Power in Your Name || Psalm 62:1 || Manna for the Mind #122

Welcome to Day 122 of the “Manna for the Mind” devotional! This series is about taking scripture passages (typically 1-3 verses) and building our understanding of their teachings through their context and connecting scripture. I believe that doing this helps us understand how to be the type of human that God created us to be.

Today’s passage is Psalm 62:1. Using this, I’ll discuss what it means to wait patiently for God to act in our victory.

Psalm 62:1

AMP	NLT	VOICE
1 For God alone my soul waits in silence; From him comes my salvation.	1 I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from him.	1 My soul quietly waits for the True God alone; my salvation comes from him.

A quick Google search of the historical context of Psalm 62 shows that David was fleeing from his son Absalom, who was trying to steal his throne. With that in mind, we see and learn a lot about King David. He wouldn’t fight his son or send armies after him. He would hide and wait for God’s justice to be fulfilled. He knows that life’s victories are found through God’s intercession and our reaction to his commands. He has complete faith and trust in his heavenly Father to rescue him from this time of chaos. What amount of trust does one need not to fight for his life but to hide away in the shadows and allow his Savior to perform the works necessary to save him? In the following verse, David refers to God as his rock and fortress. He finds stability in God, knowing he will never be rocked by the life chaos throws at him.

Psalm 33:20

AMP	NLT	VOICE
20 We wait [expectantly] for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.	20 We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield.	20 We live with hope in the Eternal. We wait for Him, for He is our Divine Help and Impenetrable Shield.

Israel was walking through a time of military threat in this psalm, yet the tone shares that this is a psalm of praise. How can this be? They had to return to the beginning and remember that God is their ultimate creator. Verses 1 – 9 speak about God’s creative powers and how God is a source of righteousness, justice, faithfulness, lovingkindness, and more. Verses 10 – 19 go back and forth on the battles between God’s opposition and victory. How does God destroy his opponents? By making their thoughts AND plans ineffective and those of the enemies’ wisdom. God’s counsel is eternal. Kings aren’t rescued by their army; soldiers aren’t rescued by their strength; horses are deceptive tools – God wins through his compassion and lovingkindness. It’s an upside-down perspective about battles and how we look at them. We don’t often hear of battles won by one side being kind and faithful, but they often don’t utilize the tools of God. Trusting in God that he will be victorious allows us to follow his plans easily and comfortably, knowing that victory lasts on the other side.

Psalm 37:39

AMP	NLT	VOICE
39 But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their refuge and stronghold in the time of trouble.	39 The Lord rescues the godly; he is their fortress in times of trouble.	39 The eternal saves His faithful; He lends His strength in hard times.

David wrote this psalm to help encourage his people, especially his soldiers, to keep their hearts right and focused on God. It’s a longer psalm than normal, but that’s because it’s a Hebrew acrostic poem, each stanza beginning with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. There’s a balance in this poem between believers and non-believers and the response God has for them. It’s easy to think that it’s all or nothing when it comes to believers going to heaven and non-believers going to hell. God does care for all his creation, but when that creation doesn’t care about its creator, God will solidify their position until they have an eye-opening revelation. Those who do follow will be saved from the place of isolation and nothingness (see my series “What the..?” for more context). Believers can find their place of safety and protection from times of trouble. This doesn’t mean we won’t get hurt or feel pain, but it does mean that we have a source that keeps us from staying in that pain and hurt. We have a source that heals the spiritual wounds we face in life. We have protection and wisdom from making sure that pain and agony won’t happen again, and it all comes from God.

Father God, thank you for your protection, refuge, and salvation. With the evil force of our world reigning heavier than usual, knowing that we have this place of protection makes it easier to face tomorrow. Help us trust your power and strength, knowing you have the final victory. It’s in your name, we pray. Amen.