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July 29, 2019
The word Sabbath means to cease. So as Dr. Brooks is away on sabbatical, we will be using his original devotionals from 2009 on the book of Psalms. He will resume The Bible Project devotionals upon his return. Thank you for reading with us and praying for him as he replenishes his soul for the next seven years of ministry.
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Psalm 55
1 Listen to my prayer, O God,
do not ignore my plea;
2 hear me and answer me.
My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught
3 because of what my enemy is saying,
because of the threats of the wicked;
for they bring down suffering on me
and assail me in their anger.
4 My heart is in anguish within me;
the terrors of death have fallen on me.
5 Fear and trembling have beset me;
horror has overwhelmed me.
6 I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!
I would fly away and be at rest.
7 I would flee far away
and stay in the desert;
8 I would hurry to my place of shelter,
far from the tempest and storm.”
9 Lord, confuse the wicked, confound their words,
for I see violence and strife in the city.
10 Day and night they prowl about on its walls;
malice and abuse are within it.
11 Destructive forces are at work in the city;
threats and lies never leave its streets.
12 If an enemy were insulting me,
I could endure it;
if a foe were rising against me,
I could hide.
13 But it is you, a man like myself,
my companion, my close friend,
14 with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship
at the house of God,
as we walked about
among the worshipers.
15 Let death take my enemies by surprise;
let them go down alive to the realm of the dead,
for evil finds lodging among them.
16 As for me, I call to God,
and the Lord saves me.
17 Evening, morning and noon
I cry out in distress,
and he hears my voice.
18 He rescues me unharmed
from the battle waged against me,
even though many oppose me.
19 God, who is enthroned from of old,
who does not change—
he will hear them and humble them,
because they have no fear of God.
20 My companion attacks his friends;
he violates his covenant.
21 His talk is smooth as butter,
yet war is in his heart;
his words are more soothing than oil,
yet they are drawn swords.
22 Cast your cares on the Lord
and he will sustain you;
he will never let
the righteous be shaken.
23 But you, God, will bring down the wicked
into the pit of decay;
the bloodthirsty and deceitful
will not live out half their days.
But as for me, I trust in you.
New International Version (NIV)
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Need to get away? David did. The wicked bring suffering in his life and it is inexplicable to him. "Oh that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest -- I would flee far away and stay in the desert; I would hurry to my place of shelter far from the tempest and storm." David wanted to get away from the storm.
Driving west one weekend, I saw the hurricane symbol in the extra lane on 290. It reminded me of one of the longest days of my life, when we fled from Hurricane Rita. Sometimes the fear of what is coming exceeds the fear of the unknown, so we flee. Can we identify the origin of our fears today? What frightens us more than anything?
For David, most mystifying was the identity of his opponent. The insults derive not from an enemy or a foe from whom he might hide, but from a companion, a close friend with whom he once enjoyed sweet fellowship waling on pilgrimage to the house of God. It is disappointing to be betrayed by a friend. To ask with Julius Caesar, "Et tu Brute?" Or like Jesus to realize that the one with whom he shared bread would betray him to the authorities. Those whom we love possess greater power to bring us pain. If we didn't care about them, we wouldn't care what they thought.
Enemies of God and his people will experience defeat ultimately. But what do we do in the mean time? "But I call to God and the Lord saves me." How often should we pray? "Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress and he hears my voice." In the Hebrew mindset, the new day started with the darkness of evening. Starting then and going throughout the day, David prayed. Paul invites believers in Thessalonica to pray without ceasing. We are most certainly not praying too often. God is on his throne.
David's trust informs our own faith and invites us to believe as well. Because we trust God, we leave his treatment of the unjust to his choices. But we cast our cares on our Sustainer who will not let us fall.
A while back, while caring for a sick child, I remembered the words of a little song on a Christian video we once watched with our sons:
"I will cast all my cares upon you.
I will lay all of my burdens down at your feet
And any time, I don't know what to do,
I will cast all my cares upon you."
And so, we are sustained.
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| This year our Every Day with Jesus readings will follow The Bible Project Read Scripture Plan. Copies of this reading plan are available at Tallowood Baptist Church, or download
the app at readscripture.org. Read through the Bible with us in 2019!
Joyfully,
Duane
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