Psalm 56 – Day 1

"You keep track of all my sorrows.You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book." – Psalm 56:8 NLT

Sometimes I'm up And sometimes I'm down Yes, Lord, you know sometimes I'm almost to the ground Oh, yes, Lord, still Nobody knows the trouble I've seen Nobody knows but Jesus Nobody knows the trouble I've seen Glory, Hallelujah

While those familiar lyrics were made famous by Louis Armstrong, they could be the anthem of every believer who has ever lived. We all face troubles of all kinds. Some are physical, others financial. Some of our troubles are self-induced, while others come at us unexpectedly and undeservedly. Some of our troubles are short-term, while others hang around us for years at a time, even for our entire lifetimes. But as the lyrics state so well, even when everybody else is oblivious to our troubles, Jesus knows. He is well aware of every circumstance going on in our lives. David found comfort in his troubles because he knew that God knew. And he knew that "God is on my side" (Psalm 56:9 NLT). In the midst of trouble, David put his hope and trust in the Lord. "I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me?" (Psalm 56:11 NLT). But before we place David on a pedestal and elevate him to sainthood, let's remind ourselves that this Psalm was written AFTER he ran away from King Saul and fled to his arch enemies, the Philistines, for protection. That's not exactly trusting in God, is it? He didn't run to God, he ran to King Achish. At every level this does not appear to be a bright move on David's part. Early in his career David had made a name for himself by killing the Philistine champion, Goliath, in a one-on-one battle. The Philistines had never forgotten or forgiven David. On top of that, David had built his reputation on being a might warrior. In fact, there was already a song about David with lyrics that said, "Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands!" (1 Samuel 18:7 NLT). And many of those David had slain were Philistines. So on earth did David run to the Philistines for protection? We're not told, but we can guess that David hoped they would see him as some kind of secret weapon and when they discovered he and King Saul were at odds, they would assume they could use him against the Israelites. But when David arrived in the Philistine territory, the reception he received was less than welcoming. They immediately recognized him and were ready to kill him. So David was forced to feign insanity, and had to act like he had completely lost his mind. Not willing to kill a lunatic, they allow him to leave.

It is after David got out of this sticky situation that he wrote, "you have rescued me from death; you have kept my feet from slipping" (Psalm 56:13 NLT). David realized after the fact, that God had protected him even when David had refused to turn to God for protection. It wasn't his great acting ability that saved his life, but God. David had learned a valuable lesson: "But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you" (Psalm 56:3 NLT). Troubles were going to come. Trials were just around the corner. David was always going to have Sauls in his life. But he had learned that he could trust God. God knew his troubles, and God had a solution. David didn't have to fear Saul, Achish, the Philistines or any other man. He simply had to trust the promises of God.

Father, sometimes I'm up and sometimes I'm down, but You are always right there with me, fully aware of my situation and ready to take care of me in the midst of them. You know what is going on. You are aware and I can trust You to help me at all times. Amen