- 1 For the leader; with stringed instruments. A psalm of David.
- 2 Answer when I call, my saving God. In my troubles, you cleared a way; show me favor; hear my prayer.
- 3 How long will you people mock my honor, love what is worthless, chase after lies?
- 4 Know that the LORD works wonders for the faithful; the LORD hears when I call out.
- 5 Tremble and do not sin; upon your beds ponder in silence.
- 6 Offer fitting sacrifice and trust in the LORD.
- 7 Many say, "May we see better times! LORD, show us the light of your face!"
- 8 But you have given my heart more joy than they have when grain and wine abound.
- 9 In peace I shall both lie down and sleep, for you alone, LORD, make me secure.
To me this psalm is about full and utter submission to and trust in God. It is almost as if the speaker has put all of his eggs in God's basket. He has complete stake in the Lord. It is a call to live completely within the grace of God, to try and live fully for God, with His Spirit always in your mind, heart, and soul.
In verse 7, the people, it seems are calling for God to prove his love. They need substantial evidence. They rejoice when the grain and wine are abundant. Yet, they allow their faith to rely solely on how they see God's material presence in their lives. As opposed to the speaker who just feels a divine presence and a oneness with the Lord because of his trust in Him.
This passage reminds me of the passage which involves children being brought to Jesus. When reading that passage, we discussed what it meant to have a childlike faith. I would say that the speaker in this psalm has faith like a child and the people to whom he refers have rational, adult-like faiths. They believe in God when they see, when they have evidence. Conversely, the speaker has full trust and believes just because it makes sense. Because believing brings him to the fullest sense of joy.
It definitely is not easy to understand why certain things happen or to allow ourselves to feel that God is constantly at work in our lives. But I do know that when I put more trust in the Lord, things seems to be more okay.
I know that the things I feel called to do and my decisions typically make more sense when I don't sit down to rationally decipher, categorize, and evaluate all the possible outcomes. If I perpetually question and ask "where is God?", then I will continually be looking for Him. Demanding to see Him makes finding Him too difficult. But if I just accept that I am called to do something, then God feels like He is right with me.
I recently finished an application for the Jesuit Volunteer Corps. Initially, I couldn't give a concrete answer as to why I wanted to apply for it and dedicate so much of my life to them. The more I thought about it and tried to understand my own motivations, the harder the application became. But when I finally told myself, "you know Juliette, you really want to do this. So just do it!", I was able to put into words my honest desires. I trusted that God knew me better than I know myself and that He would guide my hand. As long as I continue to live in full recognition of His active presence in my life, then I need no explanation or tangible, material signs of His love for me. Where the Spirit calls, there I shall go.
