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HOME GROUP QUESTIONS

FROM SUNDAY 29 JULY 2007

SEASONS OF THE SOUL: PSALM 55 - ANXIETY

Brainstorm things you've noticed from this week that cause people to be anxious. Can you spot any common themes?

A tendency to worry seems to be common to all of us - as Jesus noted. See Matthew 6:25. Where do people in our culture go with their worries? How do they work through the anxieties of life?  

Read Psalm 55.

The writer of this psalm is King David. So even someone in a high position is not immune from anxiety - see v1-2 and 4-5. It is likely that this psalm was written in the latter stages of his reign when his rule of Jerusalem was threatened by a number of attempted coups. (See the 'city' v9, v11, and the sense of betrayal in v13-14.)

In v1-8, his distress dominates the Psalm. How does he express his anguish? Pick out some of the most descriptive words he uses. Do any of these ring true in your life?

How good are we today at expressing our feelings - to others, to ourselves, or to God? Does it matter?

David seems able to give free reign to his feelings in prayer. Do you ever make time for this sort of prayer? If not, why not? And what difference do you think it might make to your life if you did?

Look at v6-8. Here David expresses a desire to escape. Is this a helpful or an unhelpful way to deal with anxiety? Why?

In v9-15, distress turns into indignation. What are the issues about which he is so passionate? In what areas of life do people feel let down by others or betrayed? See v13-14, 20-21. How does David cope with this in his life?

It has been said that the opposite of love is not hate, but indifference. Today, many of us struggle with v15, 23. Is it that we have lost a sense of righteous anger, and that the tolerance of today is really apathy?

Finally, in v16-23, David expresses his confidence in God. How does he do this?

Look up Philippians 4:6-8. How easy is it to put this into practice?

Psalm 55 speaks of a real, intimate relationship with God. It isn't just telling us that prayer can make a difference in times of anxiety; it shows how prayer did make a difference to one man in trouble. Read Mark 14:32-42 to see how Jesus put this into practice. What similarities are there between the circumstances and the prayers of Jesus and David? What differences can you spot?

Take some time to pray about areas of anxiety in your lives - your personal life, your community, your church and any areas of hurt that are known to you as a group.

Helen Wilkinson
30 July 2007