Psalm 143
of David.
¹ O LORD, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief.
² Do not bring your servant into judgment, for no one living is righteous before you.
³ The enemy pursues me, he crushes me to the ground; he makes me dwell in darkness like those long dead.
⁴ So my spirit grows faint within me; my heart within me is dismayed.
⁵ I remember the days of long ago; I meditate on all your works and consider what your hands have done.
⁶ I spread out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.
Selah
⁷ Answer me quickly, O LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit.
⁸ Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
⁹ Rescue me from my enemies, O LORD, for I hide myself in you.
¹⁰ Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground.
¹¹ For your name’s sake, O LORD, preserve my life; in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble.
¹² In your unfailing love, silence my enemies; destroy all my foes, for I am your servant.

When I look at the very essence of life the bottom line is that life is a gift from God. I also believe that living life without God can very difficult and is the reason why people can seem to live a life that seems wonderful, yet they are really left with an unfulfilling emptiness. As I study this Psalm ,I must reflect upon I Samuel 27:1 “And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul: there is nothing better for me than that I should escape into the land of the Philistines; and Saul will despair of me, to seek me any more in all the borders of Israel: so shall I escape out of his hand.” After seven years of running from Saul and waiting on God to intervene; David had reached a point in his life where he decided that living the life, he desired was no longer available. So, he decided with his men and their families to start over. One of the interesting facts I see in this verse is that David is leaving behind his family, his friends, and his past way of life to live with his former enemy.

This psalm probably was a representation of the type of prayers that David made before coming to this decision in Samuel 27:1. It has been stated that you must walk in someone’s shoes before you can feel and understand the pain that they experience when they go through rough times in their life. As I look at Samuel 27:1, after one of the most difficult times in my life I have a greater understanding of David’s feelings and the true sense of his prayers. To lose the daily relationship of your family, as well as your close friends and then to be treated as their enemy can break a person’s will to go on. I can still recall the very day, the very trip that I too make the decision that David made in I Samuel 27:1.

This psalm then represents a prayer of one who knows God but seems to have no understanding of the events around him. This is a prayer from someone who has dreams that are in God’s way, but not in God’s plan. Sometimes it is difficult to understand why when we try to follow God’s way our life seems to be falling apart.

The Prayer Request

Hear my prayer

Listen to my cry for mercy

Come to my relief

Bring me not in judgment

My issues with my enemy

My present state of being and my desire for you.

Answer me quickly

Do not hid your face from me

I do not desire to be like those who go down to the pit

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love.

Show me the way I should go

Lift up my soul

Rescue me from my enemies

Teach me to do your will

May your Spirit lead me on level ground

Preserve my life for your namesake

Bring me out of trouble in your rightness

Silence my enemies

Destroy all my foes