May the Lord answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you
Psalm 20:1-5
1 May the Lord answer you when you are in distress;
may the name of the God of Jacob protect you
2 May he send you help from the sanctuary
and grant you support from Zion.
3 May he remember all your sacrifices
and accept your burnt offerings.
4 May he gives you the desire of your heart
and make all your plans succeed.
5 May we shout for joy over your victory
and lift up our banners in the name of our God.
May the Lord grant all your requests.
The Christian life is often compared to a battle in the Bibvle. Of course, it is not a physical battle but spiritual. However, it is indeed a real and serious battle. Every day we are facing spiritual challenges whatever we do wherever we go even in such familiar places as a family, school, work, or church. How can we keep our daily life in such places victorious? David was a battle-hard veteran of many wars. He constantly fought from one battlefield to another. And he won in almost all the battles he fought. What was the secret of his constant victory? The Bible shows it clearly. it was because God fought for him and with him. Why did God do so? It was because David earnestly asked God for it. He asked God before the fight and during the fight. Then he trusted God completely and had not feared enemy no matter how hard the battle raged on. As David trust in the Lord as such, God made him victorious. David gave praises and thanksgiving for such the help of God. He said in 2 Samuel 22:30 “With your help, I can advance against a troop; with my God, I can scale a wall. Today’s psalm seems to me to be David’s prayers for his soldiers before the battle. I envision in my mind the soldiers of the files and ranks who were lined up to depart for the battlefield. Before they depart for the battlefield, the king and people, generals and soldiers, the army and civilians all raise their hands to God and pray for each other. They pray for victory. They pray for the protection of their loved ones. I believe God answered such earnest intercessory prayers of king and people. That must have been why God fought with David and his army and for them. I am sure God will do the same for us too if we pray as earnestly as David and his people did. Every morning before you and your loved ones start a day, raise your hands quietly but earnestly toward God. Then ask God to remember them and answer them, to go with them and fight for them. Surely God will bring you victory day after day as in David’s time. Amen!
