Lenten Reflection

psalm 4 Br. Anthony Paul of the Holy Wounds of Jesus | Psalm Reflection | 03/04/23

Confident Plea for Deliverance from Enemies

Answer me when I call, O God of my right!
Thou hast given me room when I was in distress.
Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer.

Like a young child who calls for his parent to help them, we must call on our God to help us with our problem.[1] We must pray for the grace of humility, thus being fully able to embrace the loving arms of God more. The room that we go to, is the inner room of our souls. God wishes to be with us in our daily lives.[2] He is the foundation that our soul needs in order to survive in this world. When we pray, we must be patient and trust that God knows what is best for our lives.

O men, how long shall my honor suffer shame?
How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies?Selah
But know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself;
the Lord hears when I call to him.

Humanity tends to seek what is easy and tries hard to avoid sacrifice and a life of prayer. We would rather chase these “false dreams” and would rather believe a lie than accept the truth that our human nature is faulty.[3] It’s much easier to destroy someone’s reputation than it is to admit that we are the one who needs God’s graces to change. God desires that we put him above everything else that we hold dear in this life. God is the giver of life, can we not owe God our love and gifts for all the great things he has done for humanity?[4]

Be angry, but sin not;
commune with your own hearts on your beds, and be silent.Selah
Offer the right sacrifices,
and put your trust in the Lord.

When you see your brother doing wrong, we must sternly correct them, but not in a way that causes scandal to our brethren. When we go to our rooms, we must pray with an open heart and a clear mind to listen to the tender voice of God, lest we bring ruin upon our lives. [5] Right sacrifices are prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. It is to learn to give up those things that draw our most attention, to mortify our bodies to subject them against the temptations of the devil. Only by the grace of Almighty God that we can learn to rely on him for our daily bread.

There are many who say, “O that we might see some good!
Lift up the light of thy countenance upon us, O Lord!”
Thou hast put more joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound.

When we truly give all of ourselves to God, then the Lord will repay his servants, based on how much they have given back to him.[6] We must ask God to remove the “darkness” of our hearts and then and only then, we can see the beautiful life that God has created us to be and become the person he desires us to be. We are created to be in union with God and can only find rest in him. God is the treasure that we must work to achieve.[7]

In peace I will both lie down and sleep;
for thou alone, O Lord, makest me dwell in safety.

God is the only source in the universe that can give us perfect peace. Only God can give us the gift of himself and his love. This is such a difficult task. But For those to truly desire God to be Lord of all, then we must accept that even in hard and uncertain times, God will be there for us.[8] Just as Job learned to accept the uncertainty and hardship of life[9], we too much anchor our faith and love towards God. He is in control and he knows what is best for me and/or your loved ones.

Your brother in Christ Jesus,