Psalm 39:1-13
39:1-5 This Psalm teaches us about perspective; it teaches us about ourselves and our problems in the grand scheme. David felt mute; he was so distressed that he was unable to voice his thoughts and emotions.
39:4-6 But when he did open his mouth to speak, it was in prayer. He asked for perspective. He needed a reminder that this life, and its accompanying strife, is temporary. He wanted to remember that his problems were not the center of the universe. He sought peace, freedom from what felt like an inescapable distress.
39:7-11 David readjusted his aim, his pursuit. God became his pursuit. Not wealth or power but the peace that is God. The hope that is within Him. David had opened his life to God's discipline and in was in a season of it. He was on the journey to peace but it was hard work, learning from his mistakes to obtain it.
39:12-13 David prayed to God, prayed that God would hear him, speak to him, and look at him. He needed God's strength and mercy as he had had it before he went (temporarily) astray. He was desperate for the heat of discipline to turn into the warmth of love. Although those things are aligned when God disciplines us, it can be difficult to perceive that in the midst of discipline.
So David prayed for perspective.
