If we had to choose one word that would best describe our society today, perhaps the one that we'd hear the most would be "stress." If we were walking about in a coffee shop or sliding between tables to get to our lunch appointment, probably we'd hear that one word repeatedly.
Stress.
Pressure.
And why not?
This is an era that is marked by stress in almost every facet of our lives. When we are little, we are thrust into kindergarten and we must perform and compete for grades from then until we graduate college or go to a technical school or apprenticeship. On athletic teams, there is pressure to win, win, win! After elementary school, we face high school and an emphasis on getting good grades to get into the college we want, and once there, we're under stress to do well and get a good job after we graduate.
After that, there's the stress of finding the right marriage partner and building a trustful marriage in a culture where divorce is a foregone conclusion for many. Once we have children, there's pressure to try to raise them to be godly and faithful people of integrity in a world full of sin. Around our dinner table or around the water cooler at work, we talk about world problems, economic issues, personal crises, and the problems of our friends.
In the midst of so much stress, what can keep us grounded? What is the one thing that will keep us from being swept away in the rapids of life? What is it that will keep us from being overwhelmed by all of these problems and pressures?
Our priorities. Everyone, whether they've given it much thought or not, has a set of priorities. If we say something is a priority, it's something that we feel is very important and must be dealt with before other things are addressed.
So, if we have a clear set of priorities, we can respond to stress by making choices that are in line with those priorities. That gives our lives direction. That's the "paddle" we need to navigate the rapids. That means that having the right priorities is absolutely essential! They will determine how we spend our time. And who we spend that time with. And how we will make decisions about the stressful issues in our lives. Our "paddle" of priorities will help us steer our course to the proper destination.
But what does that have to do with Psalm 63?
As the king of the nation of Israel, David knew what it meant to live with stress. He knew by personal experience that the higher the position of leadership, the greater are the pressures. He had a son named Absalom who led some of the people in a rebellion against David. David was forced to flee for his life; in the wilderness of Judah, feeling humiliated and betrayed, he wrote Psalm 63.
It's become one of the best-loved psalms.
And it shows us the priorities of David under stress. I'll just bet that if you or I were under the kind of stress that David was, we'd be doing something else besides writing songs. I guess if we did, though, the songs would probably be pretty repetitive: lots of urgent requests, pleas for help, etc. (Grin) But Psalm 63 doesn't include any of those. David does express a longing for God's presence, and he talks about joy in fellowship with God. He also says he has confidence in God's salvation.
This psalm shows us that David's priority during this incredible time of stress was to seek the Lord.
That's where we will focus in the days to come.
Sharing!
ReplyDelete