(A new rendition of David’s song with apologies to King David—lifted from the 18th Psalm. Rewritten for the purpose of internalizing, not with the intent to improve! Excerpted from Psalm 18:1-19, 25-36, 46-49.)

I love you, O Lord. Not another God and no one else comes even a close second. I love you, oh Strength of My Life. You are my Rock, my stability, the place I can anchor my whole life and know that the foundations of my existence can never be moved or shaken. As my Rock you are a secure footing on which to stand.

You are my fortress, my safe and secure place, a refuge, a place of peace and quiet, to which I can go when the world advances on me, O my Deliverer. You rescue me from all trials and tribulations, both now and those to come.

You are my shield; you place yourself between me and the fiery darts of the enemy. When I stay behind you, I am kept safe.

I call to you and I am saved from my enemies. Not I will be, but I am.

But cords of death entangle me. Life is closing in and I can hardly breathe. See how I keep getting pulled under as torrents of destruction wash over me? I’m in distress. Lord, help! Hear me!

In my mind’s eye the earth trembles and quakes, the mountains shake violently because of your red hot anger, because of the smoke coming from your nostrils. You’re furious with my enemies and you’re going to do something about it! Suddenly You part the heavens and descend, stomping on dark clouds at your feet. You leap onto the cherubim and fly, soaring on the wings of the wind, moving quickly to save me. I watch you advancing stealthily, first under a covering of darkness, then your bright Presence explodes out of the clouds, unleashing a torrent of hailstones and great bolts of lightning. Your arrows have routed my enemies, Lord!

In the fury of your justice, the valleys of the sea are exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke. Yes, things that were long hidden in deep darkness are now exposed and dealt with.

And now I gasp as I see Your great arms reaching down from on high towards me. You grip me firmly by the hands, pulling, pulling me out of deep waters, this dreadful place where the waves of destruction have continually pummeled me. You’ve done it, Lord, you’ve rescued me! My enemies were too strong for me, but they could not stand against You. Now I see how You were my support all along.

You’ve brought me out into a spacious place…I love this place where I can breathe freely, where I have room to grow, where I have a wider sphere of influence to do good.

You rescued me because You delighted in me! This seems hard to accept because how can you delight in me when I have so many flaws? But You do! You are my Delight, too, Lord!

To the faithful you show yourself faithful, to the blameless you show yourself blameless, to the pure you show yourself pure…(It’s hard to grasp that in Christ You really see me faithful, blameless and pure). But to the crooked you show yourself shrewd. I’m glad that You handle the crooked and that they can’t pull one over on You.

You save the humble but bring down those with pride in their eyes. And it’s You, Lord who keep my lamp, my hope, burning; You alone turn my darkness (my sin and all the things I don’t understand about my life) into light. With Your help I can do anything, even take the offensive against an army of heavenly forces. And with You I can leap over a wall, flying over hurdles that seem impossible in my life.

Who is God besides You, Lord? And who is the Rock except You? You are the One who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. I seem to have so little control over my path and it certainly does not seem perfect to me. So I trust you with the process that the things I don’t understand will work out.

You make my feet like those of a deer, surefooted, to be able to scale the heights, even spiritual heights I’ve never known before.

You are the one who trains my hands for battle; my arms can bend even a very powerful bow. Help me to remember this when I am battling heavenly forces. I have no reason to think that I cannot prevail, that I won’t be strong enough, because You are the One who trained me for what I must face.

You go before me and broaden my path, so that my ankles do not turn. You want to prevent me from stumbling!

You are also the One who gives the victory. Your right hand guarantees that I will overcome. Your victory truly is a shield behind which I am protected from the evil one forever.

You live, Lord! Praise be to You, my Rock! Most exalted are You, my Savior! You are the God who avenges me, who saves me, who rescues me. Therefore I will praise you among the nations; I will praise you among strangers and friends alike, O Lord.

I’m singing, singing, singing…praise be to Your Name.