Week 3 – Psalm 38 - Read in your favorite translation!

Key verses: 38:3-4 There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over my head; they weigh like a burden too heavy for me.

Can you relate to King David’s feelings? I can relate all too well!

There have been many days, weeks, and months that I have felt like King David in this passage. A feeling of everything in my body being “off” because my life is not right -happens when we get our priorities confused. When our values slide OR we do things that we know we should not - it can harm not just our spiritual health but that of our physical, mental, and emotional health as well. For me the trap is often food. When I feel “blue” or stressed out, I tend to eat things that I should avoid. The results (as a diabetic) are immediate comfort but long term pain and suffering. It does not seem like eating can be a sin. But, when we know that some things are not good for us and we do them anyway - that is the basic definition of sin.

David is pouring his heart out in Psalm 38. As it progresses in verses 16-17, we begin to see that David has reached his breaking point.

In Verse 18, he reaches his turning point and asks God for help. Each of us must find our own turning point. How much pain and suffering are we willing to withstand on our own or inflict on others by our behaviors before, like David, we say “I am sorry for my sins, Lord. Make haste (please hurry) to help me.” It is in the confessing of our sins and making right our relationship to God, that the process of healing in all areas of our life can begin.

As we move toward a deeper and more reliant relationship with Jesus and God the Father, consider verse 20- are we “following after” what is good? If yes, how do we stay away from that which is not good in our life? Do we need to change some of the things we are doing, or some of the people we hang out around? It is hard to see lasting change in our life if we keep doing the same things.

Also, remember to continue reading the Word of God on a daily basis. This helps build up our relationship with God. And, don’t be afraid to reach out to other believers for help with your struggles. Christianity was not designed to be a solo competition.

For those of you, who like to dig deeper into scripture: In verse two, we see a reference to being struck by arrows from God, read the Book of Job chapters 6 and 16 for similar thoughts.