Psalm 31: A Hard Journey for David and for Me

In so many of the Psalms, especially those of David, there is a raw—almost painful—honesty. I’ve been emphasizing Psalms in my devotions this year. I’m impressed anew with the openness of these prayers and songs of worship.

 Take Psalm 31 for instance. It came up in my reading for today. In verses 1-8, David utters a number of statements of dependence on and trust in the Lord.

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•       He says he has “taken refuge” in the Lord (1).
•        In verses 2-3, refers to God as a “rock,” “stronghold,” and “fortress.”
•        He is confident of the Lord’s guidance and deliverance in verses 3-4.
•        He commits his spirit to God’s keeping (5) and trusts in Him (6).
•        He clearly aligns himself as standing on God’s side (6).

From these verses, one could get the idea that David is above it all, but we see something else appearing in verse 7. By the time we get to verse 9, it is an outright admission, “I am in distress.” When I go back and read those words of faith and affirmation in the light of the confession of verse 9 they take on a different character. I can hear a measure of desperation in David’s voice. He’s holding on by his fingernails. In verses 9-13, David pours out a description of his troubles, and they are troubling.

I’ve been there, living in the dissonance, seeking to hold onto what I know about God in the face of evidence that many hold up as proof that the Lord doesn’t care about me at all. We can turn to other portions of Scripture, particularly in the New Testament, that tell us about patience that comes from tribulation, refining of our spirits, and lessons of holiness learned in the school of pain, but let’s not go there too quickly. Let’s let the voice of the Psalmist, raw though it is, speak to our hearts. I need to take time to listen to the Holy Spirit’s stirring in my heart, asking, “Howard do you ever feel like that?”

“Yes, Lord, sometimes I do.”

“So, my son, what are you going to do about it?”

Beginning in verse 14, David begins his journey back toward daylight. His requests are consistent with the affirmations he made in the Psalms opening verses. Look where he comes out.

As for me, I said in my alarm,

“I am cut off from before Your eyes”;

Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications

When I cried to You.

             O love the Lord, all you His godly ones!

The Lord preserves the faithful

And fully recompenses the proud doer.

             Be strong and let your heart take courage,

All you who hope in the Lord.^[1]

David expressed this whiplash-inducing journey in one brief poem. I suspect it took him longer to live it than to write it. I know it does me.

Lord, help me to come to the right conclusion.

 

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^[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. (1995). (Ps 31:22–24). La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.

A friend of mine, told me that I should read A Tale of Three Kings, by Gene Edwards.  He had read it and he said he thought of me.  Why?  That would be T.M.I. for this context.  Suffice to say, knowing what I know, I was honored that my friend saw traces of me in the story.
In the rawest terms the book is about Saul, David, and Absalom.  Really it is about humility, ambition, brokenness, and yielding to God.  There is much that God knows, but "He won't tell."  Much of the book revolves around that tension of wanting to know--wanting to know so much that we will arrogantly claim to know--yet having to make choices in the realization that we don't know.  We don't even know our own heart.
The book is very selective in its history of David.  It claims that David did not fight for the kingdom, He did.the beginning of 2 Samuel makes that clear (3:1 in particular).  The book is right, however, in pointing out David's remarkable resolve in being unwilling to "stretch out his hand against the Lord's anointed."  (Saul)  Likely David's motives and actions toward Absalom were more complex than those portrayed in the book.
Having said that, I think Edwards zeros in on a central characteristic of David.  Maybe the characteristic that made him a man after God's own heart.  I know beyond any doubt that A Tale of Three Kings caused me to evaluate the contents of my own heart.  It seems that is the author's intention.  "The story is a portrait . . . of submission and authority within the kingdom of God."  (Introduction)  It gave me a new paradigm for evaluating some of the interactions that have formed and shaped me.
To put the question in the Words of David:  Am I willing for the "Lord to be my shepherd" even when He doesn't tell?  Am I willing to submit to Him even when I don't know where He is leading?

I think others will find A Tale of Three Kings, by Gene Edwards, a worthwhile read.

A Tale of Three Kings, Gene Edwards, Tyndale House Publishers.

A wasted life:

As you could probably tell from my lack of any posts on the matter, I'm behind, way behind on my Bible reading project. I haven't abandoned my goal of reading through the Bible 2x this year, but the commitment is in jeopardy.
It is not that I have not been having a good time with the Lord in His word. I have. For instance in the couple of weeks before Easter, both in my study for my Easter message and in my Quiet Time, I walked with the Lord during the weekend of His crucifixion. The harmony I used can still be found at covingtonbiblechurch.org. Click on devotional aids. I needed that.
It is just that this has been outside of my plan--which I know is OK.
Yesterday, we were visiting with family. For me, most of the day was laid back--take a nap if you want to--which I did in the afternoon--but in the morning I read most of the life of King David.
I began in the later chapters of 1 Samuel, followed him to Philistia, ached with him when Ziklag burned, and then saw him ascend to the throne and deal with all competitors.
In the middle of 2 Samuel, though, there is the little matter of Bathsheba.
The book is divided--David's successes, David's failures. The line of demarcation is a woman who was taking a bath, and a man who didn't take a cold shower.
Tragic, instructive, but tragic.

I'm working on this weeks message from the second half of Eph. 2. I'm thinking about purposely--I'll be up front about it--going with a secondary point. If Jews and Gentiles are brought together in Christ, then why are we two millennia later dividing over skin-color, and musical tastes, or whether we wear ties or not on Sunday morning?
If you would like to weigh in with 2 cents--or even a nickle--I'd be glad to listen.

Easter at our church was great. Thank you Lord.