Peace in the presence, calm from communing
Psalm 86:1-17
A Psalm of Supplication and Trust.
A Prayer of David.
86 Incline Your ear, O Lord, and answer me;
For I am afflicted and needy.
2 Preserve my soul, for I am a godly man;
O You my God, save Your servant
who trusts in You.
3 Be gracious to me, O Lord,
For to You I cry all day long.
4 Make glad the soul of Your servant,
For to You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
5 For You,
Lord, are good, and ready to forgive,
And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You.
6 Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;
And give heed to the voice of my supplications!
7 In the day of my
trouble I shall call upon You,
For You will answer me.
8 There is no one like You among the gods, O Lord,
Nor are there any works like Yours.
9 All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord,
And they
shall glorify Your name.
10 For You are great and do wondrous deeds;
You alone are God.
11 Teach me Your way, O Lord;
I will walk in Your
truth;
Unite my heart to fear Your name.
12 I will give thanks to You, O Lord my God, with all my heart,
And will glorify Your name forever.
13 For Your lovingkindness toward me is great,
And You have delivered my soul
from the depths of sheol.
14 O God, arrogant men have risen up against me,
And
a band of violent men have sought my life,
And they have not set You before them.
15 But You, O Lord, are a God merciful and
gracious,
Slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness and truth.
16 Turn to me, and be gracious to me;
Oh grant Your strength to Your servant,
And save the son of Your handmaid.
17 Show me a sign for good,
That those who hate me may see it and be ashamed,
Because You, O Lord, have helped me and comforted me.
I often go to the psalms when I need to hear from God. Whether difficult circumstances surround me or I am just dry and empty needing to be close to God. There are many people in the Bible who knew God well and were used mightily for His purposes. But I don't know if there was any who had more of an ability to just commune and communicate with God than David. God said of David that he was a man after His own heart. Acts 13:22
He raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He also testified and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My heart, who will do all My will.’
In the above Psalm from today's reading in the One Year Bible we can see this relationship and communication David has with God. He comes to God and speaks to Him, shares his need and his trust in who God is and what He will do. There is very little about this particular psalm that stands out. It simply shows this personal relationship David has with God. What it is to be a man after God's heart.
God wants that same type of relationship with all His children. He wants us to come to Him, to express our needs to Him. Paul says in Philipians 4:6
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
When we make our requests known to God it's not that we are providing information that He doesn't already have. Our coming and expressing our need is simply a way in which we acknowledge to God that this thing we're facing is beyond our own ability. It's not to inform God of what we need from Him but rather to inform ourself of our need for Him. Throughout the psalms David's pattern of communicating with God remains the same. He acknowledges his need. He acknowledges God's faithfulness, often reviewing ways in which God has answered his prayers and responded to his needs in the past. Again this is not to inform or remind God but rather to express thanks for what has already been done and to build his faith. Remembering all that God has done in the past, why would he not believe He will answer and deliver again.
Verse 11 gives us additional incite into David's heart and what it means to be after God's heart.11 Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth;... This too is a reoccuring theme in David's communication with God. He is ever wanting to know God's way, His will. David always looked at his difficulties as opportunities to learn and know more of God. This is the heart we too should have as it says in James 1:2-4
2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
We don't joy in the trial itself. We have joy knowing that in all things God will provide for us preserve us and if we will learn, He will teach us.
David ends this psalm as he always does. Even though he has not yet seen the delivery or the victory, he rests in God, knowing He is faithful. He has found comfort simply being in the presence of God and though the circumstance has not yet changed, he has.
That too is what we can have when we commune and communicate with God, a resting and peace. Philippians 4:7 says
7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
A peace that comes before the victory, a peace that will confound others as you rest in the midst of your storm, that's the peace we have in communing with our God.
Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus, Holy Spirt I come to you today as a needy person. You know all my needs and the difficulties surrounding me. I bring them to You today ackowledging that they are more than I can handle. Thank You for all the ways You have delivered me and answered me in the past. You are good and faithful. Teach me Your ways O God. Allow me to learn from this trial, that I might know You and Your will more at the end of this than I do now. Thank You also for the peace and comfort You give even now in the midst of this storm. I rest in You.
Joshua Carson
A very encouraging nugget! It is amazing how voicing our concerns to God puts things in perspective and provides such a comfort, despite the ongoing difficulty. Thanks for reminding me of that!