Till the Storm Passes Over
Chad Johnson
November 6, 2009

Be merciful unto me, Oh God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of they wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast. Psalms 57:1 KJV

This Psalm is written by David during a very trying time in his life. It was during a time when king Saul was hot on his heals. David had taken refuge in this cave and he penned this Psalm while in hiding. Saul and David were at one time best friends.

However, as jealousy and envy entered into Saul’s heart, he developed a hatred for David. David was Saul’s armor bearer and played his harp to calm Saul. David was very content with his role in the army of the Lord. After a particular battle, the women began to compare Saul and David.

Saul got jealous of David’s victory and new-found confidence in the eyes of the people of Israel. Saul was so wicked in his heart that he turned on the one that loved him the most just because God was using him in a mighty way. It is a very wicked person indeed who tries to discredit, hold back and discourage a young person whom God has His hand on for His service. Saul could have caused David to give up and quit, but thankfully David stayed with his course until the storm passed.

In this Psalm, David had fled from Saul and hid in a cave. David was consumed with fear and began to beg for mercy from God. He begged for mercy twice in the first verse of this Psalm. David trusted his soul to God and placed it in the hand of God. Oh how we should trust the Savior with our very soul’s safety. If we can trust Jesus Christ with our eternal soul, we can surely trust Him with our dying bodies.

David not only took refuge in the cave, but a far safer place was his refuge under the wings of the Almighty. The arms of God can shield us from all storms. David, no doubt, had been in need of this protection before. David also had great confidence that these calamities would pass. All storms, no matter how severe, eventually run their course.

Notice that David was going to stay under the wings of God until the storm passed. In a storm, the greatest danger is to leave the shelter before the storm passes over. The hawk flies across the sky in search of his prey, but no harm can come to the chicks who are hid beneath the wings of the mother hen.

Amen.