What’s Your Focus?

Psalm 143
A Psalm of David.
1Hear my prayer, O Lord; give ear to my pleas for mercy! In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!
2Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you.
3For the enemy has pursued my soul; he has crushed my life to the ground; he has made me sit in darkness like those long dead.
4Therefore my spirit faints within me; my heart within me is appalled.
5I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands.
6I stretch out my hands to you; my soul thirsts for you like a parched land. Selah
7Answer me quickly, O Lord! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit.
8Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
9Deliver me from my enemies, O Lord! I have fled to you for refuge.
10Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!
11For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life! In your righteousness bring my soul out of trouble!
12And in your steadfast love you will cut off my enemies, and you will destroy all the adversaries of my soul, for I am your servant.

I have a relative who currently sits in jail. She has lived fast and hard and made some seriously bad decisions. I rarely hear from her – except when she’s in trouble. Then she calls or pings me on Facebook. And what she is always looking for is money; usually for bail. My heart goes out to her, but rarely my pocketbook. I could offer her a temporary fix for her problems by sending her cash, but we all know that wouldn’t actually help. And I’m always scared that any financial help I send will be spent on drugs. At one point she claimed to have “found God” and would I send her some cash, so she could help the poor. She thought she knew my soft spot. I didn’t do it. She was angry with me and called me unchristian.

How often do we treat God like the woman treats me? No contact or relationship unless calamity strikes. I see it all the time and it’s difficult for me to refrain from pointing out the hypocrisy of it all. But then I remember that I can be the same way, tripping through life like I’m in charge. When disaster strikes, suddenly I’m looking for God to provide some help. (Actually, I try very hard not to be that person, but sometimes . . . )

David is saying the opposite here. He’s reminding God that he not someone who looks to God only when he’s in trouble. He asks to be judged not on the basis of his record but on the basis of his relationship with God. He is not interested in the Lord only to be bailed out in a crisis, but he thirsts for a relationship with God that will regulate his whole life. And if you read David’s whole story, you find that he does see himself fairly accurately, as this prayer would indicate. He was, as God called him, a man after God’s own heart.

My meditation on this psalm swirled around one verse this morning: Teach me to do your will, for you are my God! Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground! Let Your good Spirit lead me. There’s the answer at all times – allowing the Holy Spirit to lead our work, our leisure, our relationships, and our worship. When the Spirit leads, I am not as prone to calling on God only when I’m in trouble. I don’t have to make those prison phone calls. Instead the direct line is always open and God and I can just talk – about everything – just like David.

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