UNTO THEE DO I LIFT UP MY SOUL
“Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” Psalm 86:4, 5
David expressed what we have so often felt. He was in trouble, facing discouragement, and needed a spiritual lift. Sometimes our souls need refreshing. David knew where to go with his need. “Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.” By faith, we can lift our needs up to God. We can bring our despondent souls to Him for a spiritual tune-up. Our emotions are part of our souls. We don’t always feel as upbeat about life as we should. What would be the proper thing to do when we feel a little less than enthusiastic about our station in life? We could dwell on our problems, but what would that do for us?
Actually, there are times when our souls need reviving, and we cannot point to a particular thing that has us in the doldrums. Is there any hope for such a state? David learned to lift up his soul to God, and we can do the same. God can “rejoice the soul” of His servants. He can restore the joy and peace to our hearts. Our flesh sometimes wants to wallow in self-pity and concentrate on things that depress. Satan certainly wants to steal our joy and the sound of victory from our hearts and homes. But God is in the business of giving peace and purpose to His children. We can lift up our souls to Him because we know that “thou, Lord, art good.” God is good, and He cares about our needs. He knows what we are going through. Satan is an expert in trying to paint a hopeless picture for us when our souls are in deep despair. Sometimes the devil wants to make us think that God is not interested in our personal situation, but nothing could be further from the truth.
We also know that our Lord is “ready to forgive.” We need to make sure we get that truth fixed in our hearts and minds. He is ready to forgive. God wants to remove everything that stands in the way of uninterrupted communion with Him. We may, because of our guilt, be hesitant to confess our sins to God, but He is waiting to forgive. The psalmist also reminds us that God is “plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” He is ready to show mercy to us as we call upon Him. Whatever we are going through, whether it is large or small, the best thing we can do is lift it up to God.