Jesus is the image of the invisible God (and He is), then cancer is the image of our invisible enemy – coming only to steal, kill and destroy.

David and I (and likely you) have something in common.  We both know a place called the valley of deep darkness.[1]  That place where looming darkness attempts to drown out hope.  I don’t know what David’s valley was.  My guess is that he had many such valleys.  Cancer is my valley of deep darkness.

Yet David and I have something else in common: a tested and proven confidence in God.  I love David’s declaration of confidence in Psalm 23 verse four. “I will fear no evil.”  David would have tweeted it like this:  “I. Will. Fear. No. Evil. #Confidence #Steadfastness.”  In the face of darkness - the thickest darkness.[2]  In the face of fear – perhaps his greatest fear.  Confidence in God.  Don’t you want that?  Who wouldn’t want that?!? 

We would do well to locate the source of such confidence.  David reveals it in two Hebrew words.  We require three to translate to English, but they are broken up like this: “You.  With me.”  The reason for David’s confidence in the face of evil, in the face of fear and in the midst of darkness:  “You.  With me.”  When he couldn’t see God.  When he couldn’t feel God.  He still knew that God was “with him.”

David’s statement reveals an important spiritual truth:  Past faithfulness builds future confidence.  A good friend of mine[3] shared that in a sermon more than five years ago and I remember it to this day.  Not because the words are profound, but because the truth of it is - as I have witnessed time and time again.

  Past faithfulness builds future confidence.  The past faithfulness of God builds future confidence in us.  By experiencing the loving care of our Shepherd through daily life as well as times of trial, we know that He will care for and sustain us whatever may come our way.  It is a confidence borne out of experience.

Hebrew scholars tell us that David’s verse of confidence – “I will fear no evil, for you are with me” – is the apex or peak of his song of confidence.  That means that everything in the psalm flows up to it or down from it. 

David knew God’s faithfulness – and he makes this clear in the beginning of the psalm.  When he could find no place to rest, God was a pasture of cool green grass where he could lay down in safety.  When the threats of his enemies echoed in his ears, the reassuring voice of God was as the sounds of soothing waters.  And when his soul approached the breaking point, the Good Shepherd was faithful to bring restoration – in Hebrew, to “give life back” to his weary soul.

The psalmist’s words in Psalm 71 are so relevant here.

“For you, O Lord, are my hope,

my trust, O Lord, from my youth…

You who have made me see many troubles 

and calamities will revive me again.”  

 (Psa 71: 5,20)

Past faithfulness built future confidence for David.  And God's past faithfulness builds future confidence for us as well.

The confidence you need today is found in the faithfulness of God in all of your yesterdays.

Author's note:  You can find information and updates regarding Heather's condition on her Caring Bridge site...  http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/heatherhawks

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[1] Many translations have the phrase “valley of the shadow of death,” however the word “death” is not there in the original Hebrew text.  A more literal translation is “valley of deep darkness” or “valley of thick darkness.”  Tradition is the primary reason that “valley of the shadow of death” continues to be a popular reading. The fact that the word for darkness here is the strongest possible Hebrew word for darkness leads some to conclude that David must have had death in mind.

[2] The word for darkness here is the strongest possible Hebrew word for darkness.  In Job 28:3 it is used for the darkness of a mineshaft – the kind of darkness where you can’t see your hand in front of your face.

[3] Credit for this memorable phrase goes to my good friend and faithful brother in Christ, Steven Bronston.

"Proving Grounds"

[This entry is Part Three of a three-part series entitled "Put to the Test"]

"We were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself...but that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead." 2 Corinthians 1:8,9

I just have to smile when I find myself in a conversation with someone who has God all figured out. As if God fit neatly into some nice little box manufactured by human reason and logic. One of the coolest things about being in relationship with God is experiencing his unpredictability. Just when we think he is going to respond or move in one way, we find that he has done something totally unexpected.

Our move to Phoenix a few years ago falls within these lines. We assumed that God called us to move to Phoenix for reasons related to the Seminary and my training there. But as we look back, it has become apparent that God was seeking to move in my wife’s life in even more profound ways. Something we never could have guessed would happen was part of God’s plan from the beginning – and my wife will never be the same for it. When we moved, God moved, but in a way we didn’t expect.

The same can be true regarding our limited human view of the tests and trials that come about in our lives. We look at the situation we face and often reason that our faith in God would be strengthened most if God were to move in a miraculous way. We reason that deliverance out of the circumstances would be the optimum scenario for strengthening and confirming our relationship with God. This, however, is another scenario where God often operates outside of human logic.

What we find, not only in Scripture but also in the lives of seasoned Christians, is that the enduring of tests and trials allows us to experience God’s “proving grounds.” At this point you might be asking, “What are proving grounds?” The New Oxford American Dictionary defines proving grounds as “an environment that serves to demonstrate whether something, such as a theory or product, really works.”

In the automotive industry, proving grounds are designed to put vehicles through a battery of tests, often under extremely harsh conditions, to test their roadworthiness and durability. General Motors’ proving grounds contain over 130 miles of roads, giving engineers the opportunity to run cars through every conceivable driving situation – wet roads, bumpy roads, potholes, tight corners and steep descents. Throughout the process, the theories of design, as well as their implementation, are either proven or disproven. As results are observed, designs are refined and the final product continues in its advance toward the ultimate goal – perfection.

Experiencing tests and trials in our lives creates a sort of proving ground for God. Life on the open road is an opportunity to observe not only God’s faithfulness to us, but our faith in Him as well – in the midst of pain, in the midst of heartache, in the midst of loss, in the midst of disappointment.

In Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth, he describes a situation in which he and his companions despaired even of life itself (2 Cor 1:8-11). They were at the end of their rope. It was beyond what they could handle physically and emotionally. That’s a bad situation. Perhaps you have been there. But what was Paul’s view of the situation in hindsight? He says that this happened so that they would rely not on themselves but on God, who raises the dead (that’s a powerful God to trust in). Paul’s confidence in God is increased after he experiences God’s faithfulness in the midst of the trial. Paul says, “He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again.”

As, a good friend of mine once said, “Past faithfulness builds future confidence.” Paul’s confidence in the Lord was strengthened and his faith was fortified as a result of his dire circumstances. When we see that our faith has survived through the most dire of circumstances, we stand a little stronger – knowing that our faith can and will withstand the test.

Much like that car on the proving grounds, every time our faith is pushed to the limit, the Designer makes some slight modifications in His pursuit of our perfection. Our nature and character get pushed a little closer to that of our model – the faithful One, Jesus Christ.

So, the next time you find yourself in the proving grounds, look around. You’re bound to see God doing a work in you and you’ll also have an opportunity to experience his faithfulness – perhaps in a way you didn’t expect.