Right out of college I landed my dream gig. Through a friend-of-a-friend I was introduced to a ministry in California who needed a ghostwriter for an upcoming project.

Somehow, I scored the contract. I had just overcome the challenges of college and my first year of marriage—and now I was making good money doing what I loved. Honestly, I started to get a pretty big head. I just assumed it was my own skills, strength, and abilities that had gotten me right where I wanted to be in life.

Someone far more accomplished than me faced a similar situation nearly 3,000 years ago—and I use the word “similar” very loosely here. While I had just “conquered” college, my first year of marriage, and the job hunt, King David had literally conquered foreign nations to become one of the most feared rulers in the ancient world. 2 Samuel 21 describes how David finally put to rest the political threat left behind by his mentor-turned-enemy, King Saul. Then, right after that, we see David and his men decimate the Philistine armies, finally bringing peace to the kingdom of Israel.

If anyone ever had an excuse to get a big head, it would have been King David. Over the course of his life, he went from being an unknown shepherd boy to the most powerful king in Israel’s history, defeating formidable opponents from both inside and outside his nation along the way. But we see in 2 Samuel 22 that David had an unusual reaction to all of this. In response to his own success—David chose to praise God.

In the song (which is also recorded in Psalm 18), David reflects back on his life as a warrior—but tells the story from a different angle. Rather than placing himself at the center of his own story, he places God there instead:

The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer … my shield … and my savior (2 Samuel 22:2-3 NIV).

He recounts how it was not his own strength, but God who saved him when he was being hunted by his enemies:

He parted the heavens and came down. … He reached down from on high and took hold of me. … He rescued me from my powerful enemy (2 Samuel 22:10, 17-18).

And instead of crediting himself with the many military and political triumphs of his reign, he credits those to God, saying:

He gives his king great victories; he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants forever (2 Samuel 22:51).

David, who at the height of his reign had become one of the most feared and respected rulers alive, attributed his success to his Creator. He remembered the God who had protected him from the lions, from Goliath, from the mad King Saul, and from the Philistines. And when he had conquered all of his enemies to ascend the throne—he returned the glory to the One who deserved it.

We can often forget who it is that gives us our success. It’s easy to turn to God when we are at our lowest—but can we do the same even after we’ve gotten everything we wanted?

When we reflect back on our lives—and especially on our achievements—let’s never forget to give glory and praise to the One who has guided us every step of the way.

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