You think you’ve got troubles? This actually happened a few years ago in Los Angeles.

Larry's boyhood dream was to fly. One day, Larry, had a bright idea. He went to the local Army-Navy surplus store and purchased 45 weather balloons and several tanks of helium. The weather balloons, when fully inflated, would measure more than four feet across.

Back home, Larry securely strapped the balloons to his sturdy lawn chair. He anchored the chair to the bumper of his jeep and inflated the balloons with the helium. He climbed on for a test while it was still only a few feet above the ground. Satisfied it would work, Larry packed several sandwiches and a six-pack of Miller Lite, loaded his pellet gun-figuring he could pop a few balloons when it was time to descend-and went back to the floating lawn chair.

He tied himself in along with his pellet gun and provisions. Larry's plan was to lazily float up to a height of about 30 feet above his back yard after severing the anchor and in a few hours come back down. Things didn't quite work out that way. When he cut the cord anchoring the lawn chair to his jeep, he didn't float lazily up to 30 or so feet. Instead he streaked into the LA sky as if shot from a cannon.

He didn't level off at 30 feet, nor did he level off at 100 feet. After climbing and climbing, he leveled off at 11,000 feet. At that height he couldn't risk shooting any of the balloons, lest he unbalance the load and really find himself in trouble. So he stayed there, drifting, cold and frightened, for more than 14 hours. Then he really got in trouble. He found himself drifting into the primary approach corridor of Los Angeles International Airport.

A United pilot first spotted Larry. He radioed the tower and described passing a guy in a lawn chair with a gun. LAX emergency procedures swung into full alert and a helicopter was dispatched to investigate. LAX is right on the ocean. Night was falling and the offshore breeze began to flow. It carried Larry out to sea with the helicopter in hot pursuit. Several miles out, the helicopter caught up with Larry.

Once the crew determined that Larry was not dangerous, they attempted to close in for a rescue but the draft from the blades would push Larry away whenever they neared. Finally, the helicopter ascended to a position several hundred feet above Larry and lowered a rescue line. Larry snagged the line and was hauled back to shore.

As soon as Larry was hauled to earth, television cameras and waiting reporters recorded the next event for all his friends and family to see on the Ten O’Clock News – he was arrested and handcuffed by waiting members of the LAPD for violating LAX airspace.

If Larry had taken his Bible up with him on his flight, he could have looked up Psalm 142 which addresses the problem of what to do when we feel overwhelmed with troubles. This short psalm was written when David was hiding in a cave from Saul’s army. David didn’t know where else to turn, so he turned to God. From this brief psalm, we can learn how to handle difficulties in our own life, even though our difficulties may never be as great as poor Larry’s were.

Elliottremarks, "The psalm is expressive of the deepest sense of danger and of desertion, amounting almost to despair. But a conviction of the utter hopelessness of his condition, so far as human succour was concerned, serves to excite within the breast of the Psalmist a determination to trust more implicitly and more exclusively in God. This resolution, as in other psalms of a similar character, converts his valley of despair into a door of hope; and the psalm ends with a bright description of a morning of gladness succeeding to a night of sorrow."

Verse 1

When David felt overwhelmed, he cried out to God. The Hebrew here emphasizes the repetition. Literally, it would be rendered, "My voice unto Yahweh I cried, my voice unto Yahweh I asked favor." When we feel overwhelmed, we need to lift our voice unto the Lord. We don’t have to suffer in silence. It is all right to cry out to God. He is there to hear our cry and meet our need.

Notice that David doesn’t stop with just crying out to God. He takes the next step and asks God for help. He makes supplication to the Lord. When you feel overwhelmed, cry out to God. But don’t forget to also ask for his help. God is ready to rescue us from our difficulties. Here’s a good sayingto remember, "Trouble may drive you to prayer, but prayer will drive away trouble."

Verse 2

Verse 3

David writes that as he tries to walk in the path, there are hidden traps waiting for him. These traps were placed by his enemies, but we all face snares or entanglements in our life. There are many hidden traps which prevent us from walking in God’s path. Some of them are of our own making.

