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From Sorrow to Joy
How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me. (NIV) Psalm 13:1, 5-6
It is uncertain as to the circumstances in David's life at the time he wrote this Psalm, but there are three things he clearly intended to memorialize. The first is the feeling and sense of loneliness. How long, he asks of God, will you seem to be removed from me and hide your face? How long will I have to rely upon my own counsel and live with the sorrow in my heart? At this moment, David is a sorrowful, lonely man.
Has there ever been this sense of loneliness in your life? Have you ever had the occasion to feel the sorrow that comes from feeling like you are all alone? The feeling that there is no one else in the whole world? The feeling that you're in a trap which is closing around you and you believe to be totally alone. No one is by your side.
And, even if there was someone by your side, there is still loneliness because surely no one could ever understand the depth of your trouble and pain. The kind of sorrow and loneliness that is with you all the day long, as David experienced.
The second main point, however, is how David responded. How do you respond to these type of feelings? How did David? David, still a man after God's own heart, turns to God. David prays. He calls out to God to consider his state and rescue him before he falls prey. "Consider" in Hebrew is "nabat" meaning to look intently into something or someone. "Enlighten" in Hebrew is "owr" meaning to set on fire or kindle.
David prays for God to look into the deepest most intimate parts of him and set him back on fire. Notice, David does not complain about his sorrow or for it be removed from him. Neither does he pray for his feeling of loneliness to be taken away. He instead gives permission for God to look deeply into his soul and set it on fire.
Is this how we pray when in trouble, in sorrow, and in loneliness? I believe we often want Him to just fix the problem so that we could move on in life. Let us not be so focused on the problem, but instead on allowing God into the depths of our soul that He may do as needed to set us on fire.
Finally, David begins to rejoice and praise God. He will trust in His loving kindness. His heart will rejoice. He will sing to the Lord. His heart turns from his loneliness and sorrow to praise and worship of God. The kindle was set by God's Spirit during David's prayer. The fire is set. He is enlightened. No longer is he in the darkness of his former sorrow and loneliness. He celebrates God.
Can you trust in God to set you back on fire? Can He look into the depths of your despairing and lonely soul and cause it to be in sorrow no more? Can He cause your heart to want to do nothing more than to rejoice, praise and sing songs to Him, and celebrate Him? Of course, God can certainly do all these thing! Will you, however, bring your heart to Him and allow Him?
Written by Michael Ortiz used with permission.
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How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me. (NIV) Psalm 13:1, 5-6
It is uncertain as to the circumstances in David's life at the time he wrote this Psalm, but there are three things he clearly intended to memorialize. The first is the feeling and sense of loneliness. How long, he asks of God, will you seem to be removed from me and hide your face? How long will I have to rely upon my own counsel and live with the sorrow in my heart? At this moment, David is a sorrowful, lonely man.
Has there ever been this sense of loneliness in your life? Have you ever had the occasion to feel the sorrow that comes from feeling like you are all alone? The feeling that there is no one else in the whole world? The feeling that you're in a trap which is closing around you and you believe to be totally alone. No one is by your side.
And, even if there was someone by your side, there is still loneliness because surely no one could ever understand the depth of your trouble and pain. The kind of sorrow and loneliness that is with you all the day long, as David experienced.
The second main point, however, is how David responded. How do you respond to these type of feelings? How did David? David, still a man after God's own heart, turns to God. David prays. He calls out to God to consider his state and rescue him before he falls prey. "Consider" in Hebrew is "nabat" meaning to look intently into something or someone. "Enlighten" in Hebrew is "owr" meaning to set on fire or kindle.
David prays for God to look into the deepest most intimate parts of him and set him back on fire. Notice, David does not complain about his sorrow or for it be removed from him. Neither does he pray for his feeling of loneliness to be taken away. He instead gives permission for God to look deeply into his soul and set it on fire.
Is this how we pray when in trouble, in sorrow, and in loneliness? I believe we often want Him to just fix the problem so that we could move on in life. Let us not be so focused on the problem, but instead on allowing God into the depths of our soul that He may do as needed to set us on fire.
Finally, David begins to rejoice and praise God. He will trust in His loving kindness. His heart will rejoice. He will sing to the Lord. His heart turns from his loneliness and sorrow to praise and worship of God. The kindle was set by God's Spirit during David's prayer. The fire is set. He is enlightened. No longer is he in the darkness of his former sorrow and loneliness. He celebrates God.
Can you trust in God to set you back on fire? Can He look into the depths of your despairing and lonely soul and cause it to be in sorrow no more? Can He cause your heart to want to do nothing more than to rejoice, praise and sing songs to Him, and celebrate Him? Of course, God can certainly do all these thing! Will you, however, bring your heart to Him and allow Him?
Written by Michael Ortiz used with permission.
Forward this devotion to a friend