Psalm 13 was written by King David.  It says, “HOW LONG, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? HOW LONG will You hide Your face from me?  HOW LONG shall I take counsel in my soul, Having sorrow in my heart all the day?  HOW LONG will my enemy be exalted over me?  Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; Enlighten my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death, And my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,” And my adversaries will rejoice when I am shaken.  But I have trusted in Your lovingkindness; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.  I will sing to the Lord, Because He has dealt bountifully with me” (NASB).

David asked the Lord “How long?” four times in this psalm.  He felt forgotten by the Lord.  He felt that the Lord was hiding His face from Him.  He felt sorrowful and depressed.  He cried to the Lord about his enemy being exalted over him.  He cried to the Lord to consider his questions and to answer him.  David wanted the Lord to enlighten his eyes or give him understanding about his situation.  David felt that if the Lord did not help him that he would die and his adversaries would gloat about defeating him.

However, in verse 5 David’s attitude changes.  He proclaims trust in the lovingkindness of the Lord and rejoices in God’s salvation.  In verse 6 he is determined to sing to the Lord because of His bountiful care over him.

Many times we have the same emotions as David did in this psalm.  We wonder how long we will have to wait for good health, a job, the salvation of a loved one, or the improvement in a relationship.  We can learn from how David handled his frustration.  He turned to the Lord and laid it all before Him.  When he did that, the Lord changed his attitude from one dominated by fear to one dominated by faith.  As William MacDonald said, “This psalm is like many of our God-sent testings: they begin with a sigh but end with a song!”

Let us always remember that the Lord really is with us.  As we read in Hebrews 13:5, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”  Let us also remember that our Lord “is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us” (Ephesians 3:20).  He is worthy to be trusted!  Let us lean fully on our Savior today.  (221.6)  (DJ)