Psalm 4:1 – ANSWER ME when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have freed me when I was hemmed in and enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me and hear my prayer.
This verse is a classic prayer of David, he called out to the Lord from a horrible pit of despair and the Lord brought him out into a place of favor and blessing. This is one of the great lessons of our Christian faith, leaning and calling on the Lord in trouble brings us into a place of spiritual enlargement. David used the word rahab in this verse, this is how the CWSB Dictionary defines this Hebrew word.
“rāḥaḇ: A verb indicating to enlarge, to extend; to open wide. It means to gain living space, territory; especially as the work of the Lord. The psalmists praise God for enlarging them, giving them strength. It is used of giving a person space, relief in a time of danger…”
We pass through these times of despair into a better place. We ourselves are also enlarged spiritually when we call out to the Lord in difficult times. Here is how Matthew Henry describes this.
“Thou hast formerly enlarged me when I was in distress, enlarged my heart in holy joy and comfort in my distress; I am now at large, freed by you from my distress. Now LORD, have mercy on me and listen to me.” The experience we have had of God’s goodness in helping us when we have been in distress is not only a great encouragement to our faith and hope for the future, but also something good we can plead with God in prayer. “Thou hast; wilt thou not? For you are God, and you do not change; your work is perfect.”
This is really what the Lord is after. Could it be the difficult place you are in today will be God’s tool of enlargement in your life? Its as if we are kind of forced to look to Him and when we do we are not disappointed. Of course our prayers are answered and our circumstances change but something even better happens in that pit of despair. We touch God, He touches us and we are enlarged. Our love for Him increases as we make more room for Him in our lives. This is the way it is with the Lord, our worst moments end up being our very best.
Awesome Pastor