The sun, the rain, the wind let nothing alone, but they worry at it, smooth is and rough it again until it is their own. I was like that, myself. A man shaped by storms and hot suns, but most of all by the storms I kept buried inside.”
–Louis L’Amour (The First Fast Draw)
“And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, ‘Master, Master, we are perishing!’ Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm.”
“And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, ‘Master, Master, we are perishing!’ Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm.”
–Luke 8:24 (NKJV)
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Let me start off with an encouraging word from Steven Lawson, “Even in the midst of their darkest hours, believers always have a steadfast hope in God.” We have a hope that is unshakable and unassailable. “No matter how black the night, no matter how raging the storm, one’s hope in the Lord should remain strong.” (Lawson) As we look into Psalm 102, keep that in mind. This psalm is one of an afflicted man–woe is me. He is in distress because of his affliction; he is faint and weary because of his trials.
1 — Hear my prayer, O LORD, and let my cry come to You.
2 — Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my trouble; incline Your ear to me; in the day that I call, answer me speedily.
3 — For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned like a hearth.
4 — My heart is stricken and withered like grass, so that I forget to eat my bread.
5 — Because of the sound of my groaning my bones cling to my skin.
6 — I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am like an owl of the desert.
7 — I lie awake, and am like a sparrow alone on the housetop.
8 — My enemies reproach me all day long; those who deride me swear an oath against me.
9 — For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping,
10 — Because of Your indignation and Your wrath; for You have lifted me up and cast me away.
11 — My days are like a shadow that lengthens, and I wither away like grass. (NKJV)
Where are you God? A question along with an exclamation. I hurt, I fear, I’m in trouble, I’m in despair–where are you God? George Wood writes, “When you are in emotional pain, there’s no ‘kairos’ [seasonal time]–your life is so burdened that each second seems as an hour, each minute a day, each day a month, and each month a year. That’s why the Psalmist asks God to do something quickly–‘chronos’ [time that is the endless ticking of the clock] time is a terrible burden and tedium.”
Read carefully verses 3-11. Has that ever described your situation? Perhaps that is the situation that you currently find yourself in. There is a heavy physical and emotional toll upon the body. “How awful to be in such desolation of soul and brokenness in spirit!” (Wood) The writer of this Psalm was alone. There was no help, no one to cry to, except the Lord and it seems that God has forsaken him as well. What a terrible place to be. It seems that weeping became his daily diet. His life is passing and there does not seem to be any relief in sight. “Gloom, despair, agony on me…”
I know of people and have read of others that when great calamity has come that they shut down and shut God out. This is seen especially when death takes away a loved one. Anger comes out, they become bitter, and some even utter an oath against God. They turn their backs on God, when they should be doing what this Psalmist is doing. Despite his situation, despite seeming as if God has left him, he continues to cry out to Him. Don’t lose hope in your time of need. Don’t lose faith in the One who is there waiting for you to turn to Him.
“We would leave, O God, to Thee
Every anxious care and fear;
Thou the troubled thought can see,
Thou canst dry the bitter tear.”
–B. L. Gaskell
————————————-
Let me start off with an encouraging word from Steven Lawson, “Even in the midst of their darkest hours, believers always have a steadfast hope in God.” We have a hope that is unshakable and unassailable. “No matter how black the night, no matter how raging the storm, one’s hope in the Lord should remain strong.” (Lawson) As we look into Psalm 102, keep that in mind. This psalm is one of an afflicted man–woe is me. He is in distress because of his affliction; he is faint and weary because of his trials.
1 — Hear my prayer, O LORD, and let my cry come to You.
2 — Do not hide Your face from me in the day of my trouble; incline Your ear to me; in the day that I call, answer me speedily.
3 — For my days are consumed like smoke, and my bones are burned like a hearth.
4 — My heart is stricken and withered like grass, so that I forget to eat my bread.
5 — Because of the sound of my groaning my bones cling to my skin.
6 — I am like a pelican of the wilderness; I am like an owl of the desert.
7 — I lie awake, and am like a sparrow alone on the housetop.
8 — My enemies reproach me all day long; those who deride me swear an oath against me.
9 — For I have eaten ashes like bread, and mingled my drink with weeping,
10 — Because of Your indignation and Your wrath; for You have lifted me up and cast me away.
11 — My days are like a shadow that lengthens, and I wither away like grass. (NKJV)
Where are you God? A question along with an exclamation. I hurt, I fear, I’m in trouble, I’m in despair–where are you God? George Wood writes, “When you are in emotional pain, there’s no ‘kairos’ [seasonal time]–your life is so burdened that each second seems as an hour, each minute a day, each day a month, and each month a year. That’s why the Psalmist asks God to do something quickly–‘chronos’ [time that is the endless ticking of the clock] time is a terrible burden and tedium.”
Read carefully verses 3-11. Has that ever described your situation? Perhaps that is the situation that you currently find yourself in. There is a heavy physical and emotional toll upon the body. “How awful to be in such desolation of soul and brokenness in spirit!” (Wood) The writer of this Psalm was alone. There was no help, no one to cry to, except the Lord and it seems that God has forsaken him as well. What a terrible place to be. It seems that weeping became his daily diet. His life is passing and there does not seem to be any relief in sight. “Gloom, despair, agony on me…”
I know of people and have read of others that when great calamity has come that they shut down and shut God out. This is seen especially when death takes away a loved one. Anger comes out, they become bitter, and some even utter an oath against God. They turn their backs on God, when they should be doing what this Psalmist is doing. Despite his situation, despite seeming as if God has left him, he continues to cry out to Him. Don’t lose hope in your time of need. Don’t lose faith in the One who is there waiting for you to turn to Him.
“We would leave, O God, to Thee
Every anxious care and fear;
Thou the troubled thought can see,
Thou canst dry the bitter tear.”
–B. L. Gaskell