In the Presence of My Enemies - The Table Was Already Set
In this powerful two-part teaching, Diana delves into Psalm 23:5 and what it truly means to sit at a table prepared by God in the presence of your enemies. Through biblical insight, cultural context, and vulnerable storytelling, she reveals how pride, fear, and self-reliance often keep us standing—when God invites us to rest. Learn how to recognize the table, trust your Host, and live a Spirit-led life rooted in surrender rather than survival.
Diana’s Notes
Series: “Our Identity in His Greatness: Continuing The Long Road to Healing and Humility”
Hello everybody!!! And welcome to today’s episode, In the Presence of My Enemies – The Table Was Already There, as we continue our topic of learning to find our identity in His Greatness- along the (sometimes, long road) 🙂 to healing and humility here on Heartfelt Conversations with Diana!
In the Presence of My Enemies: Learning to Sit at the Shepherd’s Table
Last week, we talked about Sitting at the Shepherd’s Table.
And today, we’re gonna go a little deeper.
Because Psalm 23:5 doesn’t say He prepares a table after the enemies leave.
Psalm 23:5 says:
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.”
In the presence. Not in the absence. And that changes everything!
In the last episode, I shared a small portion of my journey through the devastating loss of my daughter. I talked about the canyon that formed between God and me. Not because He moved… but because I misunderstood Him.
I believed lies.
And I need to say something gently but clearly here:
The real enemy in my story was not just death. Not just the death of my daughter -
But the enemy of distortion.
Distortion of God’s character.
Distortion of His heart toward me.
Distortion of His nearness to me.
One of the prison walls that held me captive was the spirit of distortion.
Here is the definition of distortion: Merriam-Webster dictionary: the act of twisting or altering something out of its true, natural, or original state
Isaiah 19:14: (AMP) says this about distortion - The LORD has mixed a spirit of distortion within her; Her leaders have caused Egypt to stagger in all that she does, as a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
This verse is an illustration of the consequences of a distorted spirit, describing how it leads to confusion and erratic behavior, akin to a drunken state. It serves as a warning against relying on flawed wisdom. ( according to the Breath of the Spirit ministries.
And I could spend a whole lot of time on this, so let’s pin it and come back to it another day. Sound good? :) Okay… So -
We all have an enemy — and he is very strategic. He uses a lot of tactics, and his little minions, like the spirit of distortion, try to invade our lives every single day.
He will take your deepest wound and try to build a theology around it. Trap you and snare you with sense and reasoning within the prison walls of distortion.
That is what happened to me when my daughter died. Satan took a very painful and grief-filled time in my life, and took all the swirling emotions spinning around in my heart and in my head, and distorted it all like a violent tornado destroying everything in its path.
As I mentioned before, the foundation of my faith was not deeply rooted. I felt a strong resistance to what I was being taught in the church I attended as a child, and what I believed in my heart was the true nature of God. That God was love, not anger or a short fuse towards His creation, us.
When I prayed and asked God to keep my daughter safe and free from all harm and fear, I knew He heard me, and I knew I received my answer. I knew it! I stopped being afraid of going to court. I stopped being afraid of what was going to happen to her if, after his evaluation, he would be given shared custody.
He was clever and crafty. I knew he could deceive the people observing his behavior, and I knew he would give the right answers. He was not a stupid man. He was a man possessed by evil, at least during this period of time.
There was a lot at stake, and my family knew the horrific outcome for my daughter if somehow the judge did not rule in our favor, but after I took my concerns to God and gave the care of my daughter over to Him. All of the waves bashing against my heart quieted down. There was no longer a raging storm of fear in me, but I had complete peace. Not peace as the world knows it, but peace that can only come from Jesus.
John 14:27: (NLT) “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.
So when the accident came, I was blindsided. It was not the answer I saw coming. The answer to my prayer did not meet the anticipated answer I believed I was going to receive.
I was completely and totally without any reservations at all, in complete peace, knowing my daughter would be safe, and then she died, within days of that prayer.
It was not an answer to prayer; it was a slap in the face. A total rejection of my plea to my God to save my child. How do you cope with that? How are you doing?
I didn’t know, and I had no one to show me the way - which is why these conversations are so important, so that none of us feel alone in dealing with traumatic pain, deep, deep sorrow, betrayal, heartbreak, rejection, abandonment, identity crisis - who am I??? Whatever any of us are struggling with, we are not alone.
For one thing, you have a nutty, healing soul right here for you, sharing all my junk so you can learn how to unpack and clean out your own.
