And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest” (Psalm 55:6).

The 55th Psalm is a psalm of “complaint” (v.2) by David, and gives an insight into his thought process as he tried to deal with the great problems and burdens that were overwhelming him. His first instinct was to run away from them, flying like a dove far off into the wilderness.

The prophet Jonah (whose name means “dove”) tried that strategy years later, only to encounter even worse problems (Jonah 1:3,15). One does not solve problems by fleeing from them.

Then, David decided to berate those who were causing him trouble and to complain about them to the Lord. “Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and He shall hear my voice” (v.17). The words “pray and cry aloud” here actually mean “complain and mourn.” “Destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues” (v.9). “Let death seize upon them, and let them go down quick into hell” (v.15). His burdens were all the heavier because those whom he had trusted as friends and colleagues were now using deceit and guile against him (vv.11–14), and the injustice of it all was almost more than he could endure. But complaints and imprecations were also unsatisfying and unavailing: “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord” (Romans 12:19).

Finally, the Lord gave him an answer, and David found the rest for which he had been so fretfully searching. Here it is: “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and He shall sustain thee: He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved” (v.22). The last phrase of the psalm is: “but I will trust in thee” (v.23).

The way to deal with burdens and problems is not to flee from them or to fret about them, but to turn them over to the Lord: “Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you” (I Peter 5:7). HMM