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July-11-0466-The life that God blesses

July 11


466_The life that God blesses

Psalm 34:1-10 I will bless the Lord at all times;
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul makes its boast in the Lord;
let the humble hear and be glad.
3 Oh, magnify the Lord with me,
and let us exalt his name together!

4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
5 Those who look to him are radiant,
and their faces shall never be ashamed.
6 This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him
and saved him out of all his troubles.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps
around those who fear him, and delivers them.

8 Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!
9 Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints,
for those who fear him have no lack!
10 The young lions suffer want and hunger;
but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.

A few years ago, a young missionary couple set out to serve in a remote village in Southeast Asia. They had left behind a comfortable life, a stable income, and all the modern conveniences they had known. The road ahead was uncertain. Just a few weeks into their mission, disease struck. One of their children fell critically ill. There was no hospital for miles. The village doctor could offer little help. Desperate, sleepless, and heartsick, they fell on their knees and cried out to God. Miraculously, by morning, the child began to recover. Later, the village elder—once resistant to their message—said, “We saw your God answer your cry. He must be real.” That moment opened a door for the gospel.

It’s one thing to talk about trusting God when life is smooth, but it’s another to taste His goodness in the middle of fear, loss, or desperation. And that’s the theme of Psalm 34—a psalm not written from a throne, but from a cave. Not during a celebration, but after a narrow escape.

Psalm 34 is a contextual psalm—rooted in a very specific and deeply vulnerable moment in David’s life. We read in 1 Samuel 21 that David, fleeing from King Saul, sought refuge in an unlikely place: the territory of the Philistines, Israel’s enemies. He came to Achish, the king of Gath—the very city where Goliath, whom David had slain, once lived. It was a desperate move. But the plan quickly unraveled when Achish’s servants recognized him and remembered the song sung by the women of Israel: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” To the people of Gath, David wasn’t a refugee. He was a marked man—the slayer of their champion. Suddenly, he was caught in a trap with no way out.

What does a man after God’s heart do when all human wisdom fails, when enemies surround him and escape is impossible? David did not rely on his military skill or clever diplomacy. Instead, he feigned madness—scratching at doors, letting saliva run down his beard—just to escape death. It was humiliating, but it worked. Achish dismissed him as a lunatic and drove him away.

David fled to the cave of Adullam. Alone, ashamed, but alive.

And it was there—surrounded by the broken, the distressed, the debt-ridden, the outcast—that David wrote Psalm 34. A song not of despair, but of praise. A declaration that the life God blesses isn’t one free from trouble, but one grounded in faith, trust, and the fear of the Lord.

David begins the psalm with an invitation: “I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” This wasn’t mere poetry; it was personal. David had no room for pride. He didn’t boast about his own wit or cunning. He gave glory to God, for he knew his life was preserved not by his performance, but by divine mercy. “My soul makes its boast in the Lord,” he says. “Let the humble hear and be glad.”

He recalls that moment of desperation: “I sought the Lord, and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears.” Fear was not theoretical for David. It was real, overwhelming, and pressing. But he testifies that those who look to God are radiant. Not grim, not ashamed. Radiant.

Psalm 34 isn’t just David’s personal journal—it’s a call to others: “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!” He’s urging us not just to hear about God’s goodness but to experience it, especially when things fall apart. The life that God blesses is one that learns to take shelter under His wings.

David had no supplies, no stable home, no government protection. He was rejected by Saul, endangered by Achish, and living among society’s castoffs. Yet, he says, “The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.” In the wild, lions are the epitome of strength and speed. But even they grow weak. David had discovered that true security is not in strength but in seeking.

But then David shifts. He begins to teach. What does it mean to fear the Lord? It’s not a paralyzing dread but a reverential awe that changes how you live. He writes: “Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.” True fear of God bears fruit. It shapes our speech, our choices, our relationships. It pulls us out of selfishness into righteousness.

David reassures us that God is not distant. “The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears toward their cry.” When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears. Not maybe. Not sometimes. He hears and delivers them from all their troubles.

You might think: that’s fine for David, a man chosen by God. But what about me—poor, brokenhearted, crushed in spirit? To that, David offers one of the most tender lines in Scripture: “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.” Don’t miss that. The very people the world tends to avoid—the emotionally shattered, the financially ruined, the spiritually desperate—are the ones God draws near to.

But David is not naïve. He does not paint a picture of the righteous life as one free from pain. In fact, he says, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous.” Many. Yet, in the same breath, he adds: “But the Lord delivers him out of them all.” God doesn’t promise a trouble-free life. He promises presence. He promises deliverance. He promises redemption.

Then, in a flash of prophetic insight, David points far ahead: “He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken.” This was fulfilled in the life of Jesus Christ. At the crucifixion, when soldiers came to break the legs of those being executed, they found Jesus already dead and did not break His bones—fulfilling David’s words. The ultimate Righteous One suffered affliction, yet in perfect obedience, brought salvation to all.

David closes with confidence: “The Lord redeems the life of His servants; none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.” There it is again—refuge. That is the heartbeat of the life that God blesses: one that takes refuge in Him. Not in achievements, not in human favor, not in wealth or position. But in Him.

This psalm, born in a cave, teaches us that a blessed life is not one wrapped in luxury but one rooted in trust. A blessed person is not one untouched by trouble but one delivered through it. Not one who never cries, but one who cries out to the Lord and is heard.

So what does this mean for you?

Maybe you find yourself in your own “cave” right now. Maybe life has pushed you into a corner—through loss, fear, uncertainty, or shame. You don’t need to pretend to be strong. David didn’t. He admitted his fear, his desperation. But he also testified of a God who saves, who hears, who delivers.

So, taste and see. Don’t just hear sermons or sing songs—walk with Him. Bring your fears to Him. Look to Him until your face becomes radiant. Bless the Lord at all times—not because life is always good, but because God always is.

You may not have all the answers for tomorrow. But you know the One who holds tomorrow. You don’t need a floodlight to illuminate every step ahead. His Word is a lamp to your feet and a light to your path. That’s enough.

The life that God blesses is the life that walks by faith, seeks Him first, and rests in His refuge. And that life becomes a testimony—not just for you—but for generations to come.

So let’s bless the Lord today—not only when the battle is won, but even in the cave. Let’s trust Him, seek Him, and walk in reverent awe. Because the life that takes refuge in Him will never be condemned. That is the life that God blesses.

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Date:
July 11