A Prayer to Be Rescued
When We Need to Be Rescued
How do you handle challenging or dangerous situations? How we think or hope we respond to danger or challenges is one thing. But reality is the true test. We can’t know for sure how we’ll react until we’re challenged or in danger.
It's often pointed out that while others are running away from danger, first responders are running toward and into that same danger. That's their role. It's what they are trained to do.
First responders run into danger to rescue those in danger and to establish order. Law enforcement, fire and rescue personnel, and the military risk their lives to save others and we ought to appreciate them for doing it.
But what about those of us who aren’t first responders? We may not need to run into a burning building to rescue others, but many people contend with other serious life challenges—debilitating diseases, relational abuse, job losses, or other unexpected disruptions in our lives.
I believe we all need equipping and training to face the challenges we face in life. But the equipping and training we need is more spiritual than physical. King David understood that what is spiritual and eternal takes priority over the physical.
In a sense, David was one of God's first responders. And David understood that even though he was a king, God was the ultimate authority. He knew his first response to the many challenges he faced was to trust in the Lord.
We see this in Psalm 144. David thanks the Lord for God’s training that equipped King David to be a warrior-king. David also had gifts as a musician and poet and was a passionate man. But his spiritual life was his priority.
Scripture
A psalm by David.
Thank the Lord, my rock, who trained my hands to fight and my fingers to do battle,
my merciful one, my fortress, my stronghold, and my savior, my shield, the one in whom I take refuge, and the one who brings people under my authority.
O Lord, what are humans that you should care about them? What are mere mortals that you should think about them?
Humans are like a breath of air. Their life span is like a fleeting shadow.
O Lord, bend your heaven low, and come down. Touch the mountains, and they will smoke.
Hurl bolts of lightning, and scatter them. Shoot your arrows, and throw them into confusion. [vss 1-6]
Stretch out your hands from above. Snatch me, and rescue me from raging waters and from foreigners’ hands.
Their mouths speak lies. Their right hands take false pledges.
O God, I will sing a new song to you. I will sing a psalm to you on a ten-stringed harp.
You are the one who gives victory to kings. You are the one who snatches your servant David away from a deadly sword.
Snatch me, and rescue me from foreigners’ hands. Their mouths speak lies. Their right hands take false pledges. [vss 7-11]
May our sons be like full-grown, young plants. May our daughters be like stately columns that adorn the corners of a palace.
May our barns be filled with all kinds of crops. May our sheep give birth to thousands of lambs, tens of thousands in our fields.
May our cattle have many calves. May no one break in, and may no one be dragged out. May there be no cries of distress in our streets.
Blessed are the people who have these blessings!
Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord! [vss 12-15]
(Psalm 144:1-15 GW) [Context– Psalm 144]
Reflections and Insights
Look at the flow of this psalm from beginning to end. David begins with thankfulness to the Lord, whom he calls his rock, fortress, stronghold, savior, and shield. David says of the Lord, “My merciful one.” David understood his role as king of Israel under God’s sovereign rule.
As a man whose life and authority existed under God's authority, David realized how fragile human life is. He knew his life and those under his authority needed God's sovereign power to intervene on their behalf.
Likewise, we can ask for God's intervention and blessing in our lives. Even as David prayed, "O Lord, bend your heaven low, and come down." Reading through the book of 2nd Samuel, we see how God did this in David's life many times.
When you or I acknowledge and submit to God's sovereignty in our lives, it brings the assurance David expresses in this psalm. We see this in how David prays for God’s blessing and declares—Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!
All four gospels remind us how God personally came down and became human—when heaven did indeed bend low—as Jesus, the Son of God, was born, lived, and offered Himself to intervene and redeem all humanity.
David had this assurance by faith before God sent His Son for our redemption from the power of and consequence of sin. How much more ought we who trust in the Lord Jesus have this assurance!
Reflection—
Have you realized God's sovereignty and nearness in your life? Blessed are the people who have this assurance! Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!
Prayer Focus—
No matter what challenge you face in life, call out to the Lord for his help. Be assured that He hears you and cares for you. If you don’t have that assurance, ask Him for it by humbling yourself before Him as we see King David do.
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