By Rev Victor Neill
'Have mercy upon me O Lord, for I am weak: O Lord heal me; for my bones are vexed. My soul is also sore vexed (troubled )' ( Psalm 6 vs 2 & 3 )
David once again found himself in a difficult place both physically and spiritually - he felt pain and weakness within his body, ’for I am weak’ but he was also experiencing a spiritual battle 'my soul is sore vexed‘ and so the going on both fronts was tough. There will be times in life where we may be struggling on both fronts – and we may ask the question ‘Why does God allow His children to be in such difficulty?‘
We must admit at times there are not always easy answers as to why we find at one and the same time we have both spiritual and physical affliction. ’For now, we see through a glass darkly‘ ( 1st Corinthians 13 v 12 ). Physical affliction / sickness is of course common in society as a whole, sometimes it can be down to bad diet, lack of exercise or indulging in things that the Scriptures forbid and therefore it may be a chastisement from the Lord. However, the Scriptures do not always provide an answer as to why we suffer sickness and affliction, but we should follow the example of David here in his sickness and in the spiritual battle he found Himself in. He prayed for healing ‘O Lord heal me‘ (vs 2 ). This was quite obviously prolonged and earnest prayer ‘all night I make my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears‘ ( vs 7 ). But, when we pray for healing, we should not exclude medical help which may be available. However, there are times we need something beyond what medicine can do and there is evidence down through the years that God has intervened in answer to prayer and done what the medical profession could not do!
But David also prayed and sought the Lord’s help in the other battles of life, his opponents were not always overcome by the power of the sword – but by the power of prayer! ‘Depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity; for the Lord hath heard the voice of my weeping. The Lord hath heard my supplication: the Lord will receive my prayer' ( vs 8 &9 ).
Quote:
‘Every difficulty can yield blessings when bathed in prayer. In extremity new discoveries are made.’