THE LORD HEARS WHEN I CALL TO HIM
Psalm 4, 5 and 6
“In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”
The Psalmist has a high view of God—he is the righteous God and King—yet he does not refrain from calling out to him, pleading with him, sharing with him his troubles, bringing before him situations where wicked people behave badly, even laying his requests before him and waiting expectantly.
God is not aloof, distant, occupied with his majesty and seeking sycophants. God is engaged, involved, and cares about the affairs of his people. He is the God who hears and we are encouraged to open up to him. It is not that things will always be rosy and trouble-free; the Psalmist writes of occasions of deep distress thinking he might not even survive. “Among the dead no one proclaims your name. Who praises you from the grave?” he asks with impeccable logic.
The strength of the Psalmist’s prayer life is his deep conviction that God loves him, that he walks on the side of the righteous, that even when he, the Psalmist, fails in righteous behaviour, God will be merciful.
In these Psalms we catch a glimpse of the conversations that the Psalmist engages with God as he pours out his feelings, his problems, his thinking, his views on the people around him, and most of all, the reality of his complete dependence on God to set things right.
How wonderful that we have such a God with whom we can be completely honest and know that he hears with complete understanding.
“But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Surely, Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.”