What I should be thinking while riding on open country road

I subscribe to the Verse of the Day from Bible Gateway. I get a random bible verse(s) in my email each day. Most days, I don't spend a lot of time meditating on the words but this one from Psalm 118:5-6 caught my attention:

"When hard pressed, I cried to the LORD; he brought me into a spacious place. The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?"

I was particularly interested in the word "spacious" so I decided to look it up. I was thinking: isn't it enough to have the Lord's presence with me during my hard times? What would a spacious place add to my confidence that the Lord Almighty will rescue me from any enemy or harm?

I first googled "commentary on Psalm 118" and there were lots of help! I found the BibleStudyTools.com particularly helpful. So the literal translation of "he brought me into a spacious place"  is "Jah heard me in a wide place" and the commentary added: The answer was appropriate to the prayer, for he brought him out of his narrow and confined condition into a place of liberty where he could walk at large, free from obstruction and oppression. 

Another wonderful feature of the Bible Gateway is that by a click of a button, I can see parallel translations! My favorite translation along side the NIV translation is The Message. And Psalm 118:5-16 reads:

Pushed to the wall, I called to God;
    from the wide open spaces, he answered.
God’s now at my side and I’m not afraid;
    who would dare lay a hand on me?
God’s my strong champion;
    I flick off my enemies like flies.
Far better to take refuge in God
    than trust in people;
Far better to take refuge in God
    than trust in celebrities.
Hemmed in by barbarians,
    in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt;
Hemmed in and with no way out,
    in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt;
Like swarming bees, like wild prairie fire, they hemmed me in;
    in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt.
I was right on the cliff-edge, ready to fall,
    when God grabbed and held me.
God’s my strength, he’s also my song,
    and now he’s my salvation.
Hear the shouts, hear the triumph songs
    in the camp of the saved?
        “The hand of God has turned the tide!
        The hand of God is raised in victory!
        The hand of God has turned the tide!”

I can imagine when David was hiding in a cave when Saul was trying to find him to take his life. Getting back out to an open and spacious place with the Lord by his side is answer to prayer indeed!

So next time I am out in open country on my bike, I will remember this verse. It should take away some of my anxious thoughts...