Mockery and Reproach

Based on Psalm 69:7-18

What is a reason we may feel overwhelmed, as described in the earlier verses?
The answer is in this section.

Because for thy sake I have borne reproach; shame hath covered my face.
Living as God wants us to brings criticism, and sometimes we are confused and feel ashamed because society is condemning us so much. Those who are glorifying God in their lifestyle will feel this way often.
I am become a stranger unto my brethren, and an alien unto my mother's children.
Following God's instructions can even lead to distancing from family, becoming strange and different to them.
For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up; and the reproaches of them that reproached thee are fallen upon me.
There is nothing more radical than being utterly consumed by the service of God. Try it some time, and you will find that most Christians quickly criticise you for fanaticism, legalism and a judgmental spirit. Make sure these are not true charges, if they are you are doing enormous damage to the church. But if you are truly serving God devotedly out of love and a changed heart then this psalm is for you.
When I wept, and chastened my soul with fasting, that was to my reproach.
Sincere sorrow for sin and self-discipline, mortifying the flesh, are essential; for the lack of these many will perish. Yet so often those who claim a relationship with Christ drag others back from the repentance they need because such churchgoers do not themselves share this conviction. A great mistake in the church, is the belief that every point on which another differs from me is a point on which that person is sinfully wrong. This is often perversely balanced with the belief that no teaching/doctrine of Jesus taught by the prophets is worth more than avoidance of conflict, so quietness is favoured over principle and the testimony of Jesus made of no effect. This profanity amounts to little more than paganism yet it is so easy for you and me to fall into.
I made sackcloth also my garment; and I became a proverb to them.
What would you say about someone who was so miserable that he wore a hair shirt under his clothes? Wouldn't he be mentioned in many of your conversations as an example of an extremist? Yet God relates to such a man.
God also relates to the public figure who is mocked in media outlets and by people who are having a bit too much fun. Be careful who you mock, it may be that God can relate to that person. The person does not need to be a good person. I have sometimes been offended and angry when I heard people mocking a sinner who I relate to for some reason, or care about; even though I do not share that person's sin, mocking my friend is like mocking me and I don't like it. Next time you are about to mock that weird person or that politician remember this, it's a lesson that I need to learn.
But as for me, my prayer is unto thee O LORD, in an acceptable time
Your safety, your solution, is to turn to Jesus. Turn to Jesus when you are being mocked, turn to Jesus when you are tempted to mock another, turn to Jesus when you feel like you are sinking in mud or drowning in a stormy sea, when you feel like everything is against you turn to Jesus. Jesus gave everything for you, he is all for you.