“The Lord is the sustainer of my soul.”
[Psalms 54]
If we look at Henry Nowen's book "The Living Reminder", there is a chapter titled "Sustaining Reminder." In this chapter, Nowen speaks about what sustains us, sustaining others and the sustainer. The key passage here is John 16:7, 13 – “… it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; ... But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth ….” The key point here is that Jesus' departure made it possible for Jesus' disciples to have a more intimate encounter with the Lord (through the Holy Spirit). In other words, because of Jesus' absence, the disciples had more and more intimate encounters (communion) with the Lord. And that intimate encounter (communion) sustained the disciples in the midst of suffering and aroused hope and desire to meet Jesus again. How was this possible? It's possible with ‘remembering (Nowen). In other words, by actualizing the past, the disciples endured and overcame because they hope for Jesus in the midst of suffering. The Holy Spirit, the Comforter who came after Jesus left, reminds the the words that Jesus taught and His love, and thus sustained the disciples who were in persecution, adversity, and suffering.
What do you remember about Jesus? What memories of Jesus are holding (sustaining) you up despite the challenges and adversities you face today? Memories not only connect us with the past, but also give us the strength to continue living in the present (Nowen). The memories of salvation in the past give us strength amidst the adversity we are facing now and enables us to move forward.
In Psalms 54:4, David confesses, “Behold, God is my helper; The Lord is the sustainer of my soul.” Here, “the sustainer of my soul” means that the Lord is 'the One who sustains my soul'. I would like to receive lessons by meditating on three things about the life of the soul that the Lord sustains under the title of “The Lord is the sustainer of my soul”.
First, the soul sustained by the Lord prays to God.
Look at Psalms 54:2 – “Hear my prayer, O God; Give ear to the words of my mouth.” Psalms 54 is based on the case when David was persecuted by Saul and was running away from him, when the Ziphites reported to King Saul the hiding place of David (A more detailed story is given in 1 Samuel 23:19 and chapter 26). The background of the words of Psalms 53 is somewhat similar to Psalms 52. The background of Psalms 52, which we have already meditated on, is that when David was running away from King Saul who was persecuting him, Doeg the Edomite informed King Saul that David had come to the house of the priest of Ahimelech. Both Psalms 54 and Psalms 52 are poems that David wrote while he was persecuted by King Saul and they were written when he was in danger because he was informed where he was hiding. In this situation of danger and crisis, David first looked to God and prayed to Him (v. 2). One of his concluding or key prayers is in verse 1: “. Save me, O God, by Your name, And vindicate me by Your power.” Even though David faced the dangerous situation, he looked to God and asked Him for His salvation before pondering the danger itself. What we shouldn’t forget here is that David relied on the name of the Lord as he cried out for God's salvation in the dangerous situation. The Lord's name is good (v. 6). To pray for God's salvation by relying on that good name means to believe and pray that God will even use that dangerous situation to accomplish His good purpose.
This is what Henry Nowen said about prayer: ‘Prayer is a way to remain empty and helpless before God, proclaiming that all is His grace and that nothing has been obtained merely in return for our hard work.’ Therefore, we are asking God by relying on His power like David did (v. 1). Therefore, we, like David, must pray to God by relying on the Lord's good name and His power. In dangerous circumstances and adversity, we must seek God's salvation as we pray to the God of salvation. Such prayers will continue to sustain us. God sustains those who pray to Him.
Second, the soul sustained by the Lord set God before him.
Look at Psalms 54:3 – “For strangers have risen against me And violent men have sought my life; They have not set God before them. Selah.” Here we can see why David prayed earnestly to God. The reason was because he was in the situation where “strangers,” that is, ungodly evildoers (wicked men), were seeking David’s life. More specifically, the strangers here refer to the Ziphites who reported David to King Saul. And the saying that “the violent men have sought my life” refers to King Saul's attempt to capture David and harm him. In conclusion, David said that these wicked people didn’t fear God and did evil. The Ziphites who reported David to King Saul feared King Saul who they could see with their own physical eyes instead of fearing the Lord, the King of kings. That was why they helped King Saul by telling him where David was.
A believer who has been held by God lives the life of Coram Deo. The word “Coram Deo” is Latin for “Coram” (before) and “D\heo” (God) combined, meaning “In the presence of God”. Being aware of the fact that the face of God is always in front of my eyes, the consciousness of God's presence, will bring us real courage and sanctification (Internet). One of the Biblical figures who had a Choram Deo faith is Joseph. Joseph lived always being conscious of God who was before him every moment of his life. Look at Genesis 39:9 – “There is no one greater in this house than I, and he has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife How then could I do this great evil and sin against God?” There was no one there. No one knew. No one has seen it. But Joseph saw God before him. ‘God is watching. God is listening. God knows. So how can I do this great evil?’ This was Joseph's "Coram Deo" faith (Internet). We too must live the life of Coram Deo faith. We are living in this world of many temptations. In order to overcome the temptations without being shaken by the constant temptations, we, like Joseph, must live with “Coram Deo” faith, that is, ‘I am living in the presence of God.’
Third and last, the soul sustained by the Lord is convinced of God’s help.
Look at Psalms 54:4 – “Behold, God is my helper; The Lord is the sustainer of my soul.” How could David be convinced of God's help and God's sustaining of his soul? We can find the answer in verse 7: “For He has delivered me from all trouble, And my eye has looked with satisfaction upon my enemies.” David was convinced of God's help by remembering his past experience of God delivering him from trouble in the current threat and crisis situation. And as he remembered the moments when he was satisfied with God retributing his enemies in the past, he was convinced that God would judge and repay his enemies, Saul or the Ziphites who were persecuting him. Look at verse 5: “He will recompense the evil to my foes; Destroy them in Your faithfulness.” The just God is a God who faithfully recompense the evil to David’s foes. What was the reaction of David who has this conviction? He thanked God. Look at verse 6: “Willingly I will sacrifice to You; I will give thanks to Your name, O LORD, for it is good.” David willingly offered thanksgiving sacrifice to God because he was confident that he would experience God's help in the present as he did so in the past.
This is what Henry Nowen said about memory: ‘Remembering is not just looking back at what happened in the past. More importantly, it is to bring events of the past to the present and celebrate them here and now’ (Nowen). When we bring past events of salvation to the present crisis situation and celebrate those events, we can be sure of God's help, that is, God's work to judge the wicked and save the righteous. Therefore, even in such a crisis situation, we can willingly worship God with thanksgiving.
We celebrate Jesus, who died on the cross on Mount Calvary about 2,000 years ago, during the communion. We celebrate Jesus as we partake the bread that symbolizes His flesh of the cross and the wine that symbolizes the blood He shed on the cross. In addition, the Holy Spirit, who dwells in us, reminds us the words and love of Jesus so that we can overcome any adversity, pain, and suffering in our present life. In the work of the Holy Spirit who makes us to trust in the good Lord's name and His power, we are convinced that He will be able to work together in all things to achieve good. Therefore, we must worship God with thanksgiving for His saving grace.
With gratitude for the grace of the Lord that sustains my soul,
James Kim
(Praying for God to sustain the souls of beloved brothers and sisters in Christ)