When You Face Struggles

 

To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments. A Maskil of David. Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy! Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan, because of the noise of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked. For they drop trouble upon me, and in anger they bear a grudge against me. My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest; yes, I would wander far away; I would lodge in the wilderness; I would hurry to find a shelter from the raging wind and tempest.” Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved. (ESV) (Psalm 55:1-8; 22 ESV).

 

I hope you have never found yourself in such a difficult circumstance that you just wanted to run away. Sometimes in life, the troubles we face can cause deep inner turmoil. We may struggle with our mental health, a physical disability or disease, a relationship that feels stuck, a difficult career, a deep disappointment or loss, a cycle of poverty, or something else. Many different things can make us feel trapped. I know that such times are real. David, in our reading today was facing such a time in his life. He gives us an insight that we might find the peace we so desperately seek.

 

When David wrote this psalm, he was feeling disillusioned and stuck. He was distraught by the situation he was in, and he felt betrayed by a friend. He desperately wanted a way out and dreamed of being like a dove so he could fly far away from all his troubles. But as he wrestled with his discouragement, he grew to understand that although he did not have wings to fly away, he did have a voice to call upon God. The solution to being released from life’s burdens isn’t to escape but to give them up to the Lord: “Cast your cares on the Lord, and he will sustain you.”

 

Echoing the assurance of this psalm, Jesus says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest… Learn from me… and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29). Come too Him. He will sustain you!