By Daniel Garner
“The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in time of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.” - Psalm 9: 9-10
“The more you pray, the less you'll panic. The more you worship, the less you worry. You'll feel more patient and less pressured.” - Pastor Rick Warren
In the Bible, there’s no shortage of warriors and battles. The entirety of the Book of Joshua is essentially one big stab-a-thon against the Canaanites and other enemies who constantly attacks Israel. Scripture, and the Old Testament in particular, doesn’t want for conflict. The time period that the early Israelites lived in was harsh enough that stemming the flow of blood from a limb was the requirement to get breakfast in the morning.
And then there’s King David.
David, slayer of Goliath at an age so young that he couldn’t even wear armor and already with an extensive record of killing lions (LIONS) with rocks for attacking his sheep. King David’s Mighty Men alone were the Green Berets, Airborne Rangers and Chuck Norris all rolled into one. So much so that they broke through a siege just to get to well because David said “I’m thirsty” (2 Sam 23).
The thing is, though, is that David was successful not just because he could swing a sword or even due to his formidable lion-slaying skills. He was successful because he knew whose he was. He was the Lord’s. Acts 13:22 says that David was a “man after God’s own heart” and he proved it as he lived every day. David strove after the Lord and placed his faith first among his objectives. It didn’t mean he didn’t fail, because he did and when he did he did it in spectacular fashion. But he always got back up.
Because one of the truest tests of who we are is what we do whenever we realize we do something wrong. David was not his failures, and neither are we. One of the highest priorities David had was praying to God as much as he could. The entirety of the psalms that he wrote were prayers and worship and it shows. Psalms 9: 9-10 (NLT) says: “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in time of trouble. Those who know your name trust in you, for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.”
A lot of times in today’s world we view prayers as silly, or weak, or a last resort or even useless.
That’s normal for everyone, but especially for some. Some are used to being tough. This is especially true for law enforcement, fire fighters, EMT's, military, etc., and being tough means not readily asking for help. What’s different about prayer, though, is that we’re not *just* asking for help. We’re acknowledging that the guy we’re talking to is the literal Creator of the Universe and He has answers and strength we don’t. Answers that He is always willing to give and strength to lend if just we ask.
The Takeaway: Praying to God is not admitting weakness, but that we are not a god and that though we are great human warriors, we are still human. Human beings though whom through God’s strength can do anything! From slaying Goliaths to lions in defense of those who can’t defend themselves to providing safety for those we love prayer is the key that allows us to have a conduit to the everlasting and available free power that is the Creator of the Universe!