Ps. 101: Practical Praise

Psalm 101:2 "I will be careful to lead a blameless life—when will you come to me? I will walk in my house with blameless heart."

David lists a few ways to keep a blameless (not perfect, there's a difference) walk before the LORD. The overarching theme of all of them is to completely avoid any sort of sin temptation whatsoever. In this way, David is presented with fewer "opportunities" to fail. In this way, David keeps his house in order, never really knowing when God could show up on his doorstep, so to speak.

He removes vile things from his site, eliminates the company of evildoers and those who could influence him to turn to things ungodly. That specifically includes gossip and slander...liars. David was so mindful of these types of people that he devoted nearly an entire Psalm as a reminder to avoid them. He is the highly susceptible to temptation, and he realized that. This Psalm serves him well, I imagine.

Ps. 41: Mercy in Abandonment

Psalm 41:1 "Blessed is he who has regard for the weak; the LORD delivers him in times of trouble."

Caring for the weak and the poor sure is important to God, and should be important to us all. I have to ponder to whom the word "him" refers in the first verse. Does the LORD deliver the weak person, or the one who has regard for the weak person. Perhaps they are one and the same. I think its really easy to read a verse like that first one, and assume that this is a command to help other people, because we aren't weak. I am not weak. Really? When I think about it, there are things that identify me with the strong, and there are things that identify me with the weak. So important is this caring for the weak that God would protect that protector from his foes, would restore him on his deathbed. God apparently needs more people like that. Why would God preserve a person so specifically?

There's very little transition to segue the reader into the next concept beginning in verse 4. I can only figure that David considers himself weak among those who seek to harm him. Maybe David has had help in times of his weakness, and seeks to lift his helpers up because of that? 

David is so hated by people that he hears the talk. There are people who slander him, who gossip about him, who wish him dead, wish illness on him. It's really quite disturbing. In verse 9 he refers to betrayal...someone who broke bread with him, a trusted friend is now among those who want him destroyed. Possibly Saul? Betrayal has got to be so heartbreaking, especially be a close confidant.

So how does David handle this? I would probably get all scared, or mad, or sad. I can't really say I'd react positively. But David goes right to God, trusting in God's mercy to deliver him, and to keep him safe. He knows God has credited him with righteousness, and David's unwavering devotion to God is a delight.