All Things

“I will cry to God Most High,
To God who accomplishes all things for me.” —Psalm 57:2

God who accomplishes all things for me. [the phrase appears in italics in some English translations] I generally approach those italics with caution. The words in italic are not in the Hebrew manuscript. They were inserted by the translators for clarification – to allow the text to make sense to an English speaking reader.

So I dove into the Hebrew to see what was actually there. What I found surprised me. “All things” is exactly what the original text is conveying. The Hebrew is absolute. Its distilled meaning is "to complete, to finish, to bring to an end—to carry through to fulfillment." David is putting all of his marbles in God’s jar. He is saying;

This is not the story of my perseverance, but of the God who completes what concerns me. He is also the One who begins it—who turns my feet toward the path, directs my steps, protects me along the way, heals the brokenness caused by my inconsistent following, and brings me safely to the destination. It is all Him, from beginning to end.

David is declaring that he is ultimately powerless to effect lasting change in his life (which, by the way, is the first of the twelve steps in Alcoholics Anonymous). He has learned that effort can be sincere and still insufficient; obedience can be real and still powerless; and insight does not equal transformation. He still prays, fights, and obeys, but he knows that the ultimate outcome is out of his control.

There is much to learn from David’s example here. My waiting for God to work is not passive. It is active. I pray about the things that concern me. I strive to live a life that will be pleasing to God. I saturate my mind with the Word of God. I evaluate my progress by the fruit of the Spirit. But I don’t trust any of those things to accomplish the victory that God has promised. Only He can do that. And He does. So whatever ultimately comes to completion in my life, God—not my effort—is the one who accomplishes it.

This is not the story of my perseverance, but of the God who begins, carries, heals, and completes what concerns me—from beginning to end.

"For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus” —Philippians 1:6

Prayer

Father, You are the One who begins what I cannot begin and completes what I cannot finish. When my efforts feel sincere but insufficient, remind me that the outcome does not rest on me. I confess that I often want to control the process. I want to see progress I can measure. I want to feel transformation I can claim. But You are the One who accomplishes all things that concern me. Teach me to wait actively — to pray, to obey, to trust — without placing my confidence in my own perseverance. Guard me from pride when I see fruit, and from despair when I experience delay. Where there is brokenness caused by my inconsistency, heal it. Where there is wandering, redirect my steps. Where there is fear about the future, steady my heart with the promise that You finish what You begin. Complete in me what pleases You. Carry through what concerns me. And help me rest in the quiet confidence that nothing in my life is wasted in Your hands. From beginning to end, let it be You. Amen.