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Praise the Lord we have a God who sees and hears.
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In my distress I called to the LORD,
and he answered me.
Deliver me, O LORD,
from lying lips,
from a deceitful tongue.
We have a God who sees and hears (Genesis 16:13, Deuteronomy 4:29-31, Jeremiah 29:12-13). The great blessing in this is that our God is faithful to answer when we call on him and when we seek him with our whole heart – as the Psalmist does here. Now, this doesn’t mean we’ll receive the answer we’re looking for, but it does mean our God is personal and relational, and he will give us an answer.
This is especially comforting when we lament the reality of the world around us and tell God all about our current struggles and stresses. As the Psalmist laments over the lying lips and deceitful tongues around him, he relies on God alone to deliver Him (vv. 3-4). He boldly declares, “and he answered me,” confident in God’s answer whether in the past or in the unfolding.
Knowing God alone sees and hears, and knowing God alone answers our prayers, we have the freedom to lament. Surely we’re guilty of speaking against others or have had others speak against us. Still, we yearn for justice and long for peace (vv. 6-7). Therefore, we can stand in confidence to lament, like this Psalmist, and we can trust in God’s righteousness to make all things right. Take some time today, in lamenting prayer, to ask God to deliver you from lying lips and a deceitful tongue. Use this sample prayer from Eugene Peterson:
Rescue me from the lies of advertisers
who claim to know what I need and what I desire,
from the lies of entertainers who promise a cheap way to joy,
from the lies of politicians who pretend to instruct me in power and morality,
from the lies of psychologists who offer to shape my behavior and my morals so that I will live long,
happily and successfully, from the lies of religionists who ‘heal the wounds of this people lightly,’
from the lips of moralists who pretend to promote me to the office of captain of my fate,
from the lies of pastors who ‘leave the commandment of God,
and hold fast the traditions of men’ (Mark 7:8).
Rescue me from the person who tells me of life and omits Christ,
who is wise in the ways of the world and ignores the movement of the Spirit.
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By Cole Comstock
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