Psalm 4 - Singing Psalms

Psalm 4

For the choir director; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.

 Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!

You have relieved me in my distress;

Be gracious to me and hear my prayer.

 O sons of men, how long will my honor become a reproach?

How long will you love what is worthless and aim at deception?

Selah.

 But know that the Lord has set apart the godly man for Himself;

The Lord hears when I call to Him.

 Tremble, and do not sin;

 Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still.

Selah.

 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,

And trust in the Lord.

 Many are saying, “ Who will show us any good?”

 Lift up the light of Your countenance upon us, O Lord!

 You have put gladness in my heart,

More than when their grain and new wine abound.

 In peace I will both lie down and sleep,

For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety. NASB

Ok, I admit it.  When I first read though this Psalm as English text, it didn't do much for me. This guy's got problems; we've all got problems; so what!  But then I listened to Melissa Breems sing this Psalm with the Psalms Project (see link at bottom), and I remembered that the Psalms were written as Hebrew poetry, and were meant to be sung.

Looking at the Psalms firstly as poetry and songs puts a whole new perspective on the them. Yes, the psalmist is in distress and is being reproached by worthless men, but he's singing about it!   Can you sing to the Lord when you are overwhelmed by your own problems, and can you praise the Lord when all around you are making fun of you and your faith? These are perilous days where the people of faith are reviled. Just this week, we received word from one of our related pastors, that a church just down the street from him in Jos, Nigeria was bombed by the Boca Haram terrorists.  Their problems in Nigeria are must worse than those in this country, but they are keeping their faith in God.

In times of trouble, we need to keep the attitude of King David, who was able to bless the Lord, to meditate and to sing even in the midst of trouble.  If you can do the same, the Lord will "put gladness in your heart" and give you  peace "to lie down and sleep". 

"For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety."

Bonus:
Psalm 4 (When I Call) (feat. Melissa Breems) - The Psalms Project
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTJcnuGMyr0