Hobart Herd Devotional – Psalms 56
David was a great song writer. As I have listened to songs and the way they are made, I have come to realize that if you want to know the key message to any song, you listen and watch for words and phrases that are repeated. In hymns, it is usually the chorus, where in worship choruses it is usually called the bridge that usually leads you back to the repeated chorus. In music today, the writers call it the “hook”. Psalm 56 has a hook and chorus that is hard to miss.
In the first 2 verses, there is a cry for God’s mercy and protection from the slanders and enemies in our lives. David had many instances of those. At one point in Gath when running from Saul, David was afraid for his life and pretended to be a mad man, drooling, talking to himself, making weird marks on the gates of houses. It was so bad that the king of Gath wanted him out of the city and away from his house. God has again protected him from people who would hurt him. The secret to his success; Psalms 56:3-4, 3 When I am afraid, I will trust in you. 4 In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?(NIV) These words become a chorus that is repeated continually through out scripture. Even the New Testament writers repeat this chorus: Luke 12:4; Romans 8:31-39; Hebrews 13:6; and many other places where the concept is the focal point.
After asking God to keep track of his tears and the number of times his enemies have caused him pain and trouble, he repeats the chorus as a song of praise and trust. Psalms 56:10-11, 10 In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise– 11 in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?(NIV) In my experience, whenever I feel afraid, worried, or troubled, the best thing I can do is sing a song of trust, faith, and assurance in God’s love and care for me. Soon after singing, God changes my heart to praise and joy in Him. Oh, the circumstance may not have changed, but my attitude of heart and mind, have set me on the path to victory in Jesus. Psalms 56:13, For Thou hast delivered my soul from death, indeed my feet from stumbling, so that I may walk before God in the light of the living.(NAS)
Father, I worry and fret over how I am going to make it through the times of trouble and battles with the enemy. However, I have learned that this is the time to put my trust in You. I know that when I am in Your will living in the power of Your strength, that man can do nothing to me because my life is in You! Help me to live in the praise and thanksgiving of Your deliverance so that I can “walk before You in the light of the living. In Jesus Name, Amen! Pastor Rob