MIGHTY MEN IN PSALM 40
Years ago there was a movement called Promise Keepers. Stadiums filled with guys singing great hymns and choruses.
Rousing speakers with awesome delivery and topics. Very inspirational. I remember barely being able to add my
cracking voice to the other 50,000 men singing “Holy, Holy, Holy” in the Oakland Coliseum. One of the anthems
included the chorus, "I waited patiently for the Lord; and He heard my cry.”
That's the opening line of Psalm 40. It was a song which really connected in that stadium…and here it is, the lyrics
written by King David some 3,000 years ago. And today the Lord moved me past the chorus.
Waited. That implies there is time involved. In my hurried demands for God to act on my time schedule on all the vital
issues facing me (“vital” should be in quotes), the act of waiting for God to act is really a key to the whole deal. It puts
me in my proper place - and elevates God to His. He knows all. He hears. He acts for our good in His perfect time.
A man needs to learn how to wait - and not just for his woman to get ready to leave for church or dinner! Waiting is an expectant attitude, watching for God to act as He chooses. Patiently. How hard is that?
Waiting patiently has a transformational result in a man's soul and circumstances: God hears. God is inclined to favor. God delivers from the difficulty. God sets us solidly in His protection. God changes me.
A man goes from crying for help, to singing a new song. (And all that in the first three verses of Psalm 40!)
“How blessed is the man…” who trusts in God. A little digging turns up something deeper in that phrase. Sure, being blessed and happy and fortunate and touched by God is a really awesome thing. And the “man” noted is a special one. It’s the same word David uses for his “mighty men of valor.” It’s not just a male dude. It’s a guy who is elevated. It’s a man with a special purpose, empowered as a leader and protector. THAT guy is blessed when he trusts in the Lord. That’s what MAKES him a man of valor.
David’s attention turns from his cry about his muddy circumstances to a new song and a new focus. He turns his attention and response to the Lord…and decidedly away from himself. “Many are Your wonders. Your thoughts are toward us. None compares to You. I cannot even declare how wonderful You are.”
That’s a change of perspective, and a mark of a mighty man.
God opens our ears to hear the “real” parts of life…if only we’ll wait. Patiently. For Him. Doing so let’s us see how the Lord is working, even in the dark, dirty, painful parts of our lives.
Waiting. Patiently. Doing that starts the process of a mighty man being able to honestly admit, “I come to You, O Lord. I delight to do what You have called me to do. Your Word is now written on my heart and soul.”
