The Right Things Are Often the Hardest
Devotional Reading: Psalms 57:7 YLT98
Prepared is my heart, O God, Prepared is my heart, I sing and praise.
Chances are we have heard something that was said to us or done to us that cut like a knife. Bullying is so prevalent at school nowadays. People can be so mean, can’t they? Sometimes, the things that hurt the most can come from those we love the most.
This was the story for Saul and David. They had a great friendship and David admired Saul tremendously. Well, fast forward the story, and David started having more success than Saul and it made Saul extremely jealous. It angered him so much that Saul sent for people to kill David! David had to run and hide for seven years. That’s a long time!
But even while running and hiding, David proclaimed, “My heart, O God, is steadfast, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make music.” While in the midst of death, David kept choosing to make music and praise God.
I’m sure this wasn’t easy for David. He did what he knew was right and praised God, but it was also so difficult because he didn’t understand why God would allow such a hardship.
If we are being honest, we may say that in difficult times, it is not always our first response to praise God. Just like David, what if we responded to those hard times by praising God for who He is?
Prayer and Confession
Lord teach me to be joyful and praise you even in difficult and hard times.
Further Reading: 1Samuel 18:6-11, 1Samuel 19:1-7
