Wolves exist and their purpose is to hurt and destroy sheep.
“When my spirit grows faint within me, it is you who watch over my way. In the path where I walk people have hidden a snare for me. I cry to You, Lord; I say, “You are My refuge, My portion in the land of the living.” –Psalm 142:3-4
David wrote this psalm after he had taken shelter in a cave. It could have been the cave of Adullam or Engedi. Saul was in pursuit of David to hurt and given the opportunity, to kill him. Even though David had done no wrong against Saul. Even though David was innocent. David clearly reveals in this psalm his distress and mental anguish.
Saul was the wolf chasing. David was the sheep fleeing.
Wolves are indeed very real. In life, sometimes we find ourselves in the role of sheep. Maybe we had tried to negotiate. Asked to be left alone. Like David, we didn’t want and didn’t ask for this fight. Instead we are pursued. In a position of helplessness. Vulnerable and unable to defend ourselves well. Someone is deliberately attempting to harass, stalk, or harm us in some way.
The danger is real. The threat ever-present.
What David did do? He cried out to God. David was a shepherd before he became a soldier and leader in Saul’s army. Before David defeated Goliath. When David was out in the fields as a shepherd. He protected his flock and killed bears and lions. Predators who tried to attack his flock.
David understood this Real Truth: We have a Shepherd, God, who is greater, more powerful, and more compassionate and who will deliver us from the wolves who desire to hurt and harm us. Because we are God’s sheep. Because we belong to Him. Because we are His.
Our response. To trust God. To stay on the right path. To keep doing the right thing. Regardless of the wolf’s intent and actions. As David did.
Before I left for college, my father told me to come and sit with him. We sat down by the fireplace. He wanted to encourage me in several key areas. One was my purity. Another was to walk the right path and stay on it.
My mom had said to me that one of the unusual characteristics about my father was this. No matter how upset he was, or the argument he was having, or what kind of verbal language the other person was using. My father didn’t reply in profanities. My entire life, I have never heard him utter an obscenity. This was his choice.
The sheep has a choice. To continue doing the right thing. To walk the right path. To follow God. To trust God. And to leave the outcome of the fight against the wolf in God’s hands.
Be encouraged. Take heart. Hold on to this Real Truth.