Wednesday, 22 July, 2020
Title: When the World Seems Crashing in on Us
Author: Pastor Wallace Ong

Scripture: Psalm 55:1-8, 12-14

Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy! 2 Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan, 3 because of the noise of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked. For they drop trouble upon me, and in anger they bear a grudge against me. 4 My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen upon me. 5 Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me. 6 And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest; 7 yes, I would wander far away; I would lodge in the wilderness; Selah 8 I would hurry to find a shelter from the raging wind and tempest.”

12 For it is not an enemy who taunts me – then I could bear it; it is not an adversary who deals insolently with me – then I could hide from him. 13 But it is you, a man, my equal, my companion, my familiar friend. 14 We used to take sweet counsel together; within God’s house we walked in the throng.

Psalm 55 depicts to us how David was in such complete dismay at the treachery he was experiencing. He was struggling with the fact that some of his closest comrades had turned against him. He was lamenting to us the condition of his heart. He was in dire straits, he was inundated with disappointment, anguish, and misery! He was paralyzed emotionally and bodily. David desperately cried out to God. He was pleading to God “Don’t ignore me; hear me, answer me. I am troubled and distraught!” The distress David encountered had beaten him up badly, but he knew that his most reliable help came from God. His prayer flowed out from his deep despair, but ultimately was the demonstration of his confidence in God.

There are times in our lives when it seems that the whole world has tumbled in on us. Our burden and suffering is so overwhelming as if there is no place for us to turn to and we are ready to give up. We, like the Psalmist, wish for the wings of a dove so we could fly away into the desert and leaving behind all our worries, afflictions and all our troubles in order to find the rest we so badly need. This is especially so when we are opposed and offended by those closest to us such as our family members, friends, or those whom we have invested a lot of time with. We perceive they are the people whom we could rely heavily on. We become most disheartened if they turn against us with their actions or words.

David had such adversaries – leaders who guided and gave advice to him, close associates who even went to ‘church (temple)’ together with him. They turned out to be those who hurt him badly. What a heartbreaking experience and discouragement arising from such relationships. Just like David, we too can feel the “pain” when assaulted by such individuals, those we relied on turned out to be someone who conspires against us. It is truly a heart-wrenching experience when trust is broken, effort unappreciated and malaise by mindless slanderers.

There is no instant relief or easy solution to mitigate any damage caused by the betrayal of trust. However, one can emulate what David did – to call upon God’s help and power to intervene. Regardless of whatever dreadful circumstances, we can always turn to God in complete assurance, knowing that He will surely hear us and answer our prayers. Our hearts may be filled with anguish and our minds bewildered like a dark cloud hanging over our head but we can turn them over to God and He will lift the load off our shoulders.

He will lift us up from the mire and plant our feet on solid ground. He will carry us in His arms to a place of safety because He is our help in times of need (Psalm 46:1). When we are alone, let us not forget that Jesus is ever present. It is in the midst of the greatest storms of life that we learn the true meaning of what it means “to trust in God”. It is by going through the worst turmoil in life that we discover and appreciate the peace of God that surpasses all human understanding, guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Phi. 4:7).

Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father,
We thank You for Your love for us. We are confident that no matter what evil plots, misunderstanding, or slander against us, or whatever pains and difficulties befall us, we can always come to You, knowing that You will sustain and strengthen us. We will not be shaken or intimidated by the evil schemes inflicted on us by Satan because greater is Christ that is in us. O Lord Jesus, we need You and we want You to be in our heart every moment in our life. Empower us to live for You. Give us strength to endure whatever difficulties and suffering we may encounter. Help us to find comfort, peace, and joy in You. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

每日灵粮
星期三, 2020年7月22日
标题：当世界似乎崩塌时
作者：王振威传道
翻译：杨惠光弟兄

诗篇55：1-8，12-14
大卫的训诲诗，交于伶长。用丝弦的乐器。
1 神啊，求你留心听我的祷告，不要隐藏不听我的恳求。
2 求你侧耳听我，应允我。我哀叹不安，发声唉哼，
3 都因仇敌的声音，恶人的欺压。因为他们将罪孽加在我身上，发怒气逼迫我。
4 我心在我里面甚是疼痛，死的惊惶临到我身。
5 恐惧战兢归到我身，惊恐漫过了我。
6 我说：“但愿我有翅膀像鸽子，我就飞去，得享安息。
7 我必远游，宿在旷野。（细拉）
8 我必速速逃到避所，脱离狂风暴雨。”

