“He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters.” (Ps 18:16 AV)
Where to begin? David writes
this psalm when he realizes he is freed from all his enemies. The title to this psalm reads, “To the
chief Musician, A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord, who spake unto the
Lord the words of this song in the day that the Lord delivered him from the
hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul: And he said,”. David is rejoicing in the reality of God’s faithfulness. Yet, David did not always feel that way. After running from Saul for several years, the
experience wore him out to the point he was willing to ally himself with the
Philistines for protection against his enemy.
There were times along the way when the waters seemed deeper than he
could manage. This is life. We go through deep waters. If we go through enough of them, we find that
God is still faithful. We get to the
point that no matter how deep the waters get, we at least will not get to the
point of giving up. As God has done in
the past, so too will he do in the present and future. How do I know that? One little word above. The word, ‘many’.
One of the tasks required to complete the lifesaving merit badge in Boy
Scouts was the mile swim. At least it
was when I was young. This mile swim was
done on a lake. Camp Dittmer, the Boy
Scout camp of my youth, had a lake that used to be the reservoir for the city
of Phelps, NY. As private lakes go, it
is a pretty good-sized lake. Called Lake
Remick, the scout who wished to complete the mile swim dove in at the causeway. They would swim to the waterfront taking a
roundabout way to equal one mile. They
were in that water for a good bit but were accompanied by a rower and a
lifeguard who would tail a rescue pole just in front of the swimmer. If at any time the swimmer did not feel they
could make it, the pole would be extended and the swimmer pulled onto the rowboat. However, the lifeguard was not too quick in
extending help. If the swimmer wanted to
touch out, the guard would yell and encourage him to continue. Even if the swimmer began to go under, the
guard might tap the scout’s shoulder to get him focused again. Only of the scout was going under and the
guard felt his life was in danger did he extend that pole. The point was for the scout to know his true
limits. The pole was always there if
needed. But sometimes, all the scout
needed was a rap on the shoulder or a stern word. That scout was never alone and was always truly
safe. Even if he didn’t feel like it at
times, he would land on that sandy beach safe and sound.
David tells us he went through many waters. We are no different. Our waters may vary from person to
person. Our water’s depths may vary over
time. There is no escaping the waters. No matter how hard we try, life is full of
waters. Some of our own making. Some of other’s making. Regardless of how hard we labor to limit
those waters, they still come. This is when
God shows us just how much of a God He is to us. Like the lifeguard riding the back of the
boat, the LORD is there with a rescue pole.
Like the guard, He doesn’t always pull us out at the first sign of
struggle. He encourages us to trust Him
and live in His strength. We make it through. Not in our own strength alone. But in His strength. Then, sometimes there are those miracles that
come and remove the water all at once. A
cure for a disease. A windfall to answer
financial difficulties. A hungry soul
wanting to hear of the gospel. These
rescue poles are there when we don’t think we can go any further. They are from above. They are from God. They are anchored in His strength and abilities. We reach for them. We grab onto them. We thank God for them. Herein is our encouragement this day. God does this often. As many waters as there are, God is there in
each and every one of them. He is there
to push us along or pull us out. But the
waters will never claim a victim! GLORY!
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