Song of Remembrance | Singing the Psalms | Psalm 40
King David is in the Pit. It’s a place of stress, fear and anxiety. In the place, David chooses not to rely upon his own strength to get him out but his memory of God’s past faithfulness, coupled with the power of prayer in humility. Our great task is to remember the way of the Lord and how He has provided for us in the past, trusting He will do the same in the present. If we don’t, we’ll place our functional trust in something or someone else and never escape our pits. But what we know that even David didn’t know was the perfect obedience (v. 8) of Jesus who lived in perfect trust and makes it possible to know the Father, our place of trust.
Song of Confidence | Singing the Psalms | Psalm 23
Psalm 23 may be the best known passage in all of Scripture and is a main stay at funerals but familiarity may breed contempt. Why exactly is this Psalm so well loved? It’s because in the midst of hardship, David shows us what both comfort and confidence can look like. Neither are in our circumstances nor possessions in this world but are found in God alone. He is the shepherd who protects, provides and guides. But we have an even greater confidence than David because we have the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, who laid down His life for the sheep (John 10.11). Because of Christ, we can live without fear despite the world around us.