Four Words Only God Can Speak

“Draw out also the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me: say unto my soul, I am thy salvation.” (Ps 35:3 AV)

These are words we need to hear more than we would like to admit.  The sweet psalmist asks the LORD to remind him just where his salvation comes from.  And, not a simple statement of fact is sought.  No.  The Psalmist desires the voice of God to speak deep in his soul this timeless truth.  God is his salvation.  Not a passing verse.  Not a silent affirmation.  Rather, David, amid deep troubles and trials, is seeking the LORD to speak deep within him and assure him that God alone is his salvation.  He knows this in his head.  But he needs to hear it deeper than his heart.  He needs to hear the voice of God affirm his desire and power to save so deeply that his entire person can be at peace.  He is not looking for an explanation.  He is not asking for a complicated dissertation on how God is his salvation.  Four simple words are all he seeks.  And he seeks those words from the mouth of God.

When I sat in the waiting room waiting for the surgeon to appear, there were only four words I wanted to hear.  And she did not have them.  When I sat with my son in the courtyard as my wife was in surgery, we talked quite a bit.  He said a lot.  We affirmed one another.  We encouraged one another.  But the four words I needed to hear were not his to utter.  As we sat in the anteroom waiting for the surgeon to update us on the surgery, the four words I needed the most did not come over the intercom.  When We sat in her room and she was so out of it she wasn’t with us, the four words I needed to hear could not come from the staff.  After each treatment and visit our oncologists and GI doctors explained the technical facts of her diagnosis.  They explained the progression of the disease.  They told us what treatments she would eventually face.  No one said the four words I needed to hear.  We went to a support group where Zebras and caregivers alike shared common experiences, suggestions, and mutual support.  What a tremendous help they were.  But none was qualified to speak the four words I needed to hear.

Only God Himself could speak those words.  Only God Himself could reach as deep as those words needed to go.  “I am thy salvation” are the four words I needed to hear the most.  No human could speak those words truthfully.  No matter how smart or successful they were in life, none of them were qualified.  Even if they could utter those words, they could never go where God can go.  Only He can go to the soul.  That is what I needed and that is what the LORD gave me!  He is our salvation!  There are times when we need to hear those words and feel those words deeper than any human being can place them.  Only that which divides asunder soul and spirit can go there.  That is why I don’t understand why we wander from the only One who can meet our deepest hurts, worries, anxieties, and fears.  He alone can say, “I am thy salvation” and in the process, bring the soul to contentment and peace.  Next time your world is turned upside down, try praying the prayer David did above.  You’ll be amazed at the depth to which God can meet your needs.