“But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you. I praise God for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me? My enemies will retreat when I call to you for help. This I know: God is on my side! I praise God for what he has promised; yes, I praise the Lord for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me?” Psalms 56:3-4, 9-11 NLT
David, with promises of a future in his head, faces his daily routine of running for his life in this season. This chapter has such a unique heading, “To the tune of ‘A Dove on Distant Oaks’. When the Philistines had seized David in Gath.” I think this is when David feigned crazy and it worked!
Here’s the thing, David not only faces his fears, he lists them, writes about them and walks us through how he processes those feelings. Currently, the phrase for these ANTS (automatic negative thoughts) is “name it to tame it!” Get it out in the open before God and deal with it instead of letting it bounce around in our head causing all kinds of havoc!
I’ve written about David’s emotionally honest prayers and how effective they are to read and ride those crummy circumstances all the way down to the bottom and let David’s words of truth about God’s character lift us back up again.
David uses this phrase about “mere mortals” twice! So, what can mortals, man or flesh do to us? They can attack, hurt, lie about, tear down and erode the way we think. One powerfully placed NEGATIVE question can cause me to spin-cycle and doubt my effectiveness and worth for days! I hate it!
David’s ability to reframe, not just his circumstances, but his views of God are CRITICAL to stopping the blame-shame game in my head. Dave also repeats the most important phrase in this passage, “I trust in God.” I TRUST in God.
PRAYER:
Dad,
This is a big struggle for me. I can go for days or weeks with no battles, real or mental. But then, when they come, man they are fierce. And, they are so hard to shake. I am getting better at recognizing how powerful these mental struggles are, but I am slow to take them to you, speak them out and let you help me kick them out of my head and replace them with truth about who you are!