THE ONE WHO LIFTS UP MY HEAD
(Friday, October 20)
“O Lord, why are they multiplied that afflict me? Many rise up against me. Many say unto my soul: There is no salvation for him in His God. But You, O Lord, are my helper, my glory, and the One who lifts up my head… Salvation is of the Lord, and Your blessing is upon Your people.” (Ps 3:1-3, 8)
Do we ever feel overwhelmed, and as if “there is no salvation” for us in our God? Do we perhaps sometimes also feel embarrassed of this, even before God, because people of faith should not feel this way? As I’m reading the above-quoted, ancient Psalm this Friday morning, I’m loving the fact that there is nothing new, nor unusual or impious, for an “orthodox” believer to feel this way, at times.
But the Psalm also helps me *not* just to wallow, alone, in “the problem”; it helps me to look up, towards “the solution.” The Psalm leads me to say, “But You, O Lord, are my helper, my glory,” – and here is the really delightful part: “the One who lifts up my head.” As an *Ortho*-dox believer, I am called to “stand aright” (“orthoí” in Greek, or “prósti” in Slavonic) and to lift up my head in “(up)right worship” and in the “(up)right belief” that salvation is, indeed, of the Lord. And His blessing is, indeed, upon His people. Let me let Him lift up my head this morning, as I become awake to His presence and grace, and proceed to walk forward, as “His people,” into this God-given and God-blessed Friday.
