Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my groaning. Heed the sound of my cry for help, my King and my God, for to You I pray. (Psalm 5:1–2)

Conflict is a universal problem we all experience. Leaders, even good ones, stand in the firing line of people’s complaints, regardless of how good their leadership is. Psalm 4 shows us how to respond in a godly way in the face of conflict. David had more than his share and he was the greatest and most spiritually minded king of Israel. We see that he is not above feeling the stress; his honesty and humility do not allow him the superficial façade of pretending everything is perfect in his life. As a consummate leader, David’s transparency permits us access to the inner workings of godliness so that his example can guide us. That is authentic leadership.

We classify this psalm as an individual lament, like Psalms 3 and 4. Laments involve a vexing problem that the writer brings to the Lord for help. In life, we face many kinds of difficulties. We deal with some of these using the knowledge we gain from life and from wisdom (see the book of Proverbs), where we simply use the skills we have learned to deal with situations wisely. However, some life issues are beyond our abilities to solve or control and they overwhelm our souls. Fatalism can quickly take.

In the often-quoted poem, “Invictus,” William Ernest Henley begins with the line, “Out of the night that covers me, black as the pit from pole to pole …” He goes on to poignantly describe crushing circumstances that can overwhelm a person. For many, these circumstances present the temptation to surrender to fate or destiny, or in Christian terminology, predestination. Henley concludes with a verse that has reverberated in many inspirational speeches to motivate people to rise above their circumstances: “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.”

I used to deride that poem as humanism to the core. However, I see some resonance with David in his psalms of lament. He refuses to allow his uncontrollable circumstances to control him; he takes command of his soul; he doesn’t give up in despair to fatalism. Look at how many times in psalms that he speaks to himself. For example, “Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him For the help of His presence” (Ps. 42:5). He is taking charge of his soul.

Of course, the poem, from a Christian perspective, doesn’t go far enough. David’s charge to himself goes further by taking his insurmountable circumstances to the One who is the ultimate Master of life’s events and the Captain of his souls. He does not succumb to fatalism; he brings his lament to God with the hope and assurance that all rests in His hands and in His character. He doesn’t resign himself to passive defeatism.

Sometimes Christians camouflage their passivity by flippant thoughts: “Well, God is sovereign so there is nothing I can do about it” or “God must want me to suffer.” Not David. He knows God is in control, so he takes his lament to the Lord and calls for help.

The lament psalms follow a somewhat typical pattern which includes combinations of the following elements:

• Introduction: Address and/or turning to God, cry for help
• Lament: Foes, I, Thou
• Confession of trust
• Petition: Hear, save, punish, etc.
• Confidence in being heard
• Vow of praise or renewed trust, or blessing, or instruction
• Report of deliverance – declarative praise

In Psalm 5, verses 1-3 are introductory with a general call for God to be aware of his predicament and hear his request for help. In verses 4-6, David points out to God (ironically) things that God already knows about Himself: “You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness …” The Lord doesn’t need David to remind Him of His own character. What is going on here? David aligns himself with God’s character; he confesses to God that his request leans on that particular attribute. And he is reminding himself of the basis on which he can be assured that his request lines up with God’s will.

We learn from David’s example that effective prayer relies on the knowledge of God.

We can be more sure that we are praying according to His will (1 John 5:14) if we pray according to His character, particularly that aspect of His character related to his request.

We don’t see specifics of what David’s foes are doing to him, but we read that they are boastful, engage in iniquity, are deceptive and forceful. How often do we perceive our detractors just like that! David keeps this description sufficiently general so that all can relate.

In verse 7, David expresses his trust in God’s lovingkindness and his promise to continue worshiping, regardless of how the situation turns out. Verse 8 is his request, “Lead me in Your righteousness … make Your way straight before me.” He wants God to help him respond to his oppressors in the right way and not return evil for evil. How can we not think of our Lord’s reaction to His persecutors, as the apostle Peter reminds us that Jesus “entrusted Himself to Him [the Father] who judges righteously” (1 Peter 2:21, 3:7).

His further request is that God would hold his opponents guilty of the evil they are speaking against him; you can sense David’s emotion as he describes them to God (verses 9-10). He does not take the superficial-spiritual approach and say, “It’s not for me to judge the intentions or their hearts.” No, he lets his feelings flood out before the Lord. Reminder: David is a godly man who believes in laying his genuine feelings before the Lord who requires authenticity, no matter what resides in our innermost and deepest thoughts. David did not hold back from the Lord what he thought about those who were slandering him!

Should we, as NT believers, pray this way? If the question is, “Should we be as honest as David?” then the answer is a no-brainer: Absolutely yes! We need to develop the honesty of soul to lay out our truest feelings before Him. God can handle it; He can see through the phony façade of false or ritual piety! A godly approach to God requires truth in the innermost being (Ps. 51:6). We must take charge of our souls in the presence of God and insist, to ourselves, on this kind of honesty.

Finally, in verses 11-12, we see David’s instruction to all, invite us to join him in praising God for His sheltering protection. This is the true and righteous response, the kind of life that God blesses.

Lord, you are my King and the God of my righteousness; I resolve to rejoice in You confidently, no matter who is against me or slanders me.