Briefing: Have you ever worked for a righteous boss or leader? You would know this by the fruit they produce but as we see in this Psalm, you would also be able to recognize it by the blessings of God on their life.

Dispatch (Assignment): Read Psalm 21.

On the Street: The devotional from Psalm 20 discussed the desires of our heart and how to position ourselves to receive those blessings. David follows that Psalm up here showing what it looks like when God gives you the desires of your heart.

I imagine Psalm 20 to be the prayer of a young person who is seeking God. I see a person who is on their spiritual journey to know God. As this person goes through life and matures in their understanding and wisdom, they glorify God more and more. Psalm 21 gives us a picture of this person at a later stage of their life. They have attained a leadership position without forgetting where they started. Psalm 20:5 spoke of remembering to thank God for the blessings we have received.

As David starts this Psalm we immediately see this leader is a person who peruses God. From what David writes we can see the Fruit of the Spirit coming from this person. This leader rejoices in God’s strength, he has joy and God has granted him the desires of his heart. We learned from Psalm 20, when our will matches up with God’s will, then He will give us the desires of our heart. This leader’s will obviously is in the correct position because he is not just asking for the desires of his heart, he is receiving the desires of his heart.

We see in verse 3 that God has placed a crown on his head. In other words, the promotion to a position of leadership was not of his own ambition but from God. This leader recognized this and gave glory to God. This is a person who continues to seek God in all that he does. He has not risen to a position that he thinks he can do without God. That position does not exist, as a matter of fact, the higher you get in rank or promotion the more you need God’s favor.

When David’s son, Solomon, was made king he was given a type of genie bottle wish. In 2 Chronicles 1:7 we read, “That night God appeared to Solomon and said to him, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” WOW! Solomon could ask for anything he wanted; this is a blank check where you get to write in the amount you want then you can go cash it.

This is the way a great leader responds, verse 8, “Solomon answered God, “You have shown great kindness to David my father, and have made me king in his place. Now, LORD God, let your promise to my father David be confirmed, for you have made me king over a people who are as numerous as the dust of the earth. Give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may lead this people, for who is able to govern this great people of yours?”

Solomon was more concerned about the people he was going to lead than his personal wealth and fame. We see this same kind of commitment in the leader David is referring to in this Psalm. In verse 7 David says, “For the king trusts in the LORD; through the unfailing love of the Most High he will not be shaken.”

I want to follow a leader who loves like this! Is this a desire of your heart? Do you desire to promote and be a leader in your department or agency? Will you position yourself to seek God, to know and understand His will? Will you: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6.

Investigational Resources: Proverbs is the book of wisdom. I would like to see it as required reading for anyone who promotes and seeks advancement. Read one chapter of Proverbs a day. The book only has 31 chapters; you can finish it in one month.

Officer Safety Principle: Start seeking Him now. Read God’s Word and line yourself up with His will.

from Psalms Through the Eyes of a Cop, Volume 1
©by Charles Gilliland. Used by permission.
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