#DailyDevotion Feeling Overwhelmed? This Psalm Is For You
Psalm 55 Listen to my prayer, O God; don’t hide from me when I plead.
So when we are in deep anguish, we may have some doubt that God is listening to us or will listen to us. This is probably not something sudden we are dealing with but has built up on us. It may seem to us God has hidden Himself from us when we have been pleading to Him for help. But God’s time and plans are not necessarily our time and plans. God has more wisdom than us and He knows when, where and how to answer our prayers to Him. He is a loving father who does not give us a stone when we ask for bread or give us a serpent when we ask for a fish.
2Turn to me and answer me. I am restless and troubled, 3and confused by the shouting of the enemy and the oppression of the wicked. For they bring me misery and angrily pursue me.
Like David we may have fellow men who are acting the part of our enemies who confuse us by their shouting and their oppression of us. So we turn to God and ask Him to turn to us and answer our prayers for help. We can feel restless, troubled and confused. Our enemies though may be of a spiritual kind, those spirits and rulers of the air that Paul talks about. They also can bring misery and angrily pursue you. They may indeed be behind the human enemies who cause you so much trouble.
4My mind is in anguish as the terrors of death fall on me; 5I fear and tremble and shudder all over. 6I say if I only had wings like a dove, I would fly away and rest. 7Yes, I would run far away and stay in the desert. 8I would hurry to my shelter from the raging wind and storm.
Now David, when writing this psalm, most likely had real human enemies who were seeking his life. It could have been the forces of Saul or it could have been the forces of his son Absalom. Saul was also David’s father-in-law. It could have also been the Philistines. Even as a man who trusted in the LORD in all he did, nevertheless, sometimes, the outside forces could be too much for him. Of course, they were always too much for him. He is in such a state of mind the anguish of the terrors of death overcame him. He was visibly troubled in his body. He would like to fly away like a dove from his present situation.
Jesus likely prayed this prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane when He was asking the Father to take His cup from Him. It expressed what He was feeling as sweated with what looked like drops of blood. He understood what He was about to face not only from men but from the Father as He took our sins upon Himself and became our sacrifice for sin.
If Jesus and David prayed this prayer, you should not hesitate to pray it either. Jesus can and does sympathize with what you are feeling. He has felt it in His flesh and soul. You may wish to run away and hide. You may even want to end it like the traitor Judas whom this psalm references in a few more verses. But pray this prayer with David and with Jesus. God has not turned away from you. God is not hiding from you. When you turn to Him with faith and trust, He is listening to you. He hears your prayers and will answer them at the appropriate time. Wait on the LORD and be of good courage and He will strengthen your heart, as David says in Psalm 46. The LORD in all His wisdom will answer your prayer in the manner, way, form, time, amount etc. that is best for you. Just trust Him in this, even when it seems He has not answered your prayer at all. He is taking care of you in the way that is best for you.
Heavenly Father, always turn Your ear to us so you may hear our cries when we pray to You. Answer us quickly for we are mere mortal men whose inner strength is weak at best. Always do for us what is best and give us wisdom and insight to see and believe this. In Jesus’ name we pray.