Crying Out from the Cave

SCRIPTURE:  With my voice I cry out to the Lord; with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord. I pour out my complaint before him; I tell my trouble before him. When my spirit faints within me, you know my way! In the path where I walk they have hidden a trap for me. Look to the right and see: there is none who takes notice of me; no refuge remains to me; no one cares for my soul. I cry to you, O Lord; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” Attend to my cry, for I am brought very low! Psalm 142:1-6 ESV

THOUGHT: As a songwriter, I can’t help but ponder the fact that, hiding in a cave afraid for his life, David was writing songs. Perhaps you’ve had a few cave moments too, where you could have written “no refuge remains to me; no one cares for my soul,” and even put it to music; I know I have. But of course, those aren’t the songs that make the top 10 – everybody wants a happy song. But David, in his own way, always gets around to the good news, and his Song 142 is no exception. He is singing to a God who is with him, personal, listening to his grievances – even if the rest of the world is not. In the same breath that he laments no refuge remains to me, he’s forming the words God, you are my refuge.

Somehow David’s song comforts me. It’s real and gritty and honest, and frees me to be the same. If the voice of the shepherd king in a cave can cry out, plead for mercy, pour out complaint, and tell his trouble to the Lord (and the song makes it into the most important book in the world), it’s permission-giving.  

PRAYER: Oh God, thank you that you are not a God who requires meaningless repetitions and blank, emotionless faces – or the flip side, glued on smiles. Thank you that when my spirit faints within me, you know my way and hear my voice.