“I will be glad and rejoice in your unfailing love, for you have seen my troubles, and you care about the anguish of my soul.” (Psalm 31:7 NLT).
This Psalm of David teaches us to choose gladness and worship, while giving our troubles to God. David wrote that God had seen his trouble. In other words David had stopped thinking about his affliction and had given it to God for His consideration. He entrusted himself to the unfailing love and care of the Lord.
The disciples prayed this way too, asking the Lord to see their trouble when the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem threatened them. They prayed, “Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness” (Acts 4:29).
We can ask the Lord to “look” at whatever threatens us, so we might focus on doing His will. When we continue to consider our own trouble it leads to discouragement and worry. But when we give our afflictions to God for His consideration, it opens the way to gladness and rejoicing.
PRAYER: Dear Father, we have lifted up our troubles to You in prayer today. We are Your children, so we know that You see our trouble as Your own. Knowing this, we will be glad and rejoice. Not because our troubles are gone, but because we choose to stop focusing on them ourselves. For we have given them to You. In Jesus’ name, amen.