Psalm 143:3 “My enemy has chased me. He has knocked me to the ground. He forces me to live in darkness like those in the grave. I am losing all hope; I am paralyzed with fear”.
The word enemy is used frequently in the Psalms. David cries out to God for deliverance from his enemies many times including todays reading of Psalm 143. The idea of having an “enemy” is a difficult one for me. I don’t have anyone that I would call my enemy. I am a peacemaker and try to avoid conflict as much as possible, probably to a fault. Even if I disagree with someone I can usually see their point of view and empathize with their situation. I often skim over these verses. How can I relate to a man being pursued by his enemies?
As it turns out, I do have enemies. My enemies present as pride, selfishness, laziness, fear, worry, envy…..I could go on and on. These are the things that keep me from enjoying the bounty that God has provided. If left unattended these “enemies” take hold and choke out all the good things that God has in store. Just the other night I woke up obsessing over the coming school year. We have 3 kids that will be in different sports and activities, my husband and I work full time, our oldest is a senior and I don’t want to miss any opportunity to support him this year, who is going to do the laundry and the cleaning? Can the bathroom go a few months without being cleaned? Is it ok to forego grocery shopping and just eat out all year? Can we go back to last year when we were all locked up in our homes with nothing to do? Needless to say I didn’t sleep that night and struggled the next day with fatigue and felt like I lost an entire day. Those middle of the night worries are the enemies that chase me, knock me to the ground, and force me to live in darkness. I let all that happen in a matter of hours. I didn’t recognize my spiraling thoughts as distractions until it was too late. And my worries are for normal things, not the unexpected like illness or the death of a loved one. God is present for all struggles – big and little. The challenge for us is to continue to turn to Him in all things and trust His plans, not our own.
Psalm 143 is a perfect Psalm to pray against the enemy. When we are consumed by our own thoughts and feeling lost there is still hope! On our own we cannot escape the grip of the enemy, but with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). First, remember His works – 143:5, then reach out to Him in prayer – 143:6, trust Him – 143:8, and finally seek to do His will – 143:10. (thank you turbo notes!) When we take the first steps of action towards God, He will meet us. It doesn’t ensure a trouble free ride, but we can rest in the assurance that He goes before us and has plans beyond our own and peace beyond understanding (Phil 4:7). Practicing this in the everyday will strengthen us to do the same when the unexpected happens.
James 4:7 “Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”
Tomorrow, next week, and next year will happen whether I worry about it or not. As I choose to trust God for the upcoming year I look forward to His peace and watching His plans unfold.
Shelly