“The utterly dependable one”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Friday, September 2, 2022
Psalm 31 (Forward, p. 35) CEV p. 572
Every so often I run across people that I think are just too capable. He or she is so good at some particular thing that they never have to work at it, never have to train or study. They have never known failure or frustration at not being able to accomplish it easily. An athlete I knew in high school was like that: he excelled at whatever sport he applied himself to, and so thought nothing of it. Sadly, that meant that he took it for granted and ended up wasting or dissipating his talents by smoking and drinking and not taking care of his body. Just as an illustration of how good he was, he qualified for more track and field events at Provincials that he was allowed to compete in and so had to drop out of some. (I happen to know that for a fact, because that is the only way that I managed to get in for the half-mile.)
David, the author of today’s psalm, was rarely, if ever, in the ‘predicament’ of being totally self-reliant, totally capable of handling things entirely on his own. Constantly, he was ‘between a rock and a hard place’, constantly being forced to rely upon the help of Almighty God. Take his encounter with Goliath for instance: what was the likelihood of the rock he slung hitting the one place on the giant’s forehead that was not protected by the helmet or its visor? Not very high, I would guess. Or think of him in the desert, being chased day in and day out by Saul’s relentless army: what were his chances of avoiding capture? Not very much, especially when certain cities and foreign rulers were also arrayed against him. And then think of the rebellion against him orchestrated by his son Absalom? Desperate, David had to flee for his life and very narrowly escape defeat on at least one occasion.
No, David knew perfectly well that he could not ‘do it’ on his own. He fully recognized the need for God’s help. Indeed, today’s psalm is a tribute and a recognition of that need. He recounts the numerous times that God has come to his rescue in times past:
“You are faithful, and I trust you because you rescued me” (verse 5);
“I celebrate and shout because you are kind. You saw all my suffering, and you cared for me. You kept me from the hands of my enemies, and you set me free” (verses 7-8);
“I will praise you, Lord, for showing great kindness when I was like a city under attack. I was terrified and thought, ‘they’ve chased me far away from you!’ But you answered my prayer when I shouted for help” (verses 21-22).
And so, not only does David praise God for His goodness, but also He renews his trust and dependence upon God. Fully confident in God’s ability to help him, totally confident in God’s dependability, he places his life, and his future, in God’s hands.
Here, I cannot but contrast much of our behaviour today. Many of this modern generation, especially in the technologically advanced Western world, are largely shielded from severe and unpredictable, unmanageable hazards or problems. We are so accustomed to managing everything very well, just on our own, thank you very much. That is why the pandemic, for instance, or environmental calamities like flooding, wildfires, drought and storms have often caught us unprepared, flat-footed, as it were. We just weren’t expecting this sort of thing.
And, the same kind of thinking is also reflected in our attitude towards God. How often do we really admit our own inherent weakness and lack of ability to handle things? And how often do we really admit our need for God and for His intervention? I suspect that this is pretty rarely the case. So, I think that a little more confidence in God’s dependability, in His capability rather than our own, would not be out of place at all. And, going to Him in sincere and heartfelt prayer wouldn’t hurt either. Amen.
Forward notes: “For you are my crag and my stronghold; for the sake of your Name, lead me and guide me” (verse 3b).
“Over the past year, I have been praying to God often for guidance. I like to pray while outdoors surrounded by nature, and I frequently pray at the end of the Playland Pier overlooking Long Island Sound. I love to look out at the wide expanse of water and sky and feel the vast presence of God surrounding me.
“I pray almost every day to God to show me the life I am meant to live. I pray a simple prayer that appeared in our church’s Lenten reflections booklet in 2020. The prayer reminds me that God’s wisdom is far greater than mine will ever be. Its words remind me that God created me, that the
God I have come to know has a perspective on my life and future that far exceeds my knowledge and understanding. Then I pray for guidance. I pray God will lead me and guide me to the life I am meant to live, to the life for which I was created. I don’t know what it looks like but I know God is leading me there.”
MOVING FORWARD: “Do you have favourite places to pray? Share them with us at #ForwardDaybyDay.”