Daily Archives: April 13, 2020

Psalm 54

            David was seeking to evade Saul who was seeking to kill him. The people of the region where David was hiding saw an opportunity for reward. The most painful part of the betrayal – these were fellow Israelites. This desperate prayer, likely composed while moving away from his current hiding spot, resembles prayers we’ve all uttered.

            For some reason we often hurt those to whom we are closest. In David’s case, his life was in the balance. No wonder the prayer is desperate. In desperate times people often turn to God with short and pointed prayers.

            When betrayal comes, and most assuredly it will, our best resort is to remind ourselves of our past. Remember how God has acted in the past. Read the accounts of God’s mighty deliverance of His people from the Egyptians in Exodus. Read hos God protected those returning pilgrims after the Babylonian captivity in Nehemiah and Ezra. Read the accounts of God’s acts in the lives of those who spread the gospel in Acts in the New Testament.

            When we are hurting, don’t lash out. Cry out. God hears, God acts, God delivers.