Psalm 18

6 In my distress I called to the LORD;
I cried to my God for help.
From his temple he heard my voice;
my cry came before him, into his ears.
7 The earth trembled and quaked,
and the foundations of the mountains shook;
they trembled because he was angry.
8 Smoke rose from his nostrils;
consuming fire came from his mouth,
burning coals blazed out of it.
9 He parted the heavens and came down;
dark clouds were under his feet.
10 He mounted the cherubim and flew;
he soared on the wings of the wind.
11 He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him—
the dark rain clouds of the sky.
12 Out of the brightness of his presence clouds advanced,
with hailstones and bolts of lightning.
13 The LORD thundered from heaven;
the voice of the Most High resounded.
14 He shot his arrows and scattered the enemy,
with great bolts of lightning he routed them.
15 The valleys of the sea were exposed
and the foundations of the earth laid bare
at your rebuke, LORD,
at the blast of breath from your nostrils.

Now, that's an entrance!

I love the image of a powerful, protective, and, yes, angry God coming to the rescue. I've made no secret of my love for watching storms approach, and I think that image- a dark, voluminous cloud slowly bubbling forth chewing up the ground beneath it- is conjured up here.

What I find most interesting, however, is that God approaches in the image of a storm to bring us peace. The image described in Psalm 18 is terrifying to anyone in His path. But for the one who called Him, the God-lover in need, it is salvation and safety. For at the center of the turmoil and storm is light. Incomprehensible light.

And why, why would such a powerful God leave His throne to rescue one little person? The answer is the most beautiful part of the psalm:

He brought me out into a spacious place;
he rescued me because he delighted in me.

He delights in you. He delights in me. He looks on you and me like I look on my kids when they do something for the first time or do something really well. It's love, but it is also enjoyment, pride, and hope all rolled into one.

God does love us, after all.