Psalm 28

Verse 7...

The LORD is my strength and my shield; 

     in Him my heart trusts, and I am helped; 

my heart exults, 

     and with my song I give thanks to Him.

This verse, one of my very favorites in the whole Book of Psalms, is a song of praise, a confession of faith, and a statement of purpose all in one. Here are some observations I gleaned from Spurgeon's The Treasury of David…

The heart's possessions: "The Lord is my strength and my shield." 

• Strength: God is not only gives the believer strength, He also increases and perfects that strength (I Peter 5:10; I John 2:14). God's strength is made perfect in my weakness (2 Cor. 12:9).
• Shield: "You have given me the shield of Your salvation" (Ps. 18:35). God's gracious work of salvation is a shield that we are to take unto ourselves in faith, enabling us to ward off—yea, even quench—the fiery darts of temptation and doubt launched against us by the evil one.

The heart's confidence: "In Him my heart trusts."

• What futility there is in trusting anything else! May we not trust in the abundance of our riches (Ps. 52:7), or in our fleshly wisdom and false knowledge (Is. 47:10)! Psalm 2 closes with the affirmation, "Blessed are all who take refuge in Him." Surely, the more I trust, the more fully shall I know this blessedness.

The heart's experience: "I am helped."

• I should encourage myself for the future by remembering God's deliverances in the past. One of the simplest ways I can remind myself of God's past deliverances is by going back through old entries in my Bible study journal. There I can read some of the struggles I have brought before the Lord, followed by God's answers in which He did exceeding abundantly above all that I could ask or think (Eph. 3:20).

The heart's joy: "My heart exults."

• Joy in the Lord is both a duty and a privilege. I am commanded to rejoice at all times (Phil. 4:4; I Thess. 5:16), yet what a natural reflex it becomes when my hearts consciously remembers God's greatness, goodness, and grace!

The heart's music: "With my song I give thanks to Him."

• God would be worthy of our praise even if He had never done anything for us. He deserves our reverent praise and adoration because of Who He is. One day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He is God to the glory of God the Father. Yet we the children of God have an additional motivation for worship. We have been redeemed by the blood of Christ and justified because of His righteousness! Our grateful hearts cannot help but sing with Paul, "O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways! For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen." (Rom. 11:33, 36).