redemption

in You I trust, O my God.
Do not let me be put to shame,
nor let my enemies triumph over me.
No one whose hope is in You will ever be put to shame,
but they will be put to shame who are treacherous without excuse.
Psalm 25:2-3

Found this in my drafts and it was actually almost complete. Praise God for the words He speaks to our hearts!

This is the second verse of one of my favorite Psalms (or used to be, just cuz almost all of them are pretty much my favorite. ;) It's a cry for direction, mercy, forgiveness, and ultimately a declaration and assurance of the promise we have in God: never alone, never hopeless, and always forgiven. :)

Verse two begins with a placing of trust in the only God David knows can save him. He alone is God, and David recognizes and humbly accepts this.

Verse two ends with a plea for protection, protection from shame and defeat. Two different, yet also similar things depending on how they are defined. I'm going to define shame here, victory is down at the bottom. Keep reading! :)

Shame- 1. feelings of guilt over something done wrong;
2. feelings of embarrassment.

I think David was asking for both when he said "Do not let me be put to shame."

He did want to be embarrassed by a defeat, nor bring slander to the Name of his God. "For the sake of your name, O LORD, forgive my iniquity, though it is great." v11

He also longed for the forgiveness of sins that would wipe the shame off of his face. I know I can relate. When you finally lay your pride down and admit that you've sinned or hurt someone, one of the things you want most is forgiveness&redemption.

"Look upon my affliction and my distress and take away all my sins." (verse 18)

He longed for his sins, all of them, to be taken away. And in Jesus, hallelujah they are. Forever forgotten, never to be brought up again.

Not to mention David figures this out by verse three, as he boldly asserts that NO ONE who trusts in God will ever be put to shame.

The beauty of God's justice and promise of protection is found in the end of verse three, guaranteeing that those who do evil for absolutely no reason, persecute the innocent, they will be put to shame. They will not triumph over us, for Jesus has brought the victory and overcome the world.

What an amazing God we serve. He brings victory over sin, reigns over the world and still loves us all the more!

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? Psalm 8:3-4 <3