Feeling trapped?

Joshua 10; Psalms 142–143; Jeremiah 4; Matthew 18

David was trapped in a cave. He was desperate and cried to God for help. He asked for mercy, poured out his complaint, told Him troubles. He said his spirit fainted within him and no one seemed to care. He felt very low as he was threatened by strong enemies who persecuted him.

I’ve felt like that at times, not so much literally but in a spiritual fog and emotionally spent. This psalm is not the most cheerful of David’s songs, but it does have three truths in it that David remembered and said to the Lord. They are truths that comfort and encourage me too.

When my spirit faints within me, you know my way! In the path where I walk, they have hidden a trap for me. (Psalm 142:3)

God not only knew where David was going but also what his enemies were doing. When I am in any valley, spiritual or emotional or physical situation where all seems lost, God knows.

David also wrote this:

O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. (Psalm 139:1–4)

Many times the Holy Spirit puts those words in my mind when it seemed as if no one knew or understood what I was going through. What a comfort to know that God knows more than I do.

The second truth is this: God is David’s hiding place — and mine also . . .

I cry to you, O Lord; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” (Psalm 142:5)

That word ‘portion’ brings to mind a verse that sustained me through cardiac problems and getting a pacemaker. While David didn’t write it, God inspired this related thought that has blessed me over and over . . .

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. (Psalm 73:26)

‘Portion’ is about a share, a gift from God to help me in weakness — and He is forever there for me. However, this is not just about heaven but also this life . . .

I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:13–14)

He is here for me, sustaining me in this life also as I wait on Him.

The third truth is a summary of all that God does. I notice that David speaks with certainty. He may be in trouble but looks forward to giving thanks because God’s people will be there for him and God Himself will take care of Him:

Bring me out of prison (that cave), that I may give thanks to your name! The righteous will surround me, for you will deal bountifully with me. (Psalm 142:7)

This reminds me of Jesus’ promise of an abundant life: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that (you) may have life and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10) While the comparison makes ‘life’ seem like a physical blessing, I think it means the life of Jesus — to the full. He gives me Himself and the more the old life is emptied out, the fuller that life in Christ becomes.

APPLY: Listen, even in the dark or down times when my hope dwindles or the enemy backs me into a corner. The Lord’s faithfulness is too obvious to forget. Remember His promises, but even more, remember His character. He knows, cares and gives me all I need to live for Him in peace and abundantly.