July 2018

Does the example of
King David’s life provide
some guidance
for our own? Has anyone
underestimated our capabilities
like his older brother did his,
when he told David, “You are not
able to go out against this Philistine
and fight him; you are only
a young man” (1 Sam 17:33).
Did anyone have to accept a no
from God? Remember when David
wanted to build the temple,
and God told him, “You are not
to build a house for my Name” (1
Chronicles 28:3). How did King
David handle these disappointments?
These slights? And how
did he handle victories? After all,
he was crowned King of Israel
and when he defeated Moab,
Ammon and Syria, he brought a
longstanding peace to his country.
We, too, have our triumphs.
What can we learn?
There are other moments when
all of us has experienced many
of the same emotional vicissitudes
of King David and Scripture
says, “he was a man after
God’s own heart.” For this reason,
he serves as teacher and
role model not only in areas of
disobedience and victory but in
the area of worship. In Psalms
95:1-7, King David practically
provides a blueprint for worship:
Come, let us sing for joy to the
LORD; let us shout aloud to the
Rock of our salvation. Let us
come before him with thanksgiving
and extol him with music and
song.”
In verse 1, all who know God
are invited “to sing for joy to the
Lord” because he is the “Rock
of our salvation.” Come sing
because we are not just happy,
but we have joy, a deep-seated
satisfaction for the most important
boss in our lives and his
marvelous provisions for us. He
loves, comforts, equips, guides,
corrects and continues to perfect
us.
His rock-solid faithfulness is
something we have depended
on. He has known our weariness
and directed us to “lie down in
green pastures,” those regenerative
places in our lives, such as
parks, mountains, beaches, etc.
to restore our souls.” Our proper
response to all of his goodness
is song
Researchers found that secular
choir singing provides both physical
and emotional benefits. 1
We can only imagine the benefit
when a group of Christians
gather together to lift their voices
in varied cadences to honor
the common core of their lives.
And David tells us exactly what
it is we should focus on when
we come together to sing, “to
extol him with music and song.”
We are not there to worship the
singer, the band, piano or organ.
We are there to worship God
who made the singing and music
possible.
For the LORD is the great God,
the great King above all gods.
In his hand are the depths of the
earth, and the mountain peaks
belong to him. The sea is his,
for he made it, and his hands
formed the dry land.
The Lord of our lives is no weakling,
when we signed up to fol-
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