Psalm 3

I can’t imagine writing a song when I was running away from my child. That’s what this is—a psalm David wrote as he was fleeing from his son. Absalom was trying to kill him so he could take over the kingdom. Apparently, however, even while he was on the run, David wasn’t losing sleep: “I can lie down and go to sleep, and I will wake up again, because the Lord gives me strength. Thousands of troops may surround me, but I am not afraid.” (vs 5-6)

Since this psalm comes hard on the heels of the book of Job, I’m struck again by the fact that God often doesn’t calm the storm. Rather, He gives us peace in the midst of the storm. David is a great example of that. His heart was at peace and he had rest, even though he was being pursued by his enemies. He was sleeping well at night; trust in God was his pillow.

There is a time coming in this world—and it is probably closer than we can imagine—when there will be nothing to hang onto but our trust in God. Everything around us will have collapsed—our economic system, our communities, our society, maybe even our family—and God wants us to know that, even then, we can be at peace. Even if our bed has been yanked out from under us, we can still sleep well at night.

Bible commentator Hamilton Smith wrote, “Be it a question of ourselves and the enemy, one is too strong for us: if it is a question of God and the enemy it matters not if it is one or ten thousand against us.” When we trust that God knows what He’s doing, and when we trust that (as He said) He has overcome the world, what do we have to fear? Every moment of every day, we can place ourselves in His hands, knowing that whatever comes to us will be worked out by Him for our good. Thus, we need not fear anything or anyone else.

The storm is coming—there’s no doubt about it. Before it hits, make sure you know where to find the peace.