Leadership under fire: Learning to pray like David
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They open their mouths wide against me and say, "Aha, aha! We saw it!" You saw it, LORD; do not be silent. Lord, do not be far from me. —Psalms 35:21-22
Joseph Heller, in his novel Catch-22, wrote the memorable line, "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you."
King David understood this. There's a pretty good chance every person of prominence and significance understands this better than he or she would like.
People were out to get King David. From the time he was a celebrated Giant Killer, one person or another, and often whole militaries, were out to get him. He lived life on the run, both literally and metaphorically.
Sometimes people run when no one is chasing them. Some people even make up stories about how they are being pursued to make their lives more dramatic.
King David wrote this song because somebody, somebodies rather, really were out to get him.
What did he do? He did what he almost always did. He went to God in prayer. Thankfully, he wrote down his prayer. He teaches us how to pray in times like these.
The Message paraphrase makes verse 22 come alive:
"Don't you see what they're doing, God? You're not going to let them get by with it, are you? Not going to walk off without doing something, are you?" Psalms 35:22
Notice how David prayed. There were no polite little phrases uttered like always with candles and incense and fancy clothes. Instead, you get the idea David did some pacing, some kneeling, some weeping, some shouting. I cannot imagine verse 22 coming out in a whisper.
Here's hoping you don't need this psalm today. You might want to mark it for another day. Instead of jumping up to defend yourself, ask God to fight your battles for you. He does it the right way. He corrects us as necessary. He directs us appropriately. He provides justice compassionately.
Our Father, thank you for your mercy and your justice. Thank you for leading with compassion. Thank you for protecting us with your mighty hand and outstretched arm. Thank you for seeking the highest and best for us and our adversaries. Thank you for providing peace where there currently is no peace. Amen.
 | David Bowman, (DMin, PCC) is the Executive Director of Tarrant Baptist Association in Fort Worth, Texas. He also serves as a Multiplying Trainer for Future Church Co. Learn More » |
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