READ:
Psalms 70-71
Psalm 70 ends with an interesting
twist. “Oh Lord, do not delay.” This is paramount to saying, “Hurry up, God!”
Surely David isn’t saying for God to come like He will in the End. He is asking
God to come to Him right that minute. We often think of the Holy Spirit as a
New Testament entity, rather than part of the Godhead. If it wasn’t for the
Holy Spirit, David would not have been able to ask God to come quickly and then
expect it. This can be huge encouragement for us in those times when we feel at
the end of our rope, like David. We can ask God to come quickly because we need
Him, just like David did. It’s the Holy Spirit who will come minister to us and
allow us to know and experience the presence of God. David needed, and
desperately begged God for, that very personal presence of the Holy Spirit. How
much more do we?
Psalm 71 is a beautiful psalm! David’s
heart is revealed. He says from his childhood he hoped in God. His confidence
is in God alone. We have seen this evidenced psalm after psalm. David really
did have his whole life rooted in his God. Even others saw it and followed his
example. He is constantly praising God, and makes it abundantly clear: God is
his refuge. God is his hope. It is not in his strength, or ability, or riches,
or status. It is in God. He says in verse 14 he will always have hope because
God is his hope. He makes a commitment to praise Him more and more as his life
goes on. There is no wonder why God said David was a man after His own heart.
When David talks of hope and confidence
in God, he is not blindly denying that God has dealt him some difficulties. He
hasn’t avoided thinking about all the hardships, or even talking about them. We
have seen how David clearly spoke to God about all his pain, suffering and
persecution. We have watched as David nearly gave way to depression, yet hung
on to God until the end. In verse 19 David praises God for all the great things
He has done. Yet in verse 20, he is clear with the Lord that He caused him to
see many bitter troubles. But even still – even after all that – David commits
to praising God again. And not only to praise Him, but to sing of His
faithfulness. It takes a man of courage and submission to say to God, who has
handed him trouble after trouble, that He is praised for His faithfulness. Oh
that we would see the faithfulness of God, even in troubled times.
JOURNALING
AND PRAYER
1. When was the last time you experienced
the presence of the Holy Spirit? Ask the Lord to come to you now so you can
experience His love and attention. If sitting quietly before the Lord is
difficult, ask Him specifically to show you exactly what He is doing in your
life right now to shape and mold you into His character. Ask Him to reveal your
current situation to you through His eyes. Write down your experience with God,
and the things He says or shows you.
2. Ask God if your hope is 100% in Him. If
it is, spend a few minutes in thanksgiving for all He has done for you and
shown you. If not, ask Him what your hope is in instead. Ask Him to reveal to
you the weakness of what you are hoping in and compare this to what you would
have when you hope in Him. Write this all down. Ask for a word, thought,
picture or song to encourage you in the days ahead to keep your hope in God
alone.
3. Write down one or two really difficult
things you have lived through. Now listen closely to the voice of the Holy
Spirit. Ask Him to show you five things you can be thankful for because of
those difficult situations. It might be hard at first, but keep listening to
God and letting His Spirit direct your thoughts to His Word, His promises, and
His direction in your life.
