Breaking the Old, Raising Up the New

Psalms 37:39 ESV
“The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their stronghold in the time of trouble.”

David says that salvation is from the Lord. This salvation is not a onetime occurrence, but a daily walk with God. Here is what I mean. When we give our hearts and lives to Jesus Christ, that is just the beginning point of our salvation.

We then begin to walk with God. He may on that first day just begin to fill our hearts with joy and peace. Maybe the next day He begins to work on all of the stuff that has been getting in our way, things we can call strongholds. Every day with Jesus is a work of saving us from something.

The Greek word for stronghold is ochyrōma, translated as “prison.” A spiritual stronghold is more than sin, it’s bondage. A stronghold in this context is a natural desire in us that Satan twists so that sin has control over us.  We often keep our spiritual strongholds secret. As a result, the enemy uses our stronghold to invoke shame and fear getting us further and further from God.

So, daily we walk with God in salvation, and He saves us every day, and every day is a learning curve with God. It cannot be a one-time commitment and we are done. This relationship with God has to be experienced and nurtured every day.

David said, “salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their stronghold in the time of trouble.” So how is God’s strongholds different from the enemies? In ancient times, when the tribes or foreign nations attacked a city, the king would send out word for all the people to come inside the fortification, the castle, for safety purposes.

God’s fortress is always open to us, always ready to defend us, always ready to deliver us, but we have to run to Him. God’s strongholds are for protection, the enemies’ strongholds are to control us.

Prayer:
Father, I know that there is a special bond that occurs between You and those that truly love You. We love You with all of our hearts and minds and lean on You for all our needs. We look to You, we run to You this morning. Thank You for helping us, deliver us, and saving us from all things that hinder our walk. God You are our stronghold, an ever-present help in times of trouble, Amen!