Turn Yourself Around

Remember the Hokey Pokey —

You turn yourself around cuz that’s what it’s all about.

Watch how David does this in Psalm 13…

How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
    How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I take counsel in my soul
    and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
    light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
    lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.

But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
    my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord,
    because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Don’t you just love this — David starts out complaining, feeling sorry for himself, feeling sorrowful and defeated.  He looks inward.

In the middle he recognizes the people around him — his foes and how shaken they make him.  He looks outward.

But he ends with this — praising God, and rejoicing and singing and realizing that God has dealt bountifully with him.   He looks upward.

That’s all you gotta do to turn yourself around.  Stop looking inside you.  Stop looking around you at other people.  Look upward and recognize that all through your life God has dealt bountifully with you.

That’s what it’s all about.