I am sheltered by God’s Word from my antagonists

23 Princes also sit and speak against me, but Your servant meditates on Your statutes. 24 Your testimonies also are my delight and my counselors.” Psalm 119:23-24

This morning I woke up to an onslaught of lies that attacked my character and standing before God. Voices that said, “You are a loser.” “You can’t do anything right.” “You are pathetic.” “You are all alone and unloved.” “You are worthless.” Who needs enemies when you wake up to this kind of self-hatred and self-condemnation?

This has been a pattern throughout much of my life. I know where these lies come from. They have been attached to wounds in my past by the father of lies, Satan himself (John 6:44). Throughout my life I have unconsciously sought approval from men who are unable to accept, affirm, or appreciate me. But God is teaching me to seek out godly and available men who are channels of God’s love and grace towards me.

Instead of obsessing on a barrage of lies this morning, I got out of bed and sat at my new desk to focus on God’s Word. I was drawn to Psalm 119:23-24 where the Psalmist writes, “Princes also sit and speak against me, but Your servant meditates on Your statutes” (119:23). Instead of focusing on the antagonism of “princes,” the Psalmist “meditates” on God’s “statutes” or “testimonies.” The word “statutes” (choq) refers to boundaries established by God in His Word. And the word “testimonies” (siach) refers to God’s witness or testimony from the Scriptures.

When the Psalmist speaks of God’s Word as his “delight” (shaashuim), he is referring to that which he “desires or bends toward” much like a house plant that bends toward the rays of sunshine coming through a window to receive its nutrients. Instead of leaning toward the life-taking words of his antagonists, he bends toward the life-giving nourishment of God’s Word. God’s Word was also like his “counselors” (etsah) in that it gave him guidance and wisdom he would need as a “servant” of the Lord.  

God reminded me this morning that what I focus on is a choice. I can either focus on the lies of my antagonists which deplete me of life and nourishment, or I can focus on God’s truth which gives me life and love throughout my day. I choose to turn to God’s life-giving Word which defines who I am:

– In Christ I am a winner (Ephes. 2:5-6).

– I am loved and cherished by God (Psalm 27:10).

– In Christ I am good enough (2 Cor. 5:21).

– I am loved by Jesus just as I am (Rom. 5:6, 8).

– I can do what is right through Christ who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13).

Will you join me in doing this?

Prayer: Precious Lord God, when I am overwhelmed with lies that degrade and shame me, please help me lean towards Your truth and focus on what it says about You, myself, and this broken world in which I live. I am so familiar with lies that degrade and shame me. Please grant me the resolve to become much more intimate with Your truth which comforts, guides, nurtures, and loves me. In Jesus’ name. Amen.