Inside Out

by Margaret Michel

David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the souls of all the people were grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters; but David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.

1 Samuel 30:6

When my world turns upside down and I feel flipped over with it, there is the tendency for what’s inside to come tumbling out.

Rather than coins, keys, or paper falling from an inside out pocket, what is stored in the heart becomes exposed instead. When confronted with disappointment and squeezed by distress, what has been stored away over time comes out in full view.

It can make for quite a mess.

But God can work wonders with our messes. I know He has with mine.

Once, after a year of facing mounting anxiety and frustration at a debtor’s continual, sometimes blatant delay, it seemed as if pursuing legal action was my only option.

However, when I asked God for guidance, and allowed for His remedy, the saga was resolved in a matter of days far better than I could have imagined.

In today’s verse, David world had turned inside out. Despite his men’s loyalty in normal times, pressure caused them to consider his murder.

Although David, too, was “greatly distressed,” he vented differently. Unwilling to right wrongs his way, he “strengthened himself in the Lord his God.”

Ultimately, God delivered David. He is ready and willing to do the same for us today.

Pray

Father in Heaven,
I want to strengthen myself in You during my times of distress because I’ve already beaten a path to Your throne, asking for Your will and Your ways instead of my own.
I surrender to You.
In Christ’s name I ask it, Amen.