“This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.” Psalm 34:6
Scripture tells us that David was a man after God’s own heart. He was a man who sought and found God. What characterized David’s seeking of the eternal God, and His intervention in his life and circumstances? It is first explained by a consciousness of need, a thirsting after God for that which is eternal. However, that consciousness of need can evolve into a conviction, especially when a need at hand becomes very acute and pressing. Such was David’s experience from the moment he was anointed with oil by Samuel to be the king of Israel. What happens to David to bring him to seek God in such an intense manner as to cry to Him, calling upon him earnestly and with a whole heart?
After David’s anointing, and in particular, from the moment when he killed Goliath, having been seen by the army of Israel, and that of the Philistines, King Saul began to be jealous of him. This jealousy and mistrust of David would eventually drive him into hiding, as Saul would seek to kill him. Being misunderstood and misjudged, David became a fugitive in the eyes of many. His home would no longer be with his family, his life having been turned upside down. He was forced to flee and seek any refuge or place of safety possible, to escape the design of Saul. It was during this time of fleeing that David learned some very important lessons on faith, especially with regard to prayer and the certainty of answered prayer. He would learn how little and insignificant he was, even though anointed as king. The power and significance of that anointing seemed to be a foreign thing to him, as instead of reigning and ruling, he was being pursued by the established king at that time, to destroy him. What was he to do? He would seek God and find Him.
Why does Scripture tell us that David “cried unto the Lord?” It is for the same reason that Jesus would stand up in Jerusalem, and cry out a message to the people to come unto Him to live eternally. David, like Christ, was intent on finding God, committed and certain to do so. There was no half-heartedness in his cry. The cry was the expression of the intensity of a whole heart, determined to find the God of the anointing, for he realized and was convinced of the fact that only God could protect him, preserve him, and present him one day to become king. In the wilderness, that time had not come. What had come was an opportunity to prove the faithfulness of God, and to learn something of HIs ways in order to survive in the present moment, and to wait for God to intervene to bring His will to pass. At every juncture of his flight from Saul, in answer to prayer, God intervened to save David. The cry of the heart was essential for that to happen, for David would need to learn God’s ways, and prove His faithfulness under pressure.
After the death of Eli during the days of Samuel, the Ark of the Covenant having been stolen from the Israelites in battle, many thought that indeed the “glory of God had departed from Israel,” 1 Sam. 4:21) and from the land. In some measure this was true. The Israelites had become subservient to the Philistines in some measure and would remain so for at least twenty years. During this time, the Ark of the Covenant having been returned to the Israelites, all the “house of Israel lamented after the Lord.” (7:2) Their longing for the Lord, and for deliverance from the Philistines had reached a point where they were willing to put away their idols and foreign gods, to worship and serve the Lord ONLY. The promise that they had from Samuel was that God would deliver them out of the hand of the Philistines. By crying to God, God would intervene to save.
Dear Father, Strengthen us to pray. In Jesus’ name, Amen.