MY TIMES ARE IN YOUR HANDS
Ps. 31:15
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: YOU KNOW YOU’RE IN TEXAS IN JULY WHEN…
1. The best parking place is determined by shade instead of distance.
2. Hot water now comes out of both taps. You can make sun tea instantly.
3. You learn that a seat belt buckle makes a pretty good branding iron.
4. The temperature drops below 95 and you feel a little chilly.
5. You discover that in July it only takes two fingers to steer your car.
6. You discover that you can get sunburned through your car window.
7. You break into a sweat the instant you step outside at 7:30 AM.
8. You realize that asphalt has a liquid state.
9. The potatoes cook underground. So all you have to do is pull out one and add butter, salt, and pepper.
10. Farmers are feeding their chickens crushed ice to keep them from laying boiled eggs.
B. TEXT Psalm 31:9-15, 21-24 David’s Prayer
9Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief. 10 My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak. 11 Because of all my enemies, I am the utter contempt of my neighbors; I am a dread to my friends—those who see me on the street flee from me. 12 I am forgotten by them as though I were dead; I have become like broken pottery. 13 For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side; they conspire against me and plot to take my life. 14 But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.” 15 My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me. 21Praise be to the Lord, for he showed his wonderful love to me when I was in a besieged city. 22 In my alarm I said, “I am cut off from your sight!” Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help. 23 Love the Lord, all his saints! The Lord preserves the faithful, but the proud he pays back in full. 24 Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.
C. THESIS
1. 2025 has been a rough year. The war in Ukraine has threatened to engulf all of Europe; European countries are gearing up for war.
2. The Palestinian-Israel situation has caused widespread turmoil in many countries and antisemitism is on the rise.
3. Christians in Africa are experiencing persecution and martyrdom in a number of countries. The US watched the shocking on-camera assassination of Charlie Kirk and the political upheaval that followed.
4. If you watch the nonstop news, you might be tempted to despair! But the Psalm 31 has a message of hope for all of us!
5. We’re going to take a look at David’s life when his faith was tested, and see what helped him to win the battle with discouragement.
6. The title of this message is, “My Times Are In Your Hands.”
I. DAVID’S FAITH TESTED
A. DAVID’S METEORIC RISE
1. This Psalm was written at one of the worst times in David's life.
2. David was "the man after God’s own heart," hand-picked by God to be the next King of Israel. The prophet Samuel anointed him as King and the Spirit came on him.
3. Following this, David killed the giant, Goliath, married King Saul's daughter, and became a leader in the military. Everybody sang songs about him!
B. DAVID’S DISAPPOINTMENT
1. Then everything went wrong. King Saul turned against him and pursued him to kill him. David lost all his military status.
2. His wife, the King's daughter, was taken and given as wife to another man. David fled and lived in the deserts, gathering 600 fugitives around him. King Saul brought an Army and almost caught David.
C. THE BETRAYAL OF KEILAH
1. But David suffered an even bigger disappointment. David and his band of 600 men saved the city of Keilah from being crushed and enslaved by the Philistines. David was greatly loved in Keilah. Saul approached the city with an army to capture him.
2. David asked God, “Will the citizens of Keilah surrender me and my men to Saul?” And the Lord said, “They will.” 1 Sam. 23:11-12. No wonder David felt so discouraged; even the people he’d saved would betray him!
3. DISCOURAGEMENT’S A TERRIBLE THING: It...
a. Robs you of faith
b. Beats you down
c. Destroys your effectiveness for God; Makes you give up.
d. Blinds your eyes to the grace of God and perceive only the unfavorable circumstances.
4. SOME OF YOU FEEL LIKE:
a. “I don’t see any hope for my situation.”
b. “God’s forsaken me; doesn’t care about me.”
c. “I can’t face these circumstances any more.” “I feel like quitting.”
5. You know David felt that way.
II. BUT DAVID KEPT FAITH IN GOD
A. WORSHIP WAS A KEY
1. A key to David’s success was that he was a worshipper. HERE’S SOME WORSHIP QUOTES:
a. "A glimpse of God will save you. To gaze at Him will sanctify you" Manley Beasley.
b. “Worship holds the key to the throne room of God”—Jacob Toback.
c. “I’ve made the choice to rejoice in the Lord”—Bob Fitts.
d. “Praise to God is the most unselfish act that a human being can perform, especially when they are experiencing various kinds of pain and upset” Kim Clement.
2. In Job 2:10, Job says something like, "Shall we worship God in the good times but not in the bad times?" Isn't He always worthy of our praise?
3. Once you get in God's presence, you begin to see things with God's vision! You see past the immediate to the big picture. (Like Asaph in Psalm 73:16-17; "... it [the wicked] was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God, then I understood their final destiny."
B. FAITH BELIEVES GOD’S PROMISE
1. Despite circumstances, David trusted God. God was bigger than his problems. David believed God would bring him through.
