Lectionary
Thoughts: Psalm 6
I
love the grittiness of the psalms. The psalms were written by real men assailed
by real enemies in the midst of real affliction, distress, loss and grief. You
can search the psalms, but you will not find any coming “to the garden alone
while the dew is still on the roses” schlock. Instead you will find a colorful litany
of conniving villains, thirsty wilderness treks, back-stabbing friends,
powerful foes, searing flames, crashing waves and open graves.
Psalm
6 opens with indications of anguish and vexation intense enough to turn David’s
couch into a swimming pool of tears (v6). The psalm closes on a note of relief.
But
note what is omitted. Generally, relief stories go something like this:
Affliction – Distress – Crying Out – Removal of Affliction – Relief.
David’s
relief did not come when the LORD dealt with David’s enemies. David’s
relief came when he was confident that the LORD had heard and received his
prayer (v9). This is real faith for real life. Faith is not trusting God when
He marches briskly to the orders that we have given Him. Faith is trusting Him
to deal wisely and lovingly with the concerns that we have laid before Him in
prayer in His time and in His way.
As
the antacid commercial queried: How do you spell relief?
GH
No comments:
Post a Comment