“I love you, oh Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer. My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge. My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.”
– Psalm 18:1–2
Psalm 18:1–2, just let that soak in. All of these different descriptions of God, who He is, not just in His essence, His attributes, but who He is in our lives. He’s not just the rock; He is my rock. He’s not just the fortress; He is my fortress. He’s not just the deliverer, the savior; He is my deliverer. He’s my savior. He’s not just God; He is my God.
You see it over and over and over again. “I love you, oh Lord, my strength, my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge. My shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Like nine different times, he talks about it. In a matter of two verses, he talks about who God is to him. And the first three words summarize it: “I love you. I love you, oh Lord, because you’re all these things. In and of yourself, you’re all these things. And then I love you, Lord, because you’re all these things to me.”
God strengthens those who are weak and in need.
And so could I just pray Psalm 18:1–2 over you? I just want to pray these two verses over you and your life right now, assuming you know the Lord, that you have put your faith in Jesus as Lord, and you have been restored to relationship with God. Because for all who have trusted in Jesus, every single one of these things in Psalm 18:1–2 is a reality for you. So I just want to pray Psalm 18:1–2 over you.
Oh Lord, oh God, I pray for my brother or sister who’s listening to this right now. I pray that you would be their strength amidst their weakness. Weakness says they can do nothing without you. So be their strength today. Be their rock in a world where so much is shifting, all the time. Be their rock, their foundation, and their fortress. God, I pray that you would be a fortress around them.
Psalm 18:1–2 Teaches That God Is the Rock We Can Stand On
As they walk through this day, be their fortress and their deliverer. Just as you have saved them from their sin, delivered them from sin and death and hell, that you would deliver them today from sin. You would save them from themselves today, that they might walk in the life you’ve made possible for them. Be their God. May they see the futility of all other little-g gods in this world in a fresh way today. Be their capital-G, one-and-only true God, their rock in whom they take refuge.
I pray that they would take refuge in you today. Be their shield as they face attacks, temptations. As different things come their way today, be their shield. Guard and protect them, I pray. Be the horn of their salvation. May they live in the joy of salvation, your salvation of their life today, your love for them today. Be their stronghold, I pray.
Prayer To Know the Lord as Our Stronghold
As I pray that, I think about Hebrews 13. “The Lord is my helper. Therefore, I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” And I just pray for the removal of all fear in their life, that they would know you as their stronghold. And end this, that the cry of their hearts, even right now, would be, “I love you, Lord.” I just pray that for us. I love you, Lord. We love you, Lord. We praise you for being all these things to us. Lord, I love you for being all these things to me. I love you and praise you for being all these things to my brother or sister who’s listening to this right now.
We love you, oh Lord, our strength, our rock, our fortress, our deliverer, our God in whom we take refuge, our shield, the horn of our salvation, and our stronghold. I pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
