PSALM 109:1-4 -Be not silent, O God of my praise! For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me, speaking against me with lying tongues. They encircle me with words of hate, and attack me without cause. In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer.

THEME OF THE DAY. IN GOD’S SCHOOL OF DESPERATION. Mention the word “prayer” in a group of believers and listen. Responses will be heard like “Prayer is talking to God”, “Prayer is the language of love between the Lord and His people”, “Prayer is very important in the Christian life and church”, and “Prayer is an area I need work on in my walk with the Lord.” Now in that same group, ask this question, “How do we learn to pray?” Responses will be heard like, “Hey, I read this great book on prayer that was helpful”, “Learn from the prayers in the Bible especially the Apostle Paul”, “Attend prayer meetings and listen to mature saints pray” and “Follow the pattern the Lord gave us in His Sermon on the Mount.”

Everything I just wrote are good responses to prayer and how we learn to pray, but there is something else we need to know about prayer and learning how to pray. That “something” is one of the primary ways God teaches us to pray. It is found in today’s scripture and David is our model. Often God teaches His children more about Him and how to commune with Him in prayer, not in the “calm waters” of a relatively easy life, but in the “raging seas” of a difficult life. Oh, by the way, if you are finding the Christian life fairly trouble-free and without much conflict, be alarmed. Something isn’t right, and I am not referring to outward suffering, but the intense spiritual warfare the true believer fights every day in their hearts between remaining sin, lusts of the flesh, and the ongoing conflict between our wills being done and the Lord’s will being done. But back to the topic . . . God will enroll His children in His “School of Desperation” to drive us to prayer; prayer not for deliverance, but for Him.

In today’s scripture, David is in trouble. If you are able, read the entire Psalm. David is feeling the heat from his enemies; slander, accusations, hatred, and not to mention a keen awareness of his own fears, trembling and weaknesses. And in the midst of these vicious attacks, what do we see David doing? Not responding in kind. Not lashing out in self-defense. Not resorting to taking matters into his own hands. No, he gives himself over to prayer; to seeking the face of God. In his desperation, he runs to the One who will be his close companion, his help in time of need. The question is, “Do we?” Sadly for way too many Christians when engaged in relational strife and conflict with others, family members, non-Christians, even other Christians, this is not the first step they take. They get defensive, combative, demanding their rights, and end up dealing with relational tension in the flesh with impulsiveness of speech and actions. Not David. He ran to his God. And the whole design of David’s troubles was just that. God put him in a desperate situation so His child would learn of His sufficiency, comfort, and closeness through prayer. It was the same for the Apostle Paul. He was also enrolled in God’s “school of desperation” to teach him about his God and prayer. He writes, “For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again” (2 Corinthians 1:8-10).

So, how do we learn to pray? How are you leaning to pray? Don’t forget one of God’s primary ways. He enrolls us in “His School of Desperation” and if we pass this “course”, watch our walks with the Lord and confidence in Him will grow!

PRAYER: “Father, help me to see that hard and desperate times in my life are the primary teaching times in my life.”

QUOTE: “We really learn who we are, who God is and what prayer is when we are in desperate places in life.”