Relentlessly pursued by an enemy, feeling crushed and in total despair, left alone with none to intercede for him, emotionally drained, and gripped with events, David stopped to consider what he knew to be true; He reflected on his relationship with the Lord God. “I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands” (Psalm 143.5). Being encompassed by overwhelming misery David remembered who the Lord is and the “days of old.” He remembered the Lord’s work of grace in His life; he remembered how he was taken from the sheepfold and made king of Israel; he remembered the Lord’s protection through multiple trials and the closeness of death; he remembered the Lord as His secure foundation; he remembered the Lord formed him and ordained all his days; he remembered that no matter how dark the day or how alone he felt, he was always in the Lord’s view. David not only remembered, but he meditated on all the Lord had done. His thoughts did not quickly flee, but rather he considered the meaning of those days and the Lord’s intimate involvement in his every day, his every experience; he meditated on God’s working, when, he may not have understood how God could be working. David went one step further to ponder the work of the Lord’s hands. He recognized the inability of his hands, and therefore spoke of the Lord’s work. In pondering, he spoke aloud, he spoke about, and he heard with his ears what he knew to be true. This triple choice of remembering, meditating, and pondering, kept him in the right frame as he persevered through the struggles of life.
No matter how difficult our days may be and how alone we may feel, may this be our commitment: to remember truth as did David, to remember our Lord’s gracious working in our redemption, to meditate on all His merciful and continual care given to us, and to ponder the full depth of His unending love, abundant grace and ever mercy.
Embraced by our Lord – we have much to be thankful for –
Terry Burlingame
My Morning Desk 