But the most important thing we can cling to is exactly what I failed to do when it would have protected me from years of a shattered heart. Faith. Trust.
We must believe God is for us! He is our good, good Father. We have Jesus as our Savior, who shed His blood so that we could be reconciled back into a good relationship with our Father, and Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to help us follow Him, to be our Counselor and Advisor. Without Him, without the Holy Spirit, we wander in the wilderness.
We can be Christians, we can know Jesus, and live a roller-coaster Christian life because we are afraid of the Holy Spirit. He’s so weird! HAHAHA
I used to think that - but now, I would still be lost wandering around if I had not invited Him to lead me, to help keep me on the path Jesus was showing me.
If we're not careful, we will start walking a path that feels justified to us, our way… but really, it is slowly leading us away from the Shepherd.
And sheep… need a Shepherd.
When sheep wander alone, they don’t become independent.
They become vulnerable.
And I didn’t realize for a long time that I was trying to survive on my own strength. I thought I was strong enough, self-reliant. I could sound spiritual when I had to. But it was self-powered. I was living the Christian life fueled by self-will, self-determination, by my flesh. That way, in our own way, a way led by religious acts and religious talk but no real root to grow real fruit, always leads us astray - away from the Table.
Psalm 23 opens with:
“The LORD is my shepherd; I lack nothing.”
That word “my” is intimate.
David is not talking about a distant deity.
He’s talking about a personal Shepherd.
And then he says:
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.”
So think about it this way and it might make more sense to you. I know it did for me.
In the ancient East, if you were seated at someone’s table, you had guest rights. That meant the host was obligated to protect you at all costs. If an enemy approached, it was the host’s responsibility( in the scenario God is our Host - our heavenly Host, but it is His responsibility — not ours — to deal with it.
David was referencing this common cultural truth when he said.
“You prepare a table,” what David was saying is :
“I am under Your protection.
I am under Your covering.
I am under Your authority.”
And here’s the part of Pastor Alexa’s illustration from her message I mentioned last week that somehow really seemed to grab my attention. Lifted me up to a new level at the table:
I didn’t have to find the way on my own - to the table -
The table was already there. It had already been set. I didn’t need to do anything but follow my Shepherd.
Even in my grief.
Even in my anger.
Even in my confusion.
God had not abandoned me.
He had prepared something for me.
Provision.
Comfort.
Nourishment.
Presence.
But I didn’t know how to sit. I didn’t seek His Table. I made up my own banquet loaded down with side dishes of distortion, destruction, disillusionment,
I was pacing.
I was analyzing.
I was questioning.
I was defending myself internally. Self- justification as to why I couldn’ttrust peoplel,e and now I didn’t trust God.
(One day, I will share an encounter with the Lord that kept me in guilt for so long, and recently I learned that it was that encounter that I hated for years, that was actually sustaining me and keeping me close even when I seemed to be so lost and so far away. This encounter fed my spirit and kept me going while I was lost.
And somewhere along the journey, God began teaching me something I didn’t even realize He was teaching me.
Sit.
Sit.
Sit.
Sit.
Sitting does not feel productive.
Sitting didn’t feel powerful, like I was in control.
Sitting made me feel vulnerable.
But sitting is an act of trust.
During the past year, God was teaching me to sit. It has been very hard and very frustrating, quite honestly, for me. I am not someone who does a whole lot of sitting.
I am a check it off the task list kinda person. I like to stand back and enjoy all I accomplished during the day. I grew up not having a lot of self-worth, but when I work, I know I do good work. It is where I find my confidence, and God had to shift my confidence from what I could do to who He is and who I am in Him. My work would not sustain me, but His finished work always would.
There is nothing wrong with being a good, honest, hard worker; we should be. As long as it flows into the pace God has graced us with. And how do we know if He has graced us with the path we are walking on, with all the tasks we are checking off our list?
How do we know it is His path, or have we ventured off onto our path? When you begin sitting at the Table, it doesn’t take long to realize when your tank is low on Holy Spirit fuel and when you are running on your own fuel.
Food Fuel. And Spiritual Food Fuel to be specific.
The bible tells us of a time when Martha was aggravated by the actions of Mary. Martha was running around like a chicken with her head cut off - what is a more updated version of that saying hahahaha - hmm -
But Martha was busy, busy, busy preparing everything for the visit of Jesus. She was a very good, productive, and gracious hostess. She was the hostess with the mostess. Lol, but Jesus told Martha to get her panties out of a bunch - To settle down and not be wound so tightly. That, in fact, Mary chose the better thing. To sit at the feet of Jesus. To sit and listen and fellowship and learn of Him.
