But We Will Boast in the Name of the Lord

On a summer morning more than eight years ago, I sat with my Bible in a friend’s living room. My husband and I were taking my son to his university orientation and we had spent the night with friends. Worry and fear woke me early and I found a quiet place for prayer and time in God’s Word. I worried about this new phase in the life of my family. What if the university refused to accept the home school transcripts I had prepared? What if they refused to grant my son his promised scholarships or even his diploma after four years of study due to his lack of an official public high school diploma? What if my son’s home school experience did not adequately prepare him for the rigors of university? The “what if’s” flooded my mind and led me to the Lord.

In the quiet of the living room, I prayed and then opened my Bible to the next reading, Psalm 20. Today I know that Psalm well, but on that morning, even though I had probably read it before, its thoughts were new to me. They gave me fresh hope. They gave me courage to face this giant called university after a homeschooling experience. They reminded me that the victory belonged to the Lord. Some boast in chariots, and some in horses; but we will boast in the name of the Lord, our God. They have fallen; but we have risen and stand upright. Our boast was in the Lord and I knew that we would rise and stand upright, not because my son had a public high school education and diploma, but because our trust was in the Lord. We had prepared for the battle, but the final victory belonged to the Lord and that gave me the faith to go forward with confidence.

I have prayed this prayer from Psalm 20 for my children many times since that morning eight years ago. As they have gone forward on their own journeys, as they have faced challenges and obstacles, as they have struggled with conflicts and battles, I have prayed – May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May He send you help from the sanctuary, and support from Zion! May He grant you your heart’s desire, and fulfill all your counsel! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions. I have entrusted my children to His loving care. I have rested the full weight of my confidence in Him. I have depended on Him alone to deliver them in their time of need.

And He has been more than faithful. He has heard in the time of trouble. He has protected and sent help. He has strengthened and given them their heart’s desire. He has answered and made their plans succeed. I have sung the psalmist’s song of praise on many occasions – We will sing for joy over your victory, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners. Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed; He will answer from His holy heaven. He will answer in the day we call. As Lawrence O. Richards states, “When God can surely do all this for us, we would be foolish not to trust Him.” May we continue to put our full confidence and trust in the One who lifts us to stand upright.