When I thought, “My foot slips,” your steadfast love, O LORD, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. (Psalm 94:18-19)
We serve the God who created us. Because He created us, He knows us better than any relative, friend, or spouse ever could. The intimate relationship that we have with Him makes it so that He knows our joys, hardships, needs, desires, thoughts and actions before we even experience them.
In Psalm 94:18, I am struck by the fact that when David, the author of this psalm, has slipped, the Lord is already in a position to hold him up. The depth of God’s intimacy with us as His created beings makes it so that He anticipates our need for Him before we can even perceive it. He accounts for our desperation in His supreme plan and he responds to it. Psalm 46:1 reminds us that, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” He will not leave us in times of trouble, but rather, he will draw near and bring consolation.
Psalm 94:19 mentions “cheer,” but a very specific type of cheer: cheer of the soul. Often, there is a distinct difference between the things that bring cheer to your soul and those that bring cheer to your stomach, mind, or even your heart. Cheer of the soul is similar to the “peace that surpasses all understanding” mentioned in Philippians 4:7; it is delight and contentment in the things of the Lord rather than the things of this world. In Psalm 94, David is proclaiming that the consolations of the Lord bring Him that delight and contentment in the midst of trials.
The Lord knows us deeply; it is only through knowing Him that we can love Him, love others, and find the cheer of the soul that He so graciously extends to those who seek Him.
Reflection Questions
- How would your life and attitude be different if you approached hardship in this way?
- In what specific areas of your life do you feel the Lord challenging you to trust Him?
