Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me? Psalm 56: 3, 4, NKJV.
Dear God, You are so good to Your children! You have made us feel so safe in an an unsafe world. We know that with You in our lives, we need not be afraid. We love You, and we thank You, in the blessed name of Your Son, and our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Today we are listening to “a song sung by a bird in captivity.” David wrote this Michtam when, in his efforts to escape from Saul, he ran into the camp of the Philistines. When the servants recognized him they brought him before their king. They reminded the king of who David was, ” ‘ “Is this not David the king of the land? Did they not sing of him to one another in dances, saying: ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands’ ” (1 Samuel 21: 11). At that moment, David became sorely afraid. Scripture informs us, “Now David took these words to heart, and was very much afraid of Achish the king of Gath” (12).
The only thing he could do at that time, was to “trust” in God! I have found that when I become very fearful, expressing my confidence in God’s love for me, and my hope in His mercy, are the surest ways to regain my calm. It is at times like these that I begin to sing hymns such as, “O Love That Wilt Not Let Me Go” (George Matheson); “All the Way My Savior Leads Me” (Fanny J. Crosby); “Be Still My Soul” (Katharina von Schlegel, translated by, Jane Borthwick), and many others.
Notice that David begins by saying:, “Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You.” Soon his song changes to, “In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?” This is the way it works: When you feel fearful, you begin to express your trust in God. You call to remembrance all that he has done for you in the past. You remember that He is the same God today, that He was yesterday, and that He will be tomorrow. You sing of His love and His watch-care over you, and soon the spirit of “love, power, and a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1: 7), takes over – and you are no longer afraid! Trust has triumphed over fear! After all, “What can flesh do to you [and me,]” when our trust is in the Lord?
Can a song bird sing in captivity? Yes it can, if it knows that it will not fall to the ground without its Heavenly Father being aware of it! We are of much more value than a song bird! (See Matthew 10: 31).