Give Me Relief - Friday June 2, 2017

REVERBERATIONS FROM DAVID’S PSALMS

PSALM 4 

 “Give me relief from my distress; be merciful to me and hear my prayer.” V.1

GIVE ME RELIEF                                                 

Poor David was praying for some relief.  Armies he had trained were preparing to come against him led by his own son Absalom.  But he was sure God would answer his prayer because he knew God had set him apart for His own purposes. He knew he had a calling, a destiny, and he didn’t feel it was over quite yet.

So in the midst of his personal disaster, he simply lays down on his bed and meditates on it (v.4). He thinks about it, and adds for our benefit, to do what he was doing, “search your hearts and be silent!”  Listen to what God is saying.  In times of stress, this is something we also need to do.

The result for him was to realize, once again, that he just needed to put his total trust in the Lord. Then his prayer changed to “let the light of your FACE shine on us, O Lord.” (v.6)   And, it was then that relief spilled over his heart and brought with it a smile and genuine excitement.  “You have filled my heart with a greater joy!”

The situation has changed significantly from extreme distress to a quiet heart.  “I will lie down and sleep in peace” (v. 8) Whew!   Now that is really putting your trust in the Lord in a tough situation.

Interesting what a little soul searching, while lying on our beds in the midst of turmoil, will do once we realize the Great Lord of the universe has our back. 

So just relax, this too will pass!