"The Lifter of Mine Head"

 

"The Lifter of Mine Head"

Psalms 3
1 Lord, how are they increased that trouble me! many are they that rise up against me.
2 Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah.
3 But thou, O Lord, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.
4 I cried unto the Lord with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah.
5 I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the Lord sustained me.
6 I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people, that have set themselves against me round about.
7 Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God: for thou hast smitten all mine enemies upon the cheek bone; thou hast broken the teeth of the ungodly.
8 Salvation belongeth unto the Lord: thy blessing is upon thy people. Selah.


Have you ever found yourself at a point in life where you were so beaten and so discouraged that good news and encouragement were just no where to be found?In our lives we face troubles and difficulties and as a natural response we become discouraged and defeated. David certainly had reason to be discouraged and troubled by the events he found himself in.
God wants those of us that find ourselves with our heads hung and beaten by discouragement to lift up our head, because He is still God and He still loves us.
There are some points that David makes............

1. David cried out to God.
Psalm 3:1-2

David begins this psalm by going to God and telling Him the trouble of his heart. At this point in David’s life there was someone that troubled David, his own son Absalom.
But David states said that "Many are they who rise up against me". David’s trouble with Absalom had grown, no longer was it just his son, but Absalom had raised an army to come against David.
But the problems didn’t stop there. David’s own friends had turned against him telling him that no one would help him, not even God.

***Have you ever been in a spot in your life where it seemed you were stuck in a vicious cycle of trouble that turns into discouragement that turns into more trouble that turns into more discouragement? On and on it goes. And in this cycle you have friends that give you great advice like You don’t need God or Some God that would let you come down with cancer or Why do you want to go to church there’s no one there that can help you, it’s full of hypocrites***

Does this sound familiar? When you are discouraged and down, have you ever received encouragement like Job got from his wife?

Job 2:9 Then his wife said to him, "Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!"

That is horrible advice, and thankfully Job didn’t follow it and thankfully David never considered it and thankfully as believers in Jesus Christ we don’t have to either.
Matthew 7:7-8 Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

Just like David, when we find ourselves in trouble and discouragement let me encourage you to call out to Jesus, to ask, to seek and when you do so you will find a peace and a love that this world can not understand. A deliverance this world can not understand.

2. David made a strong confession of trust.
Psalm 3:3-4

In the words "But You, O Lord," we see David’s heart change from discouragement and dejection to confidence and renewed faith.

David strongly confessed 4 important truths.......
1 When no one would help him; God was his shield. God provided the protection that only He can provide against all evil. He shielded him.
2 When David had nothing to treasure, God was his glory. God meant more to him than all the riches of David’s earthly kingdom. God’s love for David was priceless.
3 When there was no one to encourage him, God Himself would encourage him and lift his head.
4 When David cried out God heard him from His holy hill.
(HEAVEN)

Is your head hung low, are you beaten by trials and the struggles of life?
James 4:10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.

When we confess Christ and give our testimony for Him we are reminded of His greatness and allow us to come in humility. When we do this His Hands take hold of our head and lifts it.

3 David’s faith was determined.
Psalm 3:5-6

All the stress and pressure that David was under, his possible murder, the overthrow of his throne and kingdom, and friends and family turning against him, he must have been a very burdened man and sleep must not have come easy.
When we are faced with trials and tribulations in our life we often find ourselves struggling to eat or sleep to the point that it effects our everyday life.
David demonstrated strong faith by declaring that he was able to sleep because of God’s sustaining power and grace. We have the same sustaining power, the same grace, the same peace that David knew and enjoyed, that allowed him to sleep in bad times. It is available to you right now. You just have to have the faith of David to stand upon the rock, Jesus Christ.

Matthew 11:28-30 "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

In order for us to experience the rest that David knew, we must be willing to come to Christ and not only to come to Him but we must also learn from Him. We do that in daily bible reading, praying, fasting and attending church regularly. The more we learn and the more we experience the more our faith becomes determined.

To those that are under personal attack, my hope is that you will come to God and let Him be the lifter of your head. When you do this, He will bless, He will deliver and when that happens you will be a blessing to your church family because they will bear witness to it. Through your deliverance God will also bless your church.

Church family, maybe you have been like me, God can quickly and mightily pour His blessing upon this church and as such we quickly experienced a taste of His goodness upon this church. It could be an incredible experience.
We as a church need to come to the God, to confess His greatness and our need, to seek His salvation through deliverance and by doing that we can become a testimony to our community. But like David, we must cry out to God and confess our discouragement. We must be deliberate in our faith and rest in God’s deliverance.

Do you know that God can also be the lifter of our heads as the church? He can through our worship, through the healing of relationships, and through our renewed efforts .
There is going to be a great and wonderful day when God will lift our heads and hold them high, a day that will be like no other in the life of this old sinful world.

Luke 21:25-28 "And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near."

The description Jesus gives us in Luke sounds very much like today. Wars, Political strife, turmoil in the whole world.
When Christ comes again all of us that are saved by Jesus Christ, everyone of us, God will lift up our heads because the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords has returned!!


David dealt with trials and discouragement but he never lost his faith and confidence that God would deliver him. Why wasn’t he defeated? Because he loved God and was completely dedicated to Him.

Maybe today you are so deep in despair and discouragement that light can not shine in the pit you find yourself in.

Let Jesus be the lifter of your head.

I confess that I have been discouraged and worried about our unity and our desire to minister and I ask you to do the same.
To pray that God will deliver us and use as a witness to our neighborhood, community and that healing and revival might break out.

Are you ready to lift up your head?