David learned many things about the Lord in his lifetime, and one important lesson was that no matter how dark the night of doubt and sorrow, how mountainous the problems he had to face, or how fierce the enemy that stalks his path, God is his help and strength, and He is his shield and buckler.
The Lord is our Shepherd, and He is the shelter from the storm. He is the one who loves with everlasting love, and He is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. The loving-kindness of the Lord never fails, and the grace and mercy of our Heavenly Father give unlimited supply.
Every morning when I wake up, I want to spend time with God; reading, praying, I just want to know that he is there with me, that I have begun the day on a proper note. I need to hear Him speak to me through His Word…and allow His peace to encircle me. Because I recognize I have no other choice, no other remedy for my troubles, except to trust and take shelter in Him. Yet sometimes, even this is hard.
Psalm 143:8-10
Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness in the morning, For in You do I trust;
Cause me to know the way in which I should walk, For I lift up my soul to You. Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies; In You I take shelter. Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness.
Looking through these verses, we notice how David, a man after God’s heart, cries out, “Cause me to know how I should walk”. You’d think that David already knew how to walk; God had blessed him immensely, but he was in the middle of a big trial. He says he “lifts his soul to God.” Notice that David is reaching up to God, not happy to wallow in his troubles, but seeking out the face of God Himself to bring about peace. He goes on to say, “In you, I take shelter,” and then, once again, asks God to teach him His will.
Unlike David, a lot of us modern believers think it’s hard enough to let go of what we do know, let alone what we don’t know; if only we learn to do it, we would be making a statement of our faith to God, that we are willing to rest in the fact that he knows everything we don’t and that we trust in his ability and not our own. For those of you who think that resting sounds like an easy thing to do (because it is something we all like to do), when it comes to our spiritual concerns, our relationship with God, and our work, it can prove to be quite difficult. That’s why people become anxious. That’s why people get nervous and scared about situations and their outcomes.
We’ve all heard the expression: “Give it a rest.“ And that is exactly what God is telling us to do. God says, “Make it easy on yourself and let me”(2 Chronicles 20:17). He is asking us to have faith in him and his process.
Personally, it was a little difficult learning to let go of fear (and a little bit of pride) and to trust completely in God. The only way it gets easier is by repeated exposure to The Word; praying, worshiping, turning to The Holy Spirit. The only way it gets easier is by understanding that you don’t need to understand everything-you just need to trust in him.
The best way to defeat the pressing turmoil of “What ifs?” is simply the answer “Because God…”
© Yolanda Beeko