By the Rev. Willie Nelson

A few years, after I joined the church, we got a new pastor.

Shortly afterwards, he asked me to be the chairman of our evangelism committee.

I asked what would I have to do and he said I needed to recruit people to be on the committee whom I felt I could work with and go out into the community, evangelizing.

So, I recruited about five people and chaired my first meeting.

The first question that I asked everyone was, “How many of you are saved?”

I was astonished at the answers I received. I got only one firm yes, and the others answered “I believe so,” “I think so,” “I hope so,” and “I don’t know.”

Needless to say I could not go out into the community until I evangelized our committee.

After going over the usual scriptures with them, the very ones that we would have to use to evangelize the community, I discovered that many of them believed, “we are saved by grace through faith, and not of ourselves, it is a gift of God, not of works less any man should boast.”

They believed that you have to believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is the son of God to be saved.

They believed, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”

The committee believed many other scriptures we covered concerning the doctrine of salvation. The problem was that they did not put into practice that they should depend only on God for their salvation.

Even though we were singing “Blessed Assurance Jesus is Mine.” “Amazing Grace How Sweet the Sound that Saved a Wretch Like Me” and “My Hope is Built on Nothing Less than Jesus Blood and Righteousness,” they allowed doubt to creep into their mind.

Many of us at some point in our lives allow doubt to creep into our mind, especially at times of trials, tribulation and desperate situations.

We find David, here in the 35th Psalms, a man after God’s own heart.

David, a boy who slew a lion and a bear to protect his father’s sheep, and knew it was only by the power of God that he was able to accomplish this feat.

David, who slew the giant, Goliath, with a slingshot and a stone. David, who as the captain of Israel’s army defeated many of their enemies, so much so that the women of Israel sung, “Saul had killed his thousands, but David had killed his ten thousands.”

This song made Saul jealous, angry and he sought to kill David.

This 35 number of Psalms is a prayer that David prayed when he was surrounded by Saul’s army, but we want to highlight the B part of verse three where David says, “Say unto my soul, I am thy salvation.”

David did not want to hear it in his ears because his mind might doubt. He wanted God to give him assurance deep down in his soul. David wanted a personal connection with God, he wanted to know that God was with him because then, nothing could defeat him.

His salvation was secure! Let us ask God to whisper it to our souls “ I am thy salvation.”