“Give ear to my prayer”
[Psalms 17]
‘In fact, the prayer of the mind is like a stream that whispers constantly under many waves of everyday life. The possibility of living in the world without being part of the world and growing in our God in the midst of solitude opens there.’ (Henry Nowen, “The Only Necessary Thing: Living a Prayerful Life”).
‘A lot of waves in everyday life’ … We encounter lots of different waves in our lives every day. There are many different types of waves, and each wave also has different sizes. Among those waves, we need to master the surfing skills. I think the first element of the surfing technique is ‘prayer of the heart’. Henry Nowen said the heart's prayer was ‘a stream that whispers constantly under many waves of everyday life.’ The constant whisper under the waves is like a calm wave flowing deep under the waves. I think that calmness is a state of spirit that has given rise to God in the middle of solitude. In the midst of solitude, we can go to God just as we are in spiritual nakedness. We can quietly pour out our hearts. Like Hannah, we can go to God in our great distress and weep bitter and cry out to Him (1 Sam. 1:10). In the midst of solitude, we realize that God's desire for us is far greater than our desire for God. In other words, we realize that God’s desire to listen to our prayers is much greater than our desire to listen to God's voice.
In Psalm 17, the psalmist David was praying to God. His prayer to God was a prayer that God listened to. It was the prayer that wasn’t from deceitful lips (v. 1). In other words, David prayed honestly to God. How could he ask God in this honesty? We can receive three lessons:
First is “my judgment.”
Look at Psalms 17:2 – “Let my judgment come forth from Your presence; Let Your eyes look with equity.” This judgment of David comes from the Lord's presence. When David was surrounded by his deadly enemies (vv. 9, 11), who were extreme proud (v. 10) with a cunning thoracic and powerful like a lion and brutal cruelty, he prayed honestly to God with right judgement. He took refuge in Him with his right judgment in the midst of the extreme persecution by his enemies (v. 7). David's judgment was to depend on just God in unjust situations (v. 2). David prayed to God trusting that God his Savior would judge justly between him and his extreme enemies. Also, his judgment was that he believed that God would answer his prayers when he asked God (v. 6). Furthermore, David believed in God would keep him as the apple of the eye and asked Him (v. 8). In this judgment, David prayed to God.
Second is ‘my purpose.”
Look at Psalms 17:3 – “You have tried my heart; You have visited me by night; You have tested me and You find nothing; I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress.” The Hebrew translation of this word is, ‘Even if I think of evil in my heart, I will suppress it and keep it out of my mouth’ (Park). As David cried out to God, he had purposed not to sin. That was why he prayed to God while living in his purpose. Although the oppressors or extreme enemies who surrounded David were speaking with arrogance (v. 10), David had purposed not to sin with his lips. It was to the extent that the Lord tested David and He found nothing (v. 3). Although most people who commit crimes of thought are more likely to sin with their mouths, David not only sinned with his mouth but also in his heart. He asked the Lord with an honest heart and lips that the Lord could not find fault. I am sure it wasn’t easy for David to stand firmly in his purpose in the midst of his extreme difficult situation. Although David was surrounded by his extreme enemies who spoke with arrogance, David had purposed that his mouth would not transgress (v. 3). Although he could have sinned with his thoughts, he didn’t. How could he have defeated evil thoughts in his thought fights and didn’t sin with his lips? It was because he had the power to suppress evil thoughts. That power is the power of the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit. When we think about one of the fruit of the Spirit is self-control (Gal. 5:23), I think the Spirit of God restrained David’s thoughts so that he could overcome evil thoughts with good thoughts (Rom. 12:21).
Third is “my steps.”
Look at Psalms 17:5 – “My steps have held fast to Your paths My feet have not slipped.” When a person faces hardship, adversity, or crisis, there is a high risk that his steps will be distorted. Eventually, he can't keep your faith and sin. Therefore, in order to avoid sinning, we must strictly follow God's Word (Park). In the midst of crisis and adversity, David was rather close to the word of God. In the midst of it, he had kept from the paths fo the violent by the word of His lips (v. 4). He kept from the paths of the sin and his steps had held fast to the Lord’s paths. David took a righteous and honest path based on the Word.
What was God's answer to David's honest prayer? We can think of it in two ways:
First is ‘my salvation.’
Look at Psalms 17:13 – “Arise, O LORD, confront him, bring him low; Deliver my soul from the wicked with Your sword,” When we kneel down and cry out to God in honesty, God arises and confront our extreme enemies and bring them low (v. 13). No matter how his wicked and deadly enemies surround us, God delivers us away from them (v. 9). And God keeps us as the apple of the eye and hides us in the shadow of His wings (v. 8).
Second is ‘my hope.’
Look at Psalms 17:15 – “As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake.” The hope of our believers is only God (Park). The hope given to us is to enter the afterlife and see God. When we die or at the Lord's return, we will enter the kingdom of heaven through the righteousness of the Lord and be satisfied with the image of the Lord.
Like David, we must offer honest prayers to God through “my judgment,” ‘my purpose,’ and “my steps.” In doing so, we can enjoy the blessings of ‘my salvation’ and ‘my hope in response to our prayers. We may already have experienced this blessing in our lives. Therefore, we praise God's salvation and rejoice in hope. No matter how many waves of everyday life come into our lives, I hope and pray that all of us can praise God with heart full of hope and enjoy the grace of salvation through honest prayer to God.
Studying in the school of prayer as I pray to God,
James Kim
(Wanting to enjoy the God’s blessings of His salvation and of His hope as I pray honestly to Him)