Luke 10:38-42 (NLT) As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”
Sounds reasonable, right? But listen to what Jesus says to Martha in verses 41& 42
But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Sitting at the Table says:
“I am not responsible for fighting this battle alone.”
Sitting at the feet of Jesus, resting at God’s table. These are the better things!
These are the only things we should be concerned about:
Have I sat at my Father’s table that He prepared for me today?
Have I sat at my Savior’s feet today, learning the way from Him?
And maybe that’s what you need to hear today.
The enemies in your life might be:
Fear.
Grief.
Financial strain.
Betrayal.
Diagnosis.
Anxiety.
Regret.
But the presence of enemies does not mean the absence of God.
In fact, Psalm 23 shows us something radical:
Our Shepherd is attentive when our valley seems the darkest.
He renews your life.
He leads you along the right paths.
And sometimes the right path… is learning to stay seated at a table you didn’t set.
What if the table is not an escape from the battle, but authority in the battle?
What if peace is not the removal of enemies — but the awareness of your Host?
Today I am so grateful that even when I didn’t see Him… He was watching over me.
Like a parent quietly peeking around the corner while their child sleeps — unseen, but fully attentive.
He never once left.
The table was always there.
The question wasn’t, “Did God show up?”
The question was, “Would I trust Him enough to sit?”
And that’s where we’ll go next time…
Because finding the table is one thing.
Learning to stay seated…
is another.
We have to learn that our own pride, which can manifest through fear, shame, guilt, bitterness, but when our pride,( not necessarily our defiance - but our own self-reliance} will always pull us off the path of peace, and instead learn how choosing humility, trust, and intimacy with the Shepherd brings restoration, clarity, and rest for our souls.
The Holy Spirit helps us to be led by faith.
I referenced John 14:27 earlier when Jesus spoke of peace, but in the verse prior, Jesus speaks of the significance of the Holy Spirit.
John 14:26: (NLT) But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.
If your heart has ever felt jaded, weary, distorted, and twisted by pain, then I pray you will reach out and ask the Holy Spirit to be your Helper, your Advocate, that he will teach you everything, including finding your seat at the table, maybe again, if, like me, you wandered away. Ask the Father to help you learn and recognize the promptings of the Holy Spirit so you can learn to better hear the voice of the Good Shepherd, who longs to comfort you, shelter you, tend to your wounds, and direct and order your steps so that you can be assured that He will lead you on the right path of your life!
Psalm 23:3 (CSB) "He renews my life; he leads me along the right paths for his name’s sake."
I touched on how He taught me how to endure with patient steadfastness, to become unwavering in the journey of getting back on the right path for my life. But it came by learning to sit. Sit. And Sit. And Sit!
I didn’t realize God was teaching me to sit and stay seated, trusting Him, until Pastor Alexa’s message. And I realized that the same peace through hardships I have now, I could have had then. But I didn’t know how to sit.
To sit at the Table in the presence of my enemies
So based upon Psalm 23:5, how can we all learn to sit at the Shepherd’s Table when we are facing some of our biggest struggles and hurdles in life?
I want you to write this down on paper and ask God to write it on your heart - Always remember this:
“The Shepherd never asked you to fight for a seat at His table.
He invites you to trust Him that it was already prepared for you.”
So what do you do? It’s simple:
Pull up a chair, it is there waiting just for you. He set the table. But you have to accept the invitation and pull up a chair to the table.
So will you, will you receive Jesus as your personal Shepherd and trust Him to direct your steps? To lead you when to sit and fellowship and when to walk along the green meadows and quiet, still waters.
Will you allow God to set the rhythm and the pace of your journey so it is in complete harmony with Him -
Or will you continue to try and do it all on your own - not at the table, but remain in the stable. Leaving Jesus as the tiny baby who was born to be your Savior, but never allowing Him to actually become your ultimate Shepherd.
Never allowing Him to lead you to the table that has already been prepared just for you.
Don’t walk the valley alone. Don’t face the shadows alone. Don’t lead yourself to streams and waters that never quench your thirst, but always leave you more thirsty, more dusty, more afraid, more alone.
Come, sit a spell at the Shepherd’s table.
Remember these simple truths that we have been chatting about for the past few weeks:
The pressure is not on us to be perfect, but we are perfected already by who we are in Christ!!! AND!