2. Only 8 chapters later in 1 Samuel, David became King. David didn't see himself as a victim. You're not a victim, you're a Victor!
3. Our future is as bright as the promises of God!
4. Hell may have started this mess, but God is going to finish it. God’s going to do wonderful things in your life; have faith.
III. “MY TIMES ARE IN YOUR HAND”
A. GOD IS IN CONTROL
1. In Ps. 31:15, David said, "My times are in Your hand." God is in control. What did he mean?
2. "My times", that is to say, my ups and my downs, my health and my sickness, my poverty and my wealth—all those are in the hand of the Lord, who arranges and appoints according to his holy will.
3. What peace flows into the soul when we realize that though we’re on a stormy voyage, the Lord himself is at the helm? We don’t know the course or the latitude and longitude, but the Pilot knows all about us, and about the sea also. Don’t argue with Him who steers your vessel!
4. Wonder of wonders, that God not only thinks of me, but makes my concerns his concerns, and takes my matters into his hand! He Who holds the stars in his hands, has me there also!
5. My times are not in the hands of FATE! or CHANCE! They’re NOT in the hands of the DEVIL; nor are they in the hands of MEN!...But the Hands of GOD!
B. DAVID’S ADMONITION OF HOPE
1. David concluded with an admonition to have "HOPE." The KJV of 31:24, says, “Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all you that hope in the Lord.”
2. “Don’t give up hope or lose heart--help is on the way!" God wants to raise our expectation of what He will do.
3. All we have to do is “be of good courage.” We won’t have to fight, for the battle is the Lord’s. God says, “Stand still and see the deliverance the Lord will work for you!”
C. ILLUS.: “I must be a terrible person.”
1. It was December, and Susan had just had her second baby, another daughter, Balinda. Her two-year-old, Annette, became the baby's "second mother," always checking to make sure the baby was warm and dry.
2. Susan says, "We were moving to a new house, so I left the baby with my mother-in-law while I moved the last load from our old home to our new home." On their return trip, Susan was involved in a car accident. Annette was killed instantly.
3. There is no way to describe the trauma of losing a child, of whatever age. But Susan did the best she could to go on with her life.
4. Months passed, and in June, she discovered she was expecting again. However, the baby, another daughter, was stillborn. Worse, doctors told Susan that she would never be able to have any more children. Susan looked in the mirror and said, "I must be a terrible person."
5. Shortly afterward, sorrow completely overwhelmed her. After her husband left for work, she took her toddler to her mother's house to babysit her. Susan went home, locked the door, closed all the curtains and sat down at her table with a large glass of water and a pile of pills. She wrote letters to her parents, her sisters, and her husband, telling them how sorry she was to be killing herself, but explaining that she was no good for anybody.
6. Then, reluctantly, she began her letter to Balinda. "I want you to have a good life," she began, "You'll be a lot better off without me."
7. Suddenly, the front door opened! Susan almost screamed. There stood her husband. "What’re you doing home?" Susan asked him.
8. Her husband's eyes traveled to the water and the pills in front of her. He immediately rushed to the table, grabbed the pills and threw them all into the toilet.
9. With tears streaming down his face he clutched her in his arms and cried, "Susan, you can't do this!" We all need you!" Susan burst into tears. God had Steve’s machine break down!
10. God soon turned her depression around. Five years later she gave birth to a healthy baby boy and she thanks God every day that she didn’t succeed that day. [Joan Anderson]
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. A train was traveling through a very violent rainstorm. The lightning flashes were almost blinding and the strong wind-gusts rocked the train from side to side. When the lightening flashed the passengers could see the rising water along the tracks, and they became afraid.
2. But the passengers noted one little girl who seemed to be at perfect peace. They were mystified.
3. Finally, one passenger asked her, “How are you so calm when all the rest of us are so worried about what might happen?” The girl smiled and said, “My father is the engineer.”
B. THE CALL
1. GOD CAN HANDLE IT
a. “Good afternoon, I am God. Today I will be handling all of your problems. Please remember that I do not need your help.
b. If the devil happens to deliver a situation to you that you cannot handle, DO NOT attempt to resolve it. Kindly put it in the SFJTD (something for Jesus to do) box. It will be addressed in MY time, not yours.
c. Once the matter is placed into the box, don’t hold on to it, or attempt to remove it. Holding on or removal will delay the resolution of your problem.
d. If it’s a situation that you think you’re capable of handling, please consult me in prayer to be sure that’s the proper assumption.
e. Because I do not sleep or slumber, there is no need for you to lose any sleep. Rest, my child. If you need to contact me, I am only a prayer away.
2. Tell the Lord what you feel, and what you fear. Ten minutes' praying is better than a year's complaining. Seek the face of God!
3. “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint” Isa. 40:31.
