God Can Be Trusted
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, I’ve been carrying burdens this week. Help me to lay them down before You.
Read Psalm 64
1 Hear me, my God, as I voice my complaint;
protect my life from the threat of the enemy.
2 Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked,
from the plots of evildoers.
3 They sharpen their tongues like swords
and aim cruel words like deadly arrows.
4 They shoot from ambush at the innocent;
they shoot suddenly, without fear.
5 They encourage each other in evil plans,
they talk about hiding their snares;
they say, “Who will see it?”
6 They plot injustice and say,
“We have devised a perfect plan!”
Surely the human mind and heart are cunning.
7 But God will shoot them with his arrows;
they will suddenly be struck down.
8 He will turn their own tongues against them
and bring them to ruin;
all who see them will shake their heads in scorn.
9 All people will fear;
they will proclaim the works of God
and ponder what he has done.
10 The righteous will rejoice in the Lord
and take refuge in him;
all the upright in heart will glory in him!
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
Have you ever wanted to take vengeance on your enemies? What do you do with those feelings?David is not sending a complaint to the Customer Service department—his “complaint” is his current situation. I think that Peter and John would have had no difficulty in identifying with it! But David knows that God is willing and able to listen to him.
The first part is a conversation between David and God. When, like David, we tell God about what’s going on in our life we are not passing on new information. We can’t surprise him! But as David talks about his enemies’ conspiracies, cruel words, physical attack and sheer cunning we almost hear the load starting to lift. Perhaps you’ve experienced some of these things this week. Do you need to share the load with God?
In part two David sees God turning the tables. It’s almost as though he has erected a shield for the attacks to bounce off! Just treatment of offenders is an important part of the healing of victims. But whatever the form of punishment, God’s justice will be visible to all. There will be justice.
Apply
Do you know anyone in particular who is carrying feelings of hurt and injustice from this week? Pray that they will be able to take refuge in the Lord.
Closing prayer
Lord Jesus, sometimes our burdens are so heavy. Help us to take refuge in You.
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