God loves you! He isn’t mad, angry, disappointed, or through with you. He wants you to know that your BEST DAYS ARE YET TO COME!!!!
Then - write these 2 God truths on your heart, with a little personal quote from my heart to yours!
From last week: “When we learn to sit at His table, we learn to live from His strength!”
From today’s conversation: “The Shepherd never asked you to fight for a seat at His table. He invites you to trust Him that it is already prepared for you.”
Don’t forget to check out today’s notes and Pastor Eric’s message: The God of the Journey - A great message on the 121st Psalm. You can find today’s notes and his message on - heartfeltconversations.com
This is the day the LORD has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it! Psalms 118:24:(NLT)
I will….. See ya next time on Heartfelt Conversations with Diana!
Psalm 121: The God of the Journey | Pastor Eric Jones
Need a church home: Join us at VFC - tell them Diana invited you! 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/@ValleyFamilyChurch/streams
Thirst Quenchers
Songs to Inspire You:
Made Me Glad - Hillsong Worship
Lauren Daigle - Rescue (Official Music Video)
Never Walk Alone (Lyric Video) - Hillsong Worship
Foundational Encouraging Verses:
Isaiah 42:16: God’s Word Translation
I will lead the blind on unfamiliar roads. I will lead them on unfamiliar paths. I will turn darkness into light in front of them. I will make rough places smooth. These are the things I will do for them, and I will never abandon them.
Isaiah 54:10: Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken, nor my covenant of peace be removed,” says the Lord, who has compassion on you.”
Psalm 119:105: Your word is a light unto our path and a light unto our feet.
Isaiah 54:17: But in that coming day, no weapon turned against you will succeed. You will silence every voice raised up to accuse you. These benefits are enjoyed by the servants of the LORD; their vindication will come from me. I, the LORD, have spoken!
Isaiah 52:12: (EASY) But you will not have to hurry and run away. No, the Lord, Israel's God, will keep you safe. He will lead you at the front, and He will be your guard at the back.
Matthew 7:11: So if you who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!
1 Peter 2:23 tells us - When He was insulted, He did not answer back with an insult; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but placed His hopes in God, the righteous Judge.
Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."
1 Peter 2:12 says, “Live such good lives among the pagans that… they may see your good deeds and glorify God.”
The New Living Translation reads it this way: Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.
Deuteronomy 30:19-20: "I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Now choose life."
Luke 6:37 “Forgive, and you will be forgiven”.
Matthew 6:14: If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.
Romans 8:31 in the AMP Bible tells us: What then shall we say to all these things? If God is for us, who can be [successful] against us?
Psalm 65:11: You crown the year with a bountiful harvest; even the hard pathways overflow with abundance.
Psalm 32:8: The LORD says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life. I will advise you and watch over you.
Proverbs 15:3: The Lord sees everything, whether good or bad.
1 Peter 5:7: Cast all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you.
Additional Resources:
Steven Furtick: Triggered Taking Back Your Mind in the Age of Anxiety
Beth Jones: Getting a Grip on the Basics is a great resource to help you get the basics of how vital you are to God and how good He desires to be to you
https://www.thebasicsuniversity.com
Joyce Meyer: The Mind is a Battlefield - https://joycemeyer.org
Prayer of Salvation
Jesus has given salvation, healing, and countless benefits to all who call upon His name. These benefits can be yours if you receive Him into your heart by saying this prayer:
Heavenly Father, I come to You admitting that I am a sinner. Right now, I choose to turn away from sin, and I ask You to cleanse me of all unrighteousness. I believe that Jesus rose again from the dead so that I may be justified and made righteous through faith in Him. I call upon the name of Jesus Christ to be the Savior and Lord of my life. Jesus, I choose to follow You, and I ask that You fill me with the power of the Holy Spirit. I declare right now that I am a born-again child of God. I am free from sin and full of the righteousness of God. I am saved in Jesus’ name. Amen.
This prayer and the comment above were taken out of the book:
Secrets to Powerful Prayer - Discovering the Languages of the Heart
By Lynne Hammond and Patsy Cameneti
If you have just received Jesus as your Savior, please write Lynne Hammond Ministries at:
PO Box 29469
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55429-2946
Or, email one of the ministries listed on the Additional Resources Tab and let them know that you are a brand-new Christian and need some direction on the next steps for your new life in Christ.
Or email us here at Heartfelt Conversations with Diana, and we will forward your information to you.
Congratulations if you are a brand new Christian or if you have Returned Home! Welcome!!! Get in God’s Word and get it into you.