I Trust in You, O Lord

April 03, 2021

“But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in your hand; rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from my persecutors! Make your face shine on your servant; save me in your steadfast love!” - Psalm 31:14-16

This lament of David takes a turn in verse fourteen. He has cried out to the Lord. In crying out, he has voiced his pain and brokenness. What change occurs that moves David from lament to trust? Have his circumstances improved, or the pain of those circumstances been lifted? We might like to assume that is the case, but I don’t think so. David laid his burdens and needs before the Lord, and he trusted the Lord with those burdens and with those needs. David was a broken man who surrendered before the Father.

David put his trust in the Lord even in the difficult times. That trust allowed David to feel God’s presence and comfort. He knew that God was working on his behalf despite the fact that his circumstances had not changed. Again, David asked for the Lord to rescue him, to save him from this time of pain and rejection. David longed to feel the light of God’s presence shining upon him. The light of the Lord signified his presence and his guidance, as well as his moral purity. The Lord saw through the chaos of David’s life. He knew the truth, and he would stand beside David to the very end. It was that steadfast love of the Lord which provided David the comfort and strength in his troubling times.

Yesterday was Good Friday, the day when Jesus surrendered himself to the work of evil men. Jesus was falsely accused by the religious leaders of his day; he was rejected by his people; and he was handed over to the cruelest form of physical death imaginable to mankind in his day. Jesus experienced anguish – anguish of body, mind, and spirit; he felt the separation from his Father as the sin of the world came upon him. Yet, in his final breath, Jesus fully entrusted himself to the Father: “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!” (Luke 23:46). These are the same words David penned at the beginning of this Psalm.

What are we to learn from the example of David and Jesus in their suffering? We can lament, cry out to the Lord, and seek to be rescued. Ultimately, the invitation is to fully entrust ourselves into the loving hands of God. His steadfast love did not fail David, did not fail Jesus, and will not fail us. It doesn’t mean that our pain will end or that our circumstances will change. What it means is that we will never walk alone. The Lord will sustain us, hold us, comfort us, and ultimately bring us to the fullness of his glory.

Will you give yourselves the freedom to lament, to truly feel the depths of your pain. Then, will you bring all that lament and all that pain before the Lord. He is the one who sees you perfectly, knows you perfectly, and can perfectly provide your redemption.

Reflection:
In what way is the Lord calling you to entrust yourself to him today?