Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have relieved [or enlarged] me in my distress; Be gracious to me and hear my prayer. Psalm 4:1
A friend who is battling cancer sent me a devotional on King David’s struggles which I’d like to expand on here today.
Why did David seem so desperate for God throughout the Psalms? Let’s face it; it was because he was so often in distress. He had many enemies and many struggles in his family. In fact, David wrote Psalm 4 when he was running from one of his enemies – his own son, Absalom.
There is a wonderful upside, however, to this distress that God allowed in David’s life. He was “enlarged.” This Hebrew word was used of expanding borders and territories. The Lord makes us bigger in our character and in our ability to endure. We are purified from the petty pursuits of this world. We are also able to handle more of His blessings, and in turn, give out more as well!
Our faith is just like a muscle. If we want to enlarge our muscles, we place them under the distress of additional weight. The fibers of the muscles tear and often hurt for a time, but they also grow larger and stronger! In the same way, the faith that connects us with Him is able to be strengthened by distress. We can hold on to Him during the toughest times.
Does it seem like the weight of your health battle is too much for you to bear? Try not to get discouraged. With His help you will stand up under it and grow stronger as a result! You will be a blessing even as you hurt.
Lord, we don’t like distress, but we see how You use it to strengthen our connection to You, and to increase our blessings and ability to bless others.
