My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare.
Psalm 25:15
Do you ever feel stuck? Like you can’t get past some sin or struggle? Whether it’s gossip or jealousy, anger or impatience, pride or judgementalism, lust or idolatry?
What are we as Christians supposed to do when we struggle? When victory over sin seems illusive, what can we do?
The first and most basic answer to that question is, “don’t lose faith!” God has not given up on you. Your concern, your continued belief, and your desire to grow are evidence that He is still working on you. Praise Him for that. You are not too far gone!
I think Psalm 25 teaches us a lot about how to pray when we know our sinfulness but we want to grow. I encourage you to pick up this psalm when you are struggling with sin in order to find encouragement about how to pray.
In this psalm David teaches us to continue to trust in the Lord’s goodness. He prays that God wouldn’t remember his sins, then he immediately proclaims the Lord’s goodness to teach sinners His ways. (Vs 7-8). He depends on the Lord to remember His great love and mercy. For the sake of the Lord’s own name, David pleads for forgiveness. When our sin is ever before our eyes, we dare not lose sight of the Lord’s character. Our deficiencies don’t change His character. Although we are sinful, He is still good. He is still the mercy shower. He is still the teacher of sinners. Don’t underestimate how important it is to view the Lord in a way that is consistent with His character. If we lose this … how can we find the ability to persevere? If we see Him as less than He is, we will soon believe that He has tired of us. Learn from David in this Psalm to remember that the Lord is good.
David continues to return to the theme of God teaching sinners (vs 4-5, 8, 12, 14). This continues to be the hope for those of us who have put our hope in Jesus and experience the presence of the Spirit God in our hearts and lives. He still teaches His people His ways, so we can cry out to the Lord, borrowing David’s language, “show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.”
David teaches us to keep our eyes on the Lord who is the only One who is able to free us from our stuck position (vs 15). Only the Lord can break the snare that Satan has set for us.
May this psalm help you find the will and the words to pray when you feel stuck in a sin.
– Deryk Pritchard, Preacher