GOD IS NOT SURPRISED BY OUR MOURNING
Psalm 43
1 Vindicate me, O God,
and defend my cause
against an ungodly people,
from the deceitful
and unjust man
deliver me!
2 For you
are the God in whom I take refuge;
why have you rejected
me?
Why do I go about
mourning
because of the oppression
of the enemy?
3 Send out your light
and your truth;
let them lead me;
let them bring me to
your holy hill
and to your dwelling!
4 Then I will go to
the altar of God,
to God my exceeding joy,
and I will praise you with
the lyre,
O God, my God.
5 Why are you cast
down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil
within me?
Hope in God; for I shall
again praise him,
my salvation and my
God.
It is very possible that
this psalm was part of psalm 42. Without doubt it follows the same theme. The
writer has ungodly enemies who are persecuting him. These wicked people are
deceitful and unjust.
The psalmist is waiting upon
God to deliver him. He knows he has trusted God, yet reprieve is not coming and
he feels rejected. His life is filled with sorrow and mourning because of the
oppression of his enemies. Will he ever find rest? Thoughts of rejection come
to his mind. He knows that his thinking is going in the wrong direction.
When we go through difficult times are we are susceptible
to this false thinking: Has God
forgotten us? Is God punishing us? Have we done things that have caused God to
stop loving us? Do we feel that God cannot really forgive our sins? Do we think
that joy cannot be part of our life anymore? When the situation is bleak, does everything
seem black and cloudy, with no hope of sunshine returning?
Elijah, after a great
victory against the prophets of Baal, became so dejected and desperate because
of his enemies that he desired to die. Then, in 1 Kings 19, God showed kindness
to him by sending an angel to care for him. How could a man of God become so
discouraged after having seen God work so mightily through him? Well, all I
know is that he was human, and that God came alongside him and encouraged him
when he needed it.
Dear friends, there is light at the end of the
tunnel, but to reach it you must feed
your minds and hearts with the truth. The writer asks God to bring light and
truth to him. God’s Word is the light we need. It is there we learn of the
character of God, it is those inspired words that inform us of God’s
sovereignty, there we find the eternal purposes of God, and there we are
overwhelmed by God’s unfading love.
When the Word of God directs our thoughts, our praise and gratitude will be full and sure.
God never forgets us! Every event in our life has an eternal purpose! His
dealings with us are always kind. He is loving and faithful! We are never
alone; no one can assail us without God’s awareness and sovereign control. Even
if we die, we are ushered into eternity in the presence of God, if we know Him!
Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation and my God.
Is there any good reason
to be dejected and discouraged? No. Does it happen to us? Yes. Do we need to
stay in that state? Certainly not!
Remember that the words of
this psalm are inspired by God and were sung by the children of Israel
The God of eternity, the only true and wise God is our God!
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