Psalm
143 English
Standard Version (ESV)
A Psalm of David.
143
Hear my prayer, O Lord;
give ear to my pleas for
mercy!
In your faithfulness answer me, in your
righteousness!
2
Enter not into judgment with your servant,
for no one living is righteous
before you.
3
For the enemy has pursued my soul;
he has crushed my life
to the ground;
he has made me sit in darkness like those long
dead.
4
Therefore my spirit faints within me;
my heart within me is
appalled.
5
I remember the days of old;
I meditate on all that
you have done;
I ponder the work of your hands.
6
I stretch out my hands to you;
my soul thirsts for you
like a parched land. Selah
7
Answer me quickly, O Lord!
My spirit fails!
Hide
not your face from me,
lest I be like those who go down to the pit.
8
Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,
for in you I trust.
Make
me know the way I should go,
for to you I lift up my
soul.
9
Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord!
I have fled to you for
refuge.[a]
10
Teach me to do your will,
for you are my God!
Let
your good Spirit lead me
on level ground!
11
For your name's sake, O Lord, preserve my life!
In your righteousness
bring my soul out of trouble!
12
And in
your steadfast love you will cut off my enemies,
and you will destroy all
the adversaries of my soul,
for I am your servant.
My
very existence is because of God. I have
heard it said that our vocation is not a concern of God’s so long as it honors
Him. However, I do believe if He places
kings into power that He also places each of us in the place that He would want
us to be. In this passage He already had
David anointed as king, yet the current king feared his own life so he pursued
David’s. It appears that David was
becoming a little tired of this.
The
king, who David honored, believed that David was after the throne so he was
trying to kill him. I could never really
understand why the king was like this until our church Bible study where we
have been studying I and II Kings.
People were brutal during that time and kings were killed and the
murderer took over the throne. I can see
how the king, who enjoyed the power and his life, would want to kill
David. Yet, David honored him and never
had the intentions of harming him.
David
reminisces about the days of old when he sat with the king and each enjoyed the
others company. He thinks back on those
times that God was with him and there was peace. He wishes he could go back to those days and
his soul is downcast. All of this
because God had placed him in a position of kingship but yet it was not his
time to enter it.
Fast
forward to the present day times. I have
been told and I believe that God uses people in power even today. David was a man of little power and influence
until God anointed Him. Every one of us
whether in power or living on the streets can be used of God. I believe He wants each of us to have the
desire to serve Him. I too long for the
days of old, when life seemed much clearer, yet I believe God has a new path
for me. I have to cling to that belief because
it is the single thing that makes sense to me.
People
who I thought were my friends seem now to be my foes. The life I used to live is no longer an
option and my soul aches many times, some days more than others. There is a future for me and I am not sure
what it is but I am pursing it. If I
thought I was just placed here to live life, work to earn a living and then
this life would be over, I would be beyond devastated right now. I have to believe that He does have a purpose
for me and my vocation is a part of that plan.
I desire to serve Him with gladness.
I desire to live the life He would have for me to live. I cling to Him because He is the One who
lifts up my soul when I am downcast.
Yes, we have a purpose to honor Him and I believe we honor Him the most
when we recognize that and strive to walk with Him and seek Him with all our
hearts.
Seeking
Him with all my heart,
Sheila
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