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Read Psalm 55:1-8 Have you ever felt like flying away just to get away from it all? Has life ever been such a burden that all you can think about is escaping? David felt like that one day. That's why he wrote, "And I said, 'Oh, that I had wings like a dove! For then I would fly away and be at rest. Indeed, I would wander far off, and remain in the wilderness. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest"' (vv. 6-8). Now let's be honest. This is a natural feeling.

Read Psalm 55:9-15 Perhaps the greatest trial is when someone you really love--a friend, a family member--betrays you. David wrote: "For it is not an enemy who reproaches me; then I could bear it. Nor is it one who hates me who has exalted himself against me; then I could hide from him. But it was you, a man my equal, my companion and my acquaintance" (vv. 12,13). It takes a diamond to cut a diamond, and sometimes our friends can hurt us deeply. And we can deeply hurt them. D

Read Psalm 55:16-21 David was going through intense difficulty. Some of his friends, including his most familiar friend, were turning against him, and it was painful. How did David solve this problem? First, he called upon the Lord. "As for me [no matter what they may do], I will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me. Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice" (vv. 16,17). Apparently, David had a systematic prayer life. He call

Read Psalm 55:22-23 "Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved" (v. 22). This promise tells us that Christians do have burdens. David is not talking about concern for others, although it's good to bear one another's burdens. Instead, he means the burdens that the Lord allows each one of us to bear. One translation reads, "Cast what he has given thee upon the Lord." Burdens are not accidents but appointments. The bu

Read Psalm 56:1-9 Are you the kind of person who keeps a daily record of what you do? When I was in the pastorate, I carried a special diary with me. I wrote down where I visited and who I saw. When I got back to the office, I told my staff, "Here is what I did, and here are the needs we have to pray about." Did you know that God is keeping a journal about you? His journal is composed of bottles and books. David said, "You number my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle;

Read Psalm 56:10-l3 Many of David's psalms contain a pattern. He starts with a problem, then he prays, and finally he praises God for solving the problem. At the end of this psalm David praises the Lord. "In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? Vows made to You are binding upon me, O God; I will render praises to You, for You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not delivered my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light

Read Psalm 56:1-13 Fear can grip us when we feel life is out of control, and that's what happened to David when he was hiding from King Saul. But instead of running from his fears, with God's help he faced them. By understanding how David handled his fears, we can better handle ours. First, David honestly admitted his fears (vv. 1-7). He admitted the enemy was against him (v. 2). We won't win the victory if we pretend the Enemy is not there or if we try to suppress our fears.

Read Psalm 57:1-11 I have attended concerts at concert halls, parks and churches, but I have never attended a concert in a cave. David wrote this song when he fled from Saul into a cave. It's difficult to sing even in the midst of the blessings of life, so how could David possibly turn his situation into a song? How could he turn a cave into a concert hall? He had God's protection. "My soul trusts in You; and in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these cala

Read Psalm 57:1-11 David wrote this psalm when he fled from Saul into a cave. He records one day's experience and gives advice on how to live our lives. First, close each day in prayer (vv. 1-4). Take all your concerns to God. When you start trusting Him, He changes you, and you see your surroundings in a new way. By faith you enter into His presence. Storms don't last forever, but when they come, God will take care of your problems. He performs and perfects all things for yo

Read Psalm 58:1-11 Today there is a need for God's people to display righteous indignation. May we never complacently accept babies being aborted, the poor being exploited and politicians breaking the law. God does not want people in authority to use their authority for themselves. A true statesman uses his authority to build people and his country. David was righteously indignant when he wrote this psalm. He was not angry but anguished. David denounces the readers' sin (vv.

Read Psalm 58:10,11 Does it ever trouble you that the righteous seem to suffer, while the wicked seem to escape suffering? Have you ever gotten the bad end of a deal while somebody else--perhaps even a professing Christian--came out on top after doing something he shouldn't have done? If so, this passage will encourage you: "The righteous shall rejoice when he sees the vengeance . . . so that men will say, 'Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely He is God who judg

Read Psalm 59:1-17 Have you ever been in a public place and noticed that someone was watching you? I've been in restaurants when my wife has said, "Those people at that table keep watching us. I wonder if we know them." It usually turns out that we don't know them, and they don't know us, but maybe we look like someone they know. In this psalm David records his experience when Saul's men were watching his house. They wanted to arrest and kill him. But David was rejoicing in t

