WAIT IN HOPE FOR HELP (3)

“I WAITED patiently for the Lord; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry” – Psalm 40:1

David demonstrated what it means to WAIT IN HOPE for HELP: “I WAITED patiently for the Lord; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry” (Psa.40:1). Hope draws on Divine Help, even from the depth of the Pit! David was in a “horrible pit” and “miry clay” (v.2). He waited hopefully on the Lord to rescue him. God got him out and he sang His praises! Help answered to Hope and Prayer. The pit could be any of life’s trials. Sin is the worst pit in life! Other pits could be: sickness, job loss, an immoral mate, rebellious children, or evil addiction. Some people are responsible for being in pits while some are victims of the sins of others. Acknowledging which is crucial to being helped (vv.10-12).

Someone in the pit could be tempted toward pride or falsehood as a means of getting out: “Blessed is that man who makes the Lord his trust, and does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies” (v.4). While in the pit, it’s quite easy, even while professing to trust in the Lord, to grab any appealing way of escape, including compromising one’s faith. The proud are those who boast in their own abilities and fail to recognise or admit any personal weakness. They believe they can get out of the pit on their own by their own ingenuity and effort. It’s okay for them to use a little “white lie” to get out of the jam. In doing so, they’re trusting in their lie, not in the Lord.

The way out of the pit is to patiently wait on the Lord in Hope (v.1). Even if it works, it is wrong to trust in anything or anyone other than the Lord or whoever He raises, to get out of the pit: “Rest in the LORD, and WAIT PATIENTLY for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass…WAIT on the LORD, and keep His way, and He shall exalt you to inherit the land…” (Psa.37: 7, 34a). To wait on the Lord is intently expect His promises to be fulfilled.

Waiting on the Lord infers crying out to Him for deliverance, acknowledging the need for salvation, rather than trusting in self (vv. 1,13). It means: Trusting Him alone (vv. 3,4); recounting His wonders and providential care (v.5); obeying Him (vv.6-8); seeking and rejoicing in Him: “Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; let such as love Your salvation say continually, “The Lord be magnified!” (v.16). David’s joy was not just in being delivered, but in Him who delivers. When in life’s pit we to turn to the Lord for answers, rather than the world, our Hope will draw on Divine Help for Supernatural Lifting, Establishment, and New Songs for God’s Praise God (vv.2-3).