O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise, even with my glory. (Psalm 108:1)

In the opening verse of this psalm, David pledged to be committed to the Lord even when he faced the greatest of difficulties — and as we know, David faced many. Overall, he presented a righteous example to those who followed him even before he was recognized as the rightful king of Israel. For example, he would not allow Abishai to slay Saul when it would have been quite easy to do so, thereby teaching his lieutenant that no one should “stretch out his hand against the Lord’s anointed” — the Lord would take care of it in His time and in His way (1 Samuel 26:9). In a word, David was a true leader.

Whether in the secular world or within the Body of Messiah, problems and crises are exacerbated by the lack of strong, moral leadership. When weak, immoral “leaders” have the reins of power, people suffer and society lapses into moral degeneration. In turn, the hearts and minds of people become warped, and bad becomes worse. As it is written, “When a wicked man rules, the people groan” (Proverbs 29:2). Conversely, leaders who rule in righteousness and truth can reverse the downward trend and guide people to a better and profitable outcome, as it is also written, “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice” (Proverbs 29:2).

Even though he made some poor choices on occasion, David was a leader who ruled his nation in righteousness and led by Godly example. He was not ashamed to demonstrate his love and devotion to the Lord; as he proclaimed, “I will sing and give praise, even with my glory.” That said, there is One who is coming whose leadership will outshine even David’s example —that is, of course, Messiah the Son of David. When He returns to sit upon His Throne, He will rule the nations with a rod of iron and will strengthen the hearts of His people to return to the Lord in earnest. His steadfast heart will inspire all others to serve the Lord in like fashion, thus ushering in an era of unprecedented peace and prosperity.

In that great day, there will be no power vacuum in this world for all nations will bow before Him and confess that He is Lord of all. So, as we wait for that great day, let us all be steadfast in our devotion to Him, presenting a righteous example to those we encounter that we may lead them out of darkness into the light. May we never withhold praise from the One who, alone, is worthy of all recognition and adoration. Like David, may we continually offer praise even when we are faced with difficulty and trials.

Blessings and Shalom,  

Bill