I’m amazing at how often when reading through the David psalms that David talks about waiting patienty for the LORD (Ps 40:1). Granted the word “wait” is found only 17x in the psalms, and yet somehow it still strikes me as he says this often while in distress. When most of us are in distress, “waiting patiently” is no small task. Not only that but if we don’t see God moving, we tend to try to create our own miracle. I’m guilty as guilty could be.
Step 1 in Trial: Wait Patiently on the LORD
What does David do next? He talks about how in the past the LORD has helped him up from the muddy pit and set his feet on the rock. How he put a new in his heart and a hymn of praise in his mouth. (Ps 40:2-3).
Step 2: Remember and Rejoice
What David says next is interesting. He doesn’t hide God’s righteousness in his heart. He’s not a Christian just in his heart. In good times this wouldn’t make sense. But in hard times, in times of hostility against the ways of God, speaking up can be a tough thing to do. We don’t know the story of when David wrote this psalm, but we do know that he said he will speak up in the assembly and proclaim the Lord’s faithfulness, righteousness, and salvation (Ps 40:10).
Step 3: Tell of the Wonderful Things God has Done
The last thing David does in this psalm is to pray. He says his troubles outnumber the hairs on his head and asks God for deliverance, and to “please hurry to help me, LORD” (Ps 40:13). He is going to wait patiently, but he isn’t afraid to ask God to hurry up.
Step 4: Pray fervently
Lastly in what he does in so many psalms, he rejoices in the LORD and reiterates his prayer. That’s what makes David’s psalms special. No matter how difficulty, he almost always ends with praise, worship, trust and prayer.
Step 5: Worship