“How the king rejoices in your strength, O Lord! He shouts with joy because you give him victory. For you have given him his heart’s desire; you have withheld nothing he requested.” Psalms 21:1-2 NLT
There is a common phrase and understanding in many households, especially back in the day, “If momma ain’t happy, no one is happy.” If you go further back in time, way back, you’ll find the original concept, “if the king ain’t happy, no one is happy.”
Psalm 21 is a song of thanksgiving. It focuses on King David at a time in his life when things were going well. The interesting point to this imagery of a king is this, the king is often credited with being an example of the moral state of a kingdom in the Old Testament.
The Psalms were all written to be a foreshadowing of the coming messiah. And in the messiah’s arrival would come a final season of peace, prosperity and justice for all the wrongs done to Israel. The messiah was definitely projected to be the inevitable, invincible conqueror! So when Jesus showed up as a baby and did everything contrary to any Jewish leader before him, the Jews were naturally suspicious. What kind of conqueror lays down his life, seemingly ending his rule and reign. And Jesus had no heirs! What kind of leader was this?
I wonder if this Psalm 21 characteristic turns out to be true in leaders today? When a leader is happy, the followers are happy. When a leader ain’t happy… well we’ve all seen plenty examples of this on a global and local stage. My take away isn’t exactly about a king or a momma. As a leader, a shepherd, a servant I see the absolute necessity in guarding and protecting my own heart to more or less stay in a place of calm, you could call it a “guarded gratefulness.” There is a lot of chatter and situations that can cause a perpetual state of unhappiness and I end up seething AND seeding a whole batch of angry, frustrated and divided crops of unfruitful and unfulfilled trees! A king, a momma or a leader needs to find a place of perspective and peace to not perpetuate the “ain’t no one happy” culture in their kingdom, home or organization.
Prayer
Dad,
I try and try and try to remember these concepts and work hard to not take the bait to become bitter. It is so very hard. My mind triggers my emotions and they just ramp up faster than I can coral them back into place. I need to seek and ask far more questions before flying off into unrealistic scenarios that end with poor behavior or words that can not easily be retracted or rescinded. Help me seek you first before I fire up the whole emergency response mechanism in my head. Thank you for your grace and mercy when I blow it.