12原来不是仇敌辱骂我，若是仇敌，还可忍耐。也不是恨我的人向我狂大，若是恨我的人，就必躲避他。
13 不料是你，你原与我平等，是我的同伴，是我知己的朋友！
14 我们素常彼此谈论，以为甘甜，我们与群众在神的殿中同行。
15 愿死亡忽然临到他们，愿他们活活地下入阴间，因为他们的住处、他们的心中都是邪恶。

诗篇55向我们描绘了大卫对于他所遭遇的背叛感到完全沮丧。他正为一些最亲密的战友背叛他这一事实而苦苦挣扎。他向我们哀叹心中的感伤。他身陷困境，感到无比失望、痛苦欲绝！他心神慌乱，不知所措。大卫拼命向上帝呼求。他向上帝求情：“不要忽略我；不要不理我。听我说，回答我。我感到困扰和沮丧！”大卫遇到的苦难使他遭受了重创，但他知道他最可靠的帮助来自上帝。他的祈祷来自于深深的绝望，但最终也证明了他对上帝的信心。

在我们的生活中，有时候似乎觉得整个世界崩塌在我们身上。我们的负担和痛苦是如此之大，以至于我们无处可寻，已经准备放弃。我们像诗人一样，希望有一只鸽子的翅膀，可以飞到沙漠中，留下我们所有的忧虑、苦难和所有的麻烦，以便找到我们急需的休息。尤其是当我们最亲密的人，如我们的家人、朋友，或长时间共处的人，反对和冒犯我们。我们认为他们是我们可以依靠的人。如果他们用自己的言行举止反抗我们，我们会感到最沮丧。

大卫有这样的对手—曾指导和给他建议的领导人、亲密的同伙甚至与他一起去“教堂（殿）”敬拜的人，后来却是严重伤害他的人。这种关系引起了令人心碎的经历和沮丧。就像大卫一样，当我们受到这些人的攻击时，我们也能感受到“痛苦”，而我们所依赖的人竟然是串谋害我们的人。当彼此信任被打破，努力得不到认可又被盲目诽谤时，这真是令人心痛的经历。

任何因背叛所产生的损害是没有即时的救济或容易的解决方案来减轻的。但是，人们可以效法大卫所做的事情—就是寻求上帝的帮助和能力。无论遇到什么可怕的情况，我们总是可以完全向上帝求助，因为知道他一定会听到我们的声音并回答我们的祈祷。我们的心可能充满痛苦，思想像笼罩在头上的乌云，但是我们可以将它们交给上帝，上帝会卸下我们肩膀上的负担。

祂将把我们从泥潭中抬起，将脚踩在坚实的地面上。祂会将我们怀抱在安全的地方，因为在有需要时祂是我们在患难中随时的帮助（诗篇46：1）。当我们独自一人时，让我们不要忘记耶稣永远存在。在人生的最大风暴中，我们了解了“信靠上帝”的真正含义。通过经历生命中最严重的动荡，我们发现并体会上帝的平安，是超越所有人的理解，在基督耶稣里保守我们的心怀意念 （腓4：7）。

祷告：
亲爱的天父，我们感谢你对我们的爱。我们有信心，无论人对我们有什么邪恶的阴谋、误解或诽谤，或有什么痛苦和困难降临在我们身上，我们都可以来找你，知道你将扶持并坚固我们。撒但加给我们的邪恶计划不会动摇或吓倒我们，因为在我们里面的基督更大。主耶稣啊，我们需要你，我们希望你一生中的每时每刻都在我们心中。使我们能够为你而活。给我们力量去承受可能遇到的任何困难和痛苦。帮助我们在你身上找到安慰、平安与喜乐。我们奉耶稣的名祈祷，阿们。