Have you ever stayed up all hours of the night overthinking? Tossing and turning for hours trying to get your brain to stop churning your thoughts? An endless parade of scenarios playing out in your head, often driven by fear and anxiety! I know I have done it, however I have never done it as the King of a nation that was about to be conquered (2Samuel 13-19). When I consider David’s circumstances, my problems seem kind of trivial. This is the same David, that as a young man was not smart enough to know he could not defeat a giant, yet he set reason aside in the name of God. When we look at Psalm 3, we can see that same faith in the midst of great adversity, and yet again David provides us with a great example to follow in the midst of our circumstances:
O Lord, how my adversaries have increased!
Many are rising up against me.
2 Many are saying of my soul,
“There is no deliverance for him in God.” Selah.
3 But You, O Lord, are a shield about me,
My glory, and the One who lifts my head.
4 I was crying to the Lord with my voice,
And He answered me from His holy mountain. Selah.
5 I lay down and slept;
I awoke, for the Lord sustains me.
6 I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people
Who have set themselves against me round about.
7 Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God!
For You have smitten all my enemies on the cheek;
You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.
8 Salvation belongs to the Lord;
Your blessing be upon Your people! Selah.
Early in the morning, David acknowledges the Lord who gave him rest. Recalling the previous night (v.1), he recounts the rising tide of enemies. In addition to this, they are mocking his faith and mocking God (v.2). In the face of adversity he could easily fret, allow fear to control him or compromise his faith for temporary peace or safety, but instead he recounts the faithfulness of God. In verse 3, he refers to God as a shield about him which is recognition of God’s sovereignty in the midst of the situation. One reason we often get anxious, have fear or overthink amidst our circumstances is because we are not discipline in recounting who our God is and trusting that He is truly in control. David acknowledges that it is The Lord “who lifts my head” (v.3), that is to say that it is the Lord who gives us hope when we are in despair (v.4).
Because David understands his God, he can lay down and sleep (v.5). His hope is solely in the God who is in control. His declaration that he will not be afraid (v.6) is the fruit of knowing that it is The Lord who sustains his life (v.5) and it is The Lord who will deliver him, you and me in this life and the life to come because “Salvation belongs to the Lord” (v.8).
As I read through Psalm 3, I am reminded of the charge given to us in Philippians chapter 4. We are called to rejoice in the Lord always (v.4), not in circumstances because it is the Lord who has secured our eternal future and temporary situations are rarely worthy to be compared if at all. Set aside anxiety through thankful prayer (v.6) so that we can have the Peace of Christ which is beyond all human reason (v.7). The kind of peace that would allow David to look at an army of thousands, where there appears to be no hope, yet have complete confidence that God has a plan for him and that plan is for good and not evil, despite what the mockers are saying. This is the faith we seek to cultivate and this is the faith that becomes our resting place when we stand alone with God, especially in the midst of those who want to lead us down the wide road paved with conventional wisdom!
(Further reading: 2Samuel 13-19; Psalm 63; Philippians 4)
Visceral Reflections 
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