Let us face it, this pandemic we are in is stressful, inconvenient, and scary. Many of our day-to-day routines are thrown off balance, and this looming threat of a virus is constantly being streamed through every media station known to man. These days can be taxing and trying. I know that my patience has been tested multiple times. Whether we are frazzled because stores are constantly out of essential items—I am talking to you, toilet paper hoarders—or we find ourselves stuck inside the house with multiple ornery or noisy children, (in my case, a loud, snoring dog) our flesh can become weak and our patience thin.
Let us try to think back to some of the most stressful or scary moments of our lives. It could even be recent days. How did we react? Did our flesh react? If we are like most people, praising God probably was not the first thing on our minds. Let us take a look at the Bible character, David.
In I Samuel 21, David was on the run from King Saul. He was without food or provisions and was probably very stressed out. Later in fleeing from the king, David’s decision to defect to Achish, King of Gath, raised suspicions toward him and elevated David’s fears. David went as far as pretending he was insane to keep suspicions at bay. He even drooled on himself! In this passage, we see that throughout David’s hard times, God provided every step of the way and spared David’s life from the suspicious king.
Out of this adversity, David wrote Psalm 34. Verses 1-5 say, I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in the LORD: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed.
This beautiful song focuses on God’s promises and glorifies God even though it was written in David’s valley. I will bless the LORD at all times:… In difficult situations, it is easy to focus on what is stressful or inconvenient. Why not focus instead on the fact that God will always bring us through these situations? Psalm 34:8 says, O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
Worry, doubt, and fear can only cause more issues for us. When we praise God through the tough times, we focus on the One Who can solve our daily problems in the best way—in His time. Focusing on God in the tough or stressful times as David did will help us to have joy in the middle of scary or stressful situations. Let us all try to deal with joy instead of fear!
by Danielle Young
