As I grew up in church, we sang a song called “Just a little talk with Jesus”.  One line in there said, “Let us tell Him all about our troubles. He will hear our faintest cry and we will answer by and by.”  As a kid, I thought, “I don’t have any troubles to tell the Lord about.”  Not any major ones for sure at the time.  While I didn’t see it as valuable at the moment, the phrase “tell Him all about our troubles” stuck with me.  He hears even the faintest cry and answers.  This is where we find David once again, telling the Lord about His trouble, crying out to Him, and longing for His answer.  The heading of the psalm indicates it is in reference to the attack he faced in 1 Samuel 23:19-29 when the Ziphites informed Saul that David and his men were hiding in their territory and promised to turn them over to Saul.  These “ruthless men” (v. 3) and “slanderers” (v. 5) gave David issues.  Instead of complaining about them, he prayed to God about them and wrote a worship song!  Now that’s the right perspective to have when we know, as the old song continues, “Jesus is a friend who watches day and night.”

David asks for the Lord to save him by His name and might (v. 1).  His name is associated with his power!  God’s power and authority are present because of His great name.  His name represents His character, nature, and ability!  What a mighty God we serve that at just the mention of His name brings peace and healing to His followers and strikes fear into His enemies.  David asks the Almighty God to hear his prayer.  We must continue to ask, seek, and knock, making our petitions to the Lord because He hears us and answers us (1 John 5:15).  David gives his specific prayer request:  “strangers are attacking me” (v. 3).  These are ruthless men who have no regard for God that seek David’s life.  These kinds of attacks on your life will zap you of energy and fill you with fear.  After this verse, we find the word “Selah”.  It is a word we find over 70 times in the psalms and basically means “stop and think about the Lord”.  In the middle of our struggle, we must “Selah” and “pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it” (Hebrews 2:1).  How much do we forget about the Lord and His promises in the middle of our struggles?

David ends Psalm 54 after his “Selah” moment, knowing “God is my help, the Lord is the one who sustains me” (v. 4).  It’s amazing when we stop and think about the Lord how He fills us with His presence and reassurance!  David asks for retribution (v. 5) based on the Lord’s faithfulness.  He desires God to set things right.  He ends the psalm with the promise of sacrificing and praising the name of the Lord for He is good (v. 6).  David may have started this psalm praying for deliverance, but he ends it in anticipated rejoicing over deliverance.  He trusts the name of the Lord, and so should we. 

Questions:

1. Are you telling the Lord all about your troubles?
2. Do you believe with great faith He will deliver you because of His name’s sake?
3. Do you often “selah”?  If not, what word best describes how you wait on the Lord?

Prayer:

Lord, help me trust in Your name.  You are my help and refuge.  Like David, help me pray specific prayers and rejoice over anticipated deliverance.  Help me do it for Your name, not my own.  You are my helper and sustainer.  You vindicate me for Your name and renown.  Thank You for delivering me.  I praise Your name!  In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

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stephenrharrison

Stephen and his wife Haley have called Arkansas home all of their lives. Stephen has served in several ministry roles over the last 25 years and as a lead pastor for the last 8 years. Stephen attended Williams Baptist College and earned a BA in Biblical Studies from Ouachita Baptist University, an MA, MDiv, and DMin in Christian Leadership and Pastoral Ministries from Liberty University. When not pastoring, Stephen enjoys running, cycling, reading, writing, camping, fishing, and spending time with his family.