Responding to Ups and Downs — Morning Devotions

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In some ways it’s a good thing, but of course there are some downsides to acting tough and putting on a mask.

The reality of life

So let’s think about responding to the ups and downs. As I said, Claire Smith has helped me with these ideas. And Psalm 57 from the Old Testament is an excellent Psalm, if, you want to read it sometime or if you’ve got it now. Instead of putting on a brave face as we often do, King David, who is actually the author of this psalm, actually calls a spade a spade.

Now David is talked about a lot in the Bible, but he’s not afraid to look at his situation, to make some statements. For example, he says, I am in the midst of lions. I lie among ravenous beasts whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords. That’s the sort of thing that he talks about. He’s not afraid to cry out to God for help. Now society’s like that, isn’t it? We become self-absorbed and you know, we don’t always want to hear the negative things that people want to say, but there’s a downside to that because it can stand in the way of us getting to know each other and care for each other. If people are always on top, as it were, you can never really get to know that person.

If we try to keep a tight lid on everything and we say, oh, yeah, everything’s fine. How are you? Oh, everything is fine. It almost sort of makes out that you don’t need God, you don’t need me, you don’t need people. So if we’re afraid to say how much we’re hurting or how much we need God’s help, perhaps we think, well, maybe he can’t help. Maybe what can he do? Things can get beyond our own control. We admit that we’re needy people. We need God. So I think it needs a little bit of a situation. Well, David, in this wonderful Psalm, Psalm 57, David’s in real trouble. Someone called Saul had come after him with an army of several 1000 men. They were after him to kill him.

So David, obviously fled for protection, he fled to a cave. His enemies are in hot pursuit.

We talk in Australia about having a stiff upper lip. Well, David in this psalm actually states things as they are, as I said before, lions – teeth like spears and so on. That’s how he felt. Well, of course it was real. I mean, David’s life was in danger. He was frightened. He actually admitted how he felt.

But David is different to many of us because David realised that God was his only hope. Now, in this verse, in the Psalm rather, there’s only 11 verses, and God is actually referred to in this short Psalm, Psalm 57- 22 times. That’s quite a lot for a short psalm.

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So this is a psalm that’s not so much about David’s hardship, but about the God who was able to help him through that particular difficulty. David fled to this cave to hide, but he realised that God was his ultimate refuge. He’s one who helps us. He’s able to give us the answers. So here he was, a king hiding in a rock cave.

But he knew without doubt that without God’s help, he was helpless. So he realised, as I think we do need to realise that God is a God who is in control. There is no one greater than him. His glory, we’re told in the Bible, fills heaven and earth. He sees all things. He knows all things. He’s not just a remote someone up there watching from a distance. David, this king, he knew that God knew him, just today, as God knows us personally, so God is not there stuck in heaven. God is our only hope.

Let’s Pray

Well, sometimes, dear Lord, we feel weary even before the day starts. Release us from the burdens and the worries. Help us to face life’s ups and downs, knowing that you are in charge. We thank you in Jesus’ name. Amen.