Psalm 37-41

Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD; may your love and your truth always protect me. For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. The are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me.

Be pleased, O LORD, to save me; O LORD, come quickly to help me. May all who seek to take my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace. May those who say to me, "Aha! Aha!" be appalled at their own shame. But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, "The LORD be exalted!"

Yet I am poor and needy; may the LORD think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; O my God, do no delay.

David wrote so many of these psalms with much sense of urgency. I was reminded from this passage that as a christian living in this fallen world, I should be praying always with a sense of urgency. I believe many of us have a tendency to get way too comfortable with our lives. Are we aware that troubles without numbers surround us at any moment? We are living in the midst of a spiritual warfare. And even though most of us will not experience being in an actual battlefield, we do have enemies that are bent on killing the spirit of joy we have in Christ at every moment and around every corner.

I can only say this for myself, but I don't spend most of my day rejoicing in the Lord. A little complaint here and a little complaint there. A little sighing here and there. They are usually very subtle things that I've come to expect as being a normal way to live. A normal reaction to life. Nothing really wrong with them.

But that is not the way we are to live. We can be full of joy in Christ because he has revealed to us his love and his truth. But we must be fully aware of the "troubles without number" that surround us. There is never a moment when we don't need the Lord. We are poor and needy.

So let's keep our eyes upon the Lord, and make seeking the Lord be the utmost desire of our hearts this day.

But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, "The LORD be exalted!"