When the Coast Guard was searching for the wreckage of the Kennedy plane off the coast of Massachusetts, they used a submerged sonar locator which could scan the bottom of the sea and locate the wreckage. It was only after the wreckage was located that it could be hauled up from the ocean floor. That is what prayer does for us. As we spend time in the presence of God, the Holy Spirit scans the depths of our heart and locates any hidden wreckage which must be pulled out in order for us to grow spiritually.

In the first part of this verse David says that when his spirit is faint, God knows the way. If you feel tired or faint, realize that God knows the way. You can come to him in confidence. He will show you the hidden dangers and help you through the hazards. God will guide and direct you through all problems.

William Shakespearemust have had his own share of trouble. He wrote these famous lines, "To be, or not to be: that is the question: whether ‘tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, or to take arms against a sea of troubles...." If you feel like you are facing a sea of troubles, look to God. He will show you the way.

Verse 4

David feels abandoned and alone. He laments that "no man cares for me." Do you feel this way? Does it seem that no one cares for you? David felt abandoned by people, but he didn’t feel abandoned by God. He knew that God was with him and would help him.

There are flowers planted in front of the church around the sign. One of the ladies in our church planted them. Now many of us may admire these flowers and some may even, from time to time tend to them by trimming them or watering them. But no one cares about those plants as much as the person who planted them. She is faithful to take care of them because she is the one who feels most responsible for them. God is the gardener who has planted you in his kingdom. No one cares about you as much as he does. He will make sure you are nourished and healthy. Whenever you feel like no one cares for you, don’t forget who planted you!

Verse 5

Hodgsoncomments, "All trouble should lead us to God – not from Him. There is in the blessed God health and cure for all diseases of the mind; balm in Gilead, and a never-failing Physician there. Let us all cherish the thought that God knows our path; in the fullest sense of the words knows our every step. To the sincere Christian, to the upright soul this truth is full of comfort."

Verse 6

David acknowledges that he is overwhelmed. He says, "I am brought very low." Do you feel that way? Do you feel that you are at your lowest point, deep in a dark valley of discouragement? If you do, join David in praying for deliverance. He acknowledges that his persecutors are too strong for him. Perhaps you feel your problems are too great, your burden is too heavy, and your affliction is too painful. Pray for deliverance and believe that God will rescue you. God really does love you. He cares about you and wants to deliver you. We sometimes need to learn that even in the midst of turmoil, we still must trust God.

Trouble

When we think about problems
Trouble grows,
When we think about God
Trouble goes.

Verse 7

Even though David felt imprisoned in his cave out of fear for his life, he trusted that God would rescue him. By faith he considers the time when he will be out of this prison. Those that trust God will surround him and join him in thanking God for his rescue. David may have felt overwhelmed with his present troubles, but he looked forward in faith to the time when God would deliver him. He can confidently say at the end of this verse, "you will deal bountifully with me." Can you say the same? Do you have as much confidence as David did?

No matter what desperate or hopeless situation is overwhelming you, follow David’s pattern here in this psalm.

Cry out to God and ask for help (verse 1)
Tell God your troubles (verse 2)
Realize that God will show you the way (verse 3)
Even though abandoned by people, know that God cares for you (verse 4)
Understand that God is your refuge (verse 5)
Pray for deliverance (verse 6)
Believe that God will deal bountifully with you (verse 7)

If you do these things, you may find that your feelings of hopelessness will recede into the background as despair is replaced by faith.

This study on Psalm 142 © 1999 by David Humpal, all rights reserved.
All scriptures unless otherwise noted are from the Revised Standard Version © 1971, A. J. Holman Company

Elliott: The Speaker’s Commentary, vol. IV, pg. 487, Baker Book House Elliott actually wrote, "valley of Achor into a door of hope"

Saying about prayer from the Complete Speaker’s Sourcebook pg. 272 © 1996, Zondervan Publishing House

Shakespeare: Hamlet, Act III, Scene I