LORD, I am crying out loud to You with my voice and asking You for mercy.

Today’s Scripture: Psalm 142:1, NIV- “A maskil of David. When he was in the cave. A prayer. I cry aloud to the LORD; I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy.”

The term maskil required a quick search for meaning this morning. Most biblical commentaries agree that this is a musical term for a song of instruction. So I am approaching this Psalm to seek God’s instruction.

David wrote this Psalm while hiding in a cave on the run from King Saul who was trying to kill him. Right here, right now, LORD I am lifting my voice to You and asking You for mercy. I do not have anyone chasing me down to kill me unless I consider the evil one that chases us all.

All alone with God is where I have found I can speak up to Him and live out Psalm 142:2, “I pour out my complaints before him and tell him all my troubles.” All my life I have been told to not complain. Yet, here in Psalm 142:2, I have the green light to complain away.

LORD, this is personal. I am lifting my voice now from where I am. I am praising You and I am thankful that You know my path. I am crying out to You for mercy LORD, and I am thankful that You know the traps that are laying before me. David is instructing us here in Psalm 142:3 that it is OK to feel overwhelmed and it is OK to tell God we are overwhelmed.

Sometimes we also feel all alone because really, we are. Everyone is consumed with their own personal struggles. All alone is where I have found God and came to realize the LORD is my only refuge. We can look around as David did in Psalm 142:4 and know “I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.” (KJV)

When we look around, we find friends and family that do care for us. Yet, alone in the caves of our lives there is One who can care for our souls. David is teaching us in the seven short verses of Psalm 142 that even when our spirits are weak, we can cry out to the God.

Sometimes we wonder how we got to this place in our lives. Looking back at Samuel 16 we learn of how David got to this place in His life. The LORD was directing Samuel to identify the new king. David was minding his own business out tending the sheep. Samuel recognized Saul’s evil spirit and suggested he listen to someone who could play the harp to make him feel better. In 1 Samuel 16:17 Saul told his attendants to “Find someone who plays well and bring him to me.” (NIV)

David “happened” to be that person. We can also trust that God will bring us to those we can help as well. We can trust that God is orchestrating our paths. Is this path easy? No. Although God called David, he found himself sitting in a cave, running from Saul, who he had been brought to provide comfort, who was now seeking to kill him.

We cannot trust in our comforts, but we can trust God. Out of David’s discomfort he wrote us this song to teach us to cry out and take refuge in God. Although we may feel alone, we can call out to God as David in Psalm 142:6, “Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me.” (NIV)

Will you lift your voice to the LORD from where you are now?

Today’s Prayer: Heavenly Father, I am crying out to You now and asking You for mercy. You are my refuge, Father God. Thank You for orchestrating our paths. I am praising You and thanking You with my voice and my spirit. I am trusting You LORD to make my way so that I may glorify You and provide Your instructions to others. I am thankful for You LORD and the songs of David that teach us. Amen.