Psalm 3-4

What do you do when you get agitated?

I’ll tell you what a sweet little five-year-old in our house does when she gets stirred up: she grits her teeth and gives her sibling a big wallop on their nearest appendage. (I can’t judge – though I don’t use clinched fists, I let my words do the walloping for me…)

I’d like to say to our little one, “Take a moment when you’re stirred up. Even come to me and talk about it. You’ll only make things worse by hitting back.”

Today’s Psalms come from someone who is learning to do just that. They are quite bothered by people coming against them. And yet, they are learning the difficult art of ‘quietness and trust’.

Actually – I’ll take that back. I’m not so sure they were all that quiet while agitation flowed through them. But they do end up in a quiet place by bringing their agitation into the presence of the One who will listen.

Psalm 4:4 likely feels relatable to you. It literally reads: “Tremble with agitation but do not miss the mark. Lay quietly on your bed and ponder.”

Now, this is certainly not an invitation to lay up all night scheming about how to get back at your enemies in the morning. (Some of us have done that and it just ends up in a very bad night’s sleep.)

It also doesn’t mean “Don’t get agitated!” (Some of us have tried that, too, and it really messes with our inner world.)

What does it mean, then? You could talk with God about that today.

Though, I think it likely involves a slow and steady process of letting go of our need to wallop our enemies in the heat of anger. Slowly but surely, we discover that “the Lord alone makes us lie down in safety” and only then can we begin to lie down in peace.

Our agitation is well spent in God’s presence. Tremble but don’t sin – ponder with God alone for a while. Bless you.