Psalm 55

"But I call to God, and the Lord saves me.  Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and He hears my voice."  Psalm 55:16-17

There is no greater emotional pain than the rejection of someone who at what time was a good friend.  David was going through exactly such a turmoil in his life.  David was being threatened by a powerful conspiracy against himself.  This conspiracy against David was being led by a former friend.  David said in Psalm 55:12-14, "If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it; if a foe were raising himself against me. I could hide from him.  But it is you, a man like myself, my companion, my close friend, with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship as we walked with the throng at the house of God."

David was deeply troubled in his spirit that his former friend would seek to hurt him.  David said to to God in prayer in Psalm 55:2b, "My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught."  David went on to say in Psalm 55:4, "My heart is in anguish within me."  David was so overcome with grief at this situation in his life that he longed to escape the situation in any way possible.  David said in Psalm 55:6-8, "Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!  I would fly away and be at rest-I would flee far away and stay in the desert; I would hurry to my place of shelter, far from the tempest and storm."

You and I may have experienced similar feelings at some point in our lives.  When we are in the midst of a relational hurt or some other trial in our lives we may also wish that we could possess wings like a dove.  We may wish that we could "fly away and be at rest."  Rest and peace of heart can only be found in the Lord, however.  Rest and peace cannot be found by running away from our bad situations.  We might be able to leave some situations, but we can not get away from ourselves and our troubled thoughts and emotions.  That kind of peace is found only in the Lord.  Instead of seeking to "fly away" from our circumstances we need to fly to the Lord for His protection, peace, and rest.  We need to rest our problems in the Lord's hands, and then we can soar in the current of His perfect will.

This kind of peace can only be found through prayer and dependence on the Lord.  David said in Psalm 55:16-17, "But I call to God, and the Lord saves me.  Evening, morning and noon I cry out in distress, and He hears my voice."  David had made prayer a regular part of his life.  David did not just wait until a crisis arose in his life to pray.  Hence, David knew the strength and peace that instant access to God's holy presence could provide.

We too can experience this kind of peace in times of trial.  We may be suffering from a painful relationship like David was experiencing.  We also may be struggling with another kind of trial in our life.  No matter what the crisis or trial in our lives God's Word says in Psalm 55:22, "Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the the righteousness fall."

God does not promise to necessarily eliminate all of life's burdens, emotional hurts, or problems; but He will go through these problems with us.  We need to take our burdens to the Lord and leave them there.  We must trust that the Lord is in control of all life's situations.  If we leave our burdens with the Lord, He will strengthen us and sustain us in the midst of the difficult situations in our lives.  He will be our comfort and peace.  All the experiences in our lives, even the difficult experiences can be used by the Lord to draw us closer to Him.  This can only happen, however, if we are resting and trusting in Him; and if we are submissive to His will for our lives.