This Poor Man Cried

This poor man cried! 

Men crying seems out of style these days. Men are to be brave tough and stoic. "Real men don't cry" is the battle cry, so to speak. 

Yet we all know that crying is a natural reflex for either of the sexes. If you don't believe me, then just let a man watch a good "dog-rescue" video and you will see what I mean. There is a trigger point in every one of us, whether male or female, that when sprung, makes the tears flow. 

However, in Psalm 34:6, David is talking about another type of crying. There he's speaking about a desperate call for help. It is the type of shout that we hear Peter squeal as he began to slip beneath the boding waters of the Sea of Galilee in Matthew 14. David was in deep doo. According to the suspect, title of this psalm, he was brought before a pagan king and accused of treason. An act that would bring instant death in most cases. 

The title is suspect because this lovely psalm it doesn't fit that weird circumstance. But, the cry was real none the less. David needed help and God was the only one who could come to his aid. 

God extricates us from all of our troubles. His salvation leads us to the highest ground. It may be a spiritual salvation in the end, because we will mostly have trouble here in this life. 

God saved us from the crucial trouble which is eternal condemnation. He extended his holy hand when he sent Jesus to take our place on the cross. That rescue was planned before our existence and while we were in rebellion against him. It was an unmerited deliverance. 

He doesn't always seem to remove all of our other "normal" troubles though. In the end they are eliminated when we pass onto the Golden shore. Here, however, our troubles are often used as God's lapadary. 

A jewelers wheel is a cruel tool for the stone being ground. If stones could speak they too would cry for help as the spinning wheel grinds off their rough edges. The jeweler doesn't listen for screaming stones. He simply polishes until the gem appears. 

God listens to his lively stones and responds to each need according to his perfect will. When finished, the stone (we) reflects his glory in unimaginable brilliance. 

This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. Psalm 34:6