BIG IDEA:
WHEN OUR ENEMIES HAVE THE UPPER HAND, WE CAN AVOID DEPRESSION BY FOCUSING ON OUR GOD
4 WAYS TO FOCUS ON OUR GOD:
I. (:1-4) CRYING TO GOD
(EVEN THOUGH WE ARE BEING CRUSHED)
A. Asking for Answers
1. Listen
“Hear my prayer, O Lord,
Give ear to my supplications!”
2. “Answer me”
3. Based on:
“Thy faithfulness”
“Thy righteousness”
B. Appealing for Mercy
“And do not enter into judgment with Thy servant,
For in Thy sight no man living is righteous”
C. Accusing the Enemy
“For the enemy has persecuted my soul; He has crushed my life to the ground;
He has made me dwell in dark places, like those who have long been dead.”
D. Agonizing Within
“Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me;
My heart is appalled within me.”
II. (:5-6) LONGING FOR GOD’S GLORY
(EVEN THOUGH WE ARE DYING OF SPIRITUAL THIRST)
A. Trying to Revive that God-Connection
1. “I remember the days of old”
2. “I meditate on all Thy doings”
3. “I muse on the work of Thy hands”
4. “I stretch out my hands to Thee”
B. Longing of Spiritual Thirst
“My soul longs for Thee, as a parched land.”
III. (:7-9) LOOKING FOR GOD’S LOVINGKINDNESS
(EVEN THOUGH WE ARE TEETERING ON THE EDGE OF THE PIT)
A. Almost Down the Tubes
1. Urgency of the Situation
“Answer me quickly, O Lord, my spirit fails”
2. Precariousness of the Situation
“Do not hide Thy face from me,
Lest I become like those who go down to the pit”
B. Alert for God’s Lovingkindness
“Let me hear Thy lovingkindness in the morning”
C. Anchored in Faith
“For I trust in Thee”
D. Available for Instruction
“Teach me the way in which I should walk; For to Thee I lift up my soul”
E. Asking for Deliverance
“Deliver me, O Lord, from my enemies, I take refuge in Thee.”
IV. (:10-12) SEEKING GOD’S LEADING
(EVEN THOUGH WE ARE IN A HEAP OF TROUBLE)
A. Teach Me – “Teach me to do Thy will”
Why? “For Thou art my God”
B. Lead Me – “Let Thy … Spirit lead me on level ground”
Why? “Thy good Spirit”
C. Revive Me — “Revive Me”
Why? “For the sake of Thy name, O Lord”
D. Rescue Me – “bring my soul out of trouble”
Why? “in Thy righteousness”
E. Repay My Enemies – “cut off my enemies” / “destroy all those who afflict my soul”
Why? “in Thy lovingkindness” / “For I am Thy servant”