Glory to God

Psalm 21

"The king rejoices in your strength, Lord.
  

How great is his joy in the victories you give!

You have granted him his heart’s desire

and have not withheld the request of his lips.

You came to greet him with rich blessings
    

and placed a crown of pure gold on his head.

He asked you for life, and you gave it to him

length of days, for ever and ever.

Through the victories you gave, his glory is great;
    

you have bestowed on him splendor and majesty.

Surely you have granted him unending blessings
    

and made him glad with the joy of your presence.

For the king trusts in the Lord;

through the unfailing love of the Most High

he will not be shaken."

Its funny Psalm 20 was just talking about trusting in God rather than other worldly things and He would bless us and give us the desires of our heart.  The very next Psalm we read about King David trusting in God and we hear of the blessing that comes as a result.  King David was a kind with many resources and a large army at his disposal but he rejoices in the strength of the Lord not in his own horses and chariots.  He also recognizes that the victories that he achieves are not won by him but by God.  He does not forget the simple fact that without God he can do nothing.  Thats the kind of leader that God rewards and we see God rewards David with rich blessings and a crown.

The text says that Davids is rewarded with joy, length of days, splendor, majesty but you don't hear David rejoicing in that. Whats amazing is David finds his unending joy in the prince of God.  What do we do when we receive praise and honor for things?  The human tendency is to puff our chest out and receive all the glory for ourselves.  To find joy in our own acknowledgement.  The harder thing is to simply find joy in the presence of God.  One is self seeking and the other is an approach of humility that realizes that all life is a gift from God and should be used to reflect glory back to Him.