When the Trouble is Within Me (Day 235)

Sunday August 23, 2026

A Psalm A Day Devotional

When the Trouble is Within Me

by Torrie Slaughter

Psalm 38:1–22

All week we have been surrendering what happens around us.

Other people's accusations.

God's timing.

What occupies our attention.

What others are doing.

What we cannot control.

But Psalm 38 turns us inward.

David is suffering.

His language is heavy. He speaks of guilt, anguish, physical weakness, loneliness, enemies, and groaning.

And then he says:

“All my longings lie open before you, Lord; my sighing is not hidden from you.”
— Psalm 38:9

Nothing is hidden.

Not the longing.

Not the sighing.

Not the failure.

Not the pain.

And surprisingly, that may be exactly where surrender needs to begin.

What If I Am Part of What Needs God's Attention?

It is easier to ask God for peace when someone else is the problem.

Psalm 38 doesn't give us that luxury.

David acknowledges his own sin:

“I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin.”
— Psalm 38:18

This isn't the peace of vindication.

This is the possibility of peace that comes through honesty before God.

David doesn't hide from what is happening within him.

He brings it into God's presence.

Scripture gives us this pattern elsewhere:

“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.”
— Psalm 139:23

Surrender sometimes requires enough humility to stop asking only:

“Lord, what are You going to do about them?”

and begin asking:

“Lord, what do You want to do in me?”

Peace Does Not Require Pretending

David doesn't clean himself up emotionally before praying.

He sighs.

He groans.

He confesses.

He waits.

He asks God not to abandon him.

And then the Psalm ends:

“LORD, do not forsake me; do not be far from me, my God. Come quickly to help me, my Lord and my Savior.”
— Psalm 38:21–22

David's peace isn't found in pretending everything is fine.

His hope is found in knowing where to turn when it isn't.

That is surrender too.

We can bring God the parts of ourselves we would rather avoid.

The disappointment.

The anger.

The guilt.

The fear.

The choices we regret.

The things we haven't told anyone.

Nothing we uncover before God was ever hidden from Him.

Today's Surrender

We've spent an entire week releasing things into God's hands.

Today, perhaps the surrender is simply:

“Lord, here is me.”

Not the polished version.

Not the explanation.

Not what someone else did.

Just you.

Sit quietly with David's words:

“All my longings lie open before You.”

What longing needs to lie open before God today?

What sigh?

What failure?

What hurt?

You don't need many words.

Prayer

Jehovah Shalom, nothing within me is hidden from You.

So today, I surrender myself.

Search me, correct me, forgive me, heal me, and remain near to me.

I trust You with what I find difficult to face.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Today's Micro Surrender:
I surrender the unedited version of myself. Nothing is hidden from God, and I can still come near.

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