Be Still and Know

Psalm 4

English Standard Version (ESV)

Answer Me When I Call

To the ^(A)choirmaster: with ^(B)stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.

4 Answer me when I call, O God of my ^(C)righteousness!           
    You have ^(D)given me relief when I was in distress.
    Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!

² O men,^[a] how long shall my honor be turned into shame?
    How long will you love vain words and seek after ^(E)lies? Selah
³ But know that the Lord has ^(F)set apart ^(G)the godly for himself;
    the Lord hears when I call to him.

^4 (H)Be angry,^[b] and do not sin;
    ^(I)ponder in your own hearts ^(J)on your beds, and be silent. Selah
⁵ Offer ^(K)right sacrifices,
    and put your ^(L)trust in the Lord.

⁶ There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?
    ^(M)Lift up ^(N)the light of your face upon us, O Lord!”
⁷ You have put ^(O)more joy in my heart
    than they have when their grain and wine abound.

⁸ In peace I will both ^(P)lie down and sleep;
    for you alone, O Lord, make me ^(Q)dwell in safety.

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%204&version=ESV

 

Today as I ponder these verses I have to think of my own life and the prayers that I have prayed to the Lord.  Notice how David dives right in to his request.  He begins it with a demand, “Answer when I call”.  He knows God is listening but he wants an answer.  Funny how we think we can put demands on the Lord.  It doesn’t take long for David to recognize who he is in fact talking to and he stops and retracts a little.  He recognizes he is talking to a righteous God and he recognizes what He has done for him.  He then just asks God to listen as he talks to Him. 

 

David realizes that the troubles and disappointments that he is facing does not come from God but comes from sinful acts of men.  It comes from seeking the pleasures of this world rather than seeking the will of the Father.  David quickly remembers that the good things in life, the joy that he has experienced from the Lord, is worth so much more than anything this life can and does offer.  Man is just man and will reject us and disappoint us but God will never turn away from us.

 

“Be angry and do not sin” we have seen that before.  When we become angry and take our own revenge we have sinned.  God wants us to leave the judgment to Him.  He will select the verdict and He will administer the punishment, not us.  Rather we need to ponder His words in our heart, remember how He has brought us joy and contentment.  When we do that we will no longer see the pain inflicted by others as something to worry about because we will have sought out the Lord and His ways and realized He was protecting us all along.

 

So, how does all of this apply to my life?  I have to learn to be silent.  I have been working on that one for quite a while.  When someone makes me angry I want to vent about it but God tells me to ponder it.  Not to spout it out to the world but to ponder it in my bed, when I am alone, when everyone else is sleeping.  I need to be silent and let God have control.  I need to be silent so when God speaks to me, I will hear Him.  I need to live my life as a sacrifice for the Lord and put my trust in God not in man.

 

The only way to find peace in this world is to seek the Lord.  I pray that you too will see today that God is protecting us.  I hope you will see that God does hear our prayers.  I hope you will see that God does answer our prayers in His timing.  We must wait and continually seek Him and know that He is there and He is there listening to us.  The question is, “Are we listening to Him?”.

 

Seeking Him with all my heart,

 

Sheila