Psalm 13:5 “I have trusted in your mercy; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.”
Wouldn’t it be nice if all of life’s challenges had quick and easy solutions? In Psalm 13, David referred to a challenge that was neither quick nor easy to resolve. Prolonged problems can produce discouragement and eventually cause a man to want to throw up his hands and quit. We see a glimpse of David’s desperation in verses 3 and 4.
“Consider and hear [my prayer] and enlighten our eyes.” To enlighten our eyes is to change our focus or perspective from our problem to our God. In verse 4 he wrote “Lest my enemy say I have prevailed against him.” David didn’t want his enemy to boast of his demise.
In verses 5-6, David wrote “But I have trusted in your mercy; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, because He has dealt bountifully with me.” David made the conscious decision to trust God and sing praises to him. My friends, giving verbal praise to the Lord is part of what is necessary to change our focus from our problems to our God.
Continuing in 16:7-8 we read: “I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel; my heart also instructs me in the night seasons. I have set the LORD always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.” In the heat of the battle David made a conscious choice to bless the Lord and focus on Him rather than the problem. In 16:11 you can see David’s confidence come alive: “You will show me the path of life; in your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
Coming to chapter 18, we read David’s testimony that God helped him walk with confidence in the face of danger. You, too, can walk with confidence when you choose to trust Almighty God and cultivate His presence through verbal expressions of praise and worship.