Read Psalm 59:1-17 Have you ever had to escape danger by going out a window? Paul escaped from Damascus that way (Acts 9), and David through a window as well ( I Sam. 19 ). One day David went home and discovered that he was being spied on. His wife let him down through a window, and he escaped from his enemies. As we read this psalm, we notice four assurances that kept David going. First, David knows that God sees, so he prays (vv. 1-5). David needed to be defended and delive

Read Psalm 60:1-12 "Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies" (v. 12). Psalm 60 is unusual because David didn't write it in the midst of trouble. So many of his psalms were written from a cave or a battlefield. But this psalm was written after a great victory. The army had achieved a tremendous victory in Edom for the people of God. What do we learn from this psalm? First, we must be cautious after a victory. "O God, You have cast us off

Read Psalm 60:1-12 About the time one problem is solved, another one begins. That's the situation David found himself in when he wrote this psalm. He was leading one battle and praying about another. In your own battles, seek to imitate David's four responses in this psalm. First, he surveys the situation (vv. 1-3). David always looked at situations through the eyes of a poet. He pictures this predicament as a sudden flood, an earthquake and staggering, drunken people. David

Read Psalm 61:1-8 When his son Absalom rebelled against him, David had to flee from Jerusalem to save his life. Out of that experience he wrote this psalm. "Hear my cry, O God; attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You, when my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy" (vv. 1-3). David was asking for God's help and strength. He may have been in a cave when he w

Read Psalm 61:1-8 Whenever David found himself in a tight spot, he instinctively turned to God in prayer. Prayer is the natural breath of the believer. It enables you to accomplish what you cannot accomplish by yourself. First, prayer enables you to reach farther (v. 2). David was homesick. Although he was away from Jerusalem, he was not away from God. No matter where you are, you can reach out through prayer and touch the lives of family, friends and missionaries. Second, pr

Read Psalm 62:1-12 Verses 2, 5 and 12 contain three assurances that help us wait: God is our Salvation. God is our Expectation. God is our Vindication. Let's look closer at these three assurances. God is our Salvation. David refers to salvation not from sin but from danger. "He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved" (v. 2). David's enemies were pursuing him as usual. Saul was trying to kill him as usual. And yet David says, "I'm goin

Read Psalm 63:1-11 King David wrote this psalm when he was in the wilderness of Judah. I never really appreciated what he wrote until my wife and I visited the same spot. What a dry and barren place it is! Look at what David wrote, "O God, You are my God; early will I seek You; my soul thirsts for You; my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water" (v. 1). In other words, David says, "Here I am in this dry, hot, dangerous wilderness, and I really wo

Read Psalm 64:1-10 Most of us live relatively safe and secure lives, but David was in exile. He was being hounded by King Saul, who wanted to kill him. Here David prays for protection, and he closes the psalm by saying, "The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and trust in Him. And all the upright in heart shall glory" (v. 10). We find three key concepts in this verse that encourage us: joy, faith and glory. Are you glad in the Lord today? So many times we are not glad becau

Read Psalm 65:1-13 "Praise is awaiting You, O God, in Zion; and to You the vow shall be performed" (v. 1). David was a great soldier. But he also was a great singer and a great saint. In spite of difficulties and problems and even dangers, he was able to praise the Lord. He continues, "O You who hear prayer, to You all flesh will come" (v. 2). Some people only pray. They don't really praise. And yet praise and prayer belong together. Prayer means coming to God and telling Him

Read Psalm 66:1-7 Psalm 66 contains several invitations that are tied to the word come: "come and sing"; "come and see"; and "come and hear." Let's look at the first two invitations. The first invitation is come and sing, or praise the Lord. "Sing out the honor of His name; make His praise glorious" (v. 2). Sometimes we act as if praise is tedious. Sometimes we praise Him in a tired fashion. But the psalmist asks for glorious praise. Why? "Through the greatness of Your power

Read Psalm 66:8-20 This psalm is for the discouraged. "Oh, bless our God, you peoples! And make the voice of His praise to be heard" (v. 8). Why? "Who keeps our soul among the living, and does not allow our feet to be moved" (v. 9). God holds our life in His hand. "In Him we live and move and have our being" ( Acts 17:28 ). So let's praise Him. "For You, O God, have tested us; You have refined us as silver is refined" (v. 10). The reason God tries us and tests us is to prove

Read Psalm 67:1-7 The author of this psalm is unknown, but it was someone who had a vision of the whole world. God had blessed him, and he wanted to share that blessing with everyone. He writes, "God be merciful to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us" (v. 1). That sounds like a priestly benediction, doesn't it? "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious unto you" ( Num. 6:24 , 25 ). Three times in verse 1 the psal