Taking our BURDENS to GOD in PRAYER
June 14
Bible Reading: Psalms Chapters 52-59
Taking our BURDENS to GOD in PRAYER
"As for me, I will call upon
God, and the Lord shall save me. Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, and He
shall hear my voice." (Psalms 55:16-17)
Bible scholars
have suggested that King David was in a foreign city (away from Jerusalem) when
he penned Psalm 55. David complained to God because of “the voice of the enemy”
and the “oppression of the wicked” (v. 3). He was burdened and terrified of
death (vv. 4-5) and he wanted to flee away from his problems or fly away from
the storms in his life (vv. 6-8).
King David’s
problems happened because he was betrayed, not by anybody but by his trusted
friend (vv. 12-14). We can assume that
David was referring to the disloyalty of his counselor Ahithophel, whose
duplicity contributed to David’s having been forced into exile (2 Sam. 15:12;
16:15–23; 17:14). He perhaps was the “friend” referred to in Psalm 55:13. In a
strong imprecation David urged God to deal with these traitors as they deserved
(v. 15). Their hypocritical professions of friendship were treacherous (vv. 20–21),
but God would have the last word, vindicating the righteous and condemning the
wicked (vv. 22–23).
At the
moment of crisis in his life, King David took his burdens to God in prayer (v.
16). He called for help from God as he prayed and cried aloud at least three
times of the day (v. 17). We know that God heard those prayers of David and
restored back his kingdom by defeating the counsel of Ahithophel to his son
Absalom.
At times
when our lives get fragmented as different problems arise in our lives, we
should also take our burden to God in prayer. "Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be
moved." (Psalms 55:22) Our prayers can help to defragment our lives,
and God will show us what to do and what only He can do for us. God is always
available to hear our prayers as He truly cares for us.
Let us remember
what our Lord Jesus Christ has promised us: "Come
to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My
yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you
will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is
light." (Matt 11:28-30) Let us boldly sing the words of the famous
hymn penned by Joseph Scriven:
“What a friend we have
in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry, everything to God in prayer!”
