A Heart at RestSample

I Shall not be Shaken (Psalm 16)

I can’t tell you how many times the words “Oh no! It broke!” are exclaimed from my two-year-old son throughout the day. He’s endlessly entertained by throwing his toys (and often other household items) against hard surfaces and hearing the resounding thud’s and crashes. However, he also loves his toys, and when something breaks, he’ll confidently declare, “Mommy will fix it!” He has a little too much belief in my repair skills.

This is the type of assurance we see David possessing before God in Psalm 16. David begins his prayer with a request, “Preserve me, O God.” But by verse 8, David declares, “I shall not be shaken.” In eight verses, his asking to be preserved evolves into an affirmation that God can and will care for him.

In the same way my toddler is assured that his toy will be fixed because he trusts in me, so David’s request for preservation blooms into a confident statement of security because he trusts in God. But what is it that moves David to this trust and assurance? The process of reminding his heart who God is.

His prayer can be summed up in 4 declarations about God:

1. God is David’s refuge: “Preserve me, O God, for in you I take refuge,” David says in verse 1. God is David’s shelter and protection, his source of security and safety.
2. God is David’s Lord. God is in control over everything that happens in his life. David expounds upon this in verses 5 and 6, saying, “You hold my lot. The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.” God’s sovereign goodness has kept David in the most desirable of places: the very presence of God. David rests assured knowing that everything God allows to happen in his life will only serve to draw him deeper into their relationship.
3. God is David’s treasure. “I have no good apart from you,” David says in verse 2 and “The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup,” he says in verse 5. God is David’s source of delight and satisfaction.
4. God is David’s counselor. In verse 7, we read, “I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me.” God guides David in his ways and leads David to himself.

God is David’s refuge, his sovereign Lord, his treasure and his counselor, and therefore, David states, “I shall not be shaken.” But his prayer does not end at assurance. It overflows into joy.

“Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices” David says in verse 9. Secure in the refuge of God, David is reminded of its eternal nature, a reality that makes his heart brim over with joy. “You will not abandon my soul to Sheol (Psalm 16:10),” David says, declaring that death will not be the end for him. David has staked his trust in God, and eventually in God’s promise to bring an eternal kingdom through one of his descendants. While David does not yet see the full picture revealed in Christ’s resurrection, he trusts that he will have fullness of life, joy and pleasure in God forevermore, for all eternity.

Like David, do you find your heart longing for security and peace? The uncertainties of life can leave us feeling like the ground is falling out beneath us. In my own heart, I find myself struggling with the constant change in our kids. Every time I feel I have things figured out, a child enters a new stage and I’m navigating a new parenting challenge. I also find myself anxiously questioning whether I’m doing things right - Do I spend too much time away from my kids working? Am I disciplining the right way? Are my husband and I modeling a good marriage for our kids? But I am reminded that the antidote to my anxiety is not in “getting it right” but in depending on Christ. Psalm 16 guides us in the path of finding solid ground by reminding us who God is and why we can trust him:

God is our refuge, an unshakeable place of safety.

God is our Lord, sovereign over everything that happens.

God is our treasure, satisfying us with a love that no one can take away.

God is our counselor, directing us in the way we should go.

And God is our hope, holding for us a future of life and joy in his presence forever through the death and resurrection of Christ.

We need constant reminding of these truths, whether it looks like reading a passage such as Psalm 16 every morning, posting Scripture around the house, or memorizing verses with a friend. It is as we preach to our hearts of who God is that the well of our trust grows deeper and deeper, overflowing into joyful praise.