Honest Prayers

“Free me from the trap that is set for me…Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me, O LORD, the God of truth…You have not handed me over…but have set my feet in a spacious place.  Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am in distress…I am forgotten…But I trust in you, O LORD…My times are in your hands…How great is your goodness, which you have stored up…In my alarm I said, ‘I am cut off from your sight!’ Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help.  The LORD preserves the faithful…Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the LORD” Psalm 31:4-24.

Poor David!  My heart goes out to him as we are privy to his heartache.  Through the Psalms he wrote and recited, we get a glimpse into the nature and character of a man who knew how to pray.  He wasn’t afraid to remind God of his dilemmas…to accuse God of His abandonment…to credit God with His faithfulness.  Feelings of being trapped turned into commitments of surrender.  Pleas of hopeful redemption were followed by affirmations of God being in control.  Descriptions of God’s goodness and blessings interrupted with panic and his belief that God wasn’t seeing his situation.  He accredits God with mercy that follows his accusations, and faithfulness that is anchored in hope in the Lord. 

I would be embarrassed to have some of my prayers written out for the world to read.  Much like David, there have been times when I have reminded God of what my situation is as if He didn’t know.  I have felt so trapped in past circumstances the days drifted by like years.  When faith and hope waned, I had to recommitted my trust and faith in Him again.  I have prayed verses back to God even if I didn’t feel as if I truly believed them.  I have thanked Him for His rescue of one situation only to turn around and wonder if He sees the next one.  But at the end of the day I know beyond a shadow of a doubt certain things that David knew.

-          Feeling trapped is a just that – a feeling, not a destiny.

-          We can recommit our spirits to God any time.

-          We are in God’s hands and so is our future.

-          We can expect His mercy, and be confident in His presence.

-          He has set aside future blessings but the timing must be right.

-          We will move beyond our panic if we call on Him.

-          Our strength and hope comes from the Lord.

-          No situation will ever be met without God.

So when you pray, take confidence in the fact that God is all-knowing, all-powerful and all-loving in bringing you out of your circumstances. 

‘My eyes are ever on the LORD, for only he will release my feet from the snare…because my hope is in you.’ Psalm 25:15, 21.