“When my spirit faints within me, You know my way!”
– Psalm 142:3
Let me say Psalm 142:3 one more time. This is the Psalmist speaking to God. Specifically, David speaking to God, when he was basically trapped in a cave, tired and under threat of capture and death from King Saul. He said, “When my spirit faints within me, You know my way!”
Is that not encouraging to you today? Especially if you feel weary today, especially if you feel trapped in some way, especially if you are struggling and you’re not sure exactly what to do next, and this way or that way in this area or that area of your life. And even if you don’t feel that right now, the likelihood is you or I will find ourselves in a place where we feel trapped. We feel tired. We feel weary when our spirit faints within us. Where we lack the even encouragement to go on in some circumstances. When my spirit faints within me, you know my way.
Psalm 142:3 Leads Us to Rejoice In His Grace
God, You are our Refuge and Portion in the land of the living. We rejoice that in Your grace, You deal bountifully with us.
In other words, God, I’m trusting you. You know how to bring me through this when I don’t know how to get through this. You provide me strength when I have no strength left. You provide me with encouragement when all I see is despair. I love this Psalm. Even from the very beginning, David is crying out with my voice. I cry out to the Lord. I plead for mercy to the Lord. I pour out my complaint before him. I tell my trouble before him. Isn’t that good news? You and I can pour out our complaints before God, tell our troubles to God and know that he knows the way through them. He knows the way through them.
This Verse Reminds Us to Call to God
You feel trapped, tired, weary, discouraged in despair. Look to God, call out to God, honestly to God, pour out your complaint before him, tell your trouble to him and know that he hears you. And when your spirit is fainting within you, he knows your way and he will lead you and guide you. Later on in the Psalm, David says, “I cry to you, Lord. I say you are my refuge. My portion in the land of the living.” He basically says, “Deliver me, bring me out and I trust you will deal with me.” Oh yes.
God, we pray together right now based on this awesome picture in Psalm 142:3. And I don’t presume to know everything that people who are listening to this are walking through, having read all these prayer requests that people have sent in during this pandemic in so many different ways. So many unique challenges, unique struggles. So many people feeling weary. So many people feeling trapped, tired, and confused or discouraged, or in despair.
Psalm 142:3 Leads Us to Praise God
God, we praise you that in these moments, we can honestly come before you with our troubles, that we can pour out our complaints before you, that you see us. And when our spirits are fainting within us, you know our way, you know the way out, you know the way through. God, so I pray based on that reality that you would give strength today where strength is needed. That you would give hope today where there is despair.
God, that you would give peace, where there is anxiety. That you would give joy in the midst of even sadness. God, I pray that you would make a way through, even as one of the most well-known worship songs currently just calls out to you, worshiping you as the way maker and the promise keeper and the light in the darkness.
That’s what you were to David in that cave. I pray that you would be that today for people who are listening to this right now. People are listening to this right now when their spirits are fainting within them, you know their way, you hear their cries, you know their troubles, bring them through.
This Verse Leads Us to Pray for Strength
Oh God, I pray. Give them strength, peace, joy, hope, everything they need today and tomorrow and the next day. God, we praise you. Based on Psalm 142:3 this isn’t just something David knew. This is something we know. We together say to you right now, “Oh God, you are our refuge. Our portion in the land of the living, you are our deliverer. You are the one who brings us out that we may give thanks to your name for you deal bountifully with your people.” God, we love your word, and we pray according to it. In Jesus name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
