At 30,000 feet in the clouds I had the opportunity to reflect on a beautiful psalm by David. We thank God for HIs travelling mercies, we arrived at our destination safely. Now here’s David: Psalm 6 is a psalm of lament where David expresses deep despair for his pain. Agonizing words such as “my bones are deeply troubled” signify great bodily distress and one that affects the core of his being for he cries out, “My soul is also greatly troubled.”
He is greatly overcome by grief and is on the verge of giving up. He describes himself in vivid detail as weak, weary from groaning all night long, and having drenched his couch with tears. We can definitely identify with him for he sounds like the rest of us.
Suffering will always be a part of the human race and it affects us all. A debilitating illness. The death of a loved one. The painful betrayal of trust. Dysfunctional families. Tragic accidents. Mass shootings. The unspeakable horrors of war. And the list goes on and on.
Like David, we think God is angry at us when tragedy strikes for he says, “Do not rebuke me in your anger.” Like him, we often think that God has abandoned us in our moment of despair for he cries out, “Return, O Lord, deliver me!”
But, alas, David had not given up on his God. He held on to what little faith he had left and declared, “The Lord has heard the voice of my weeping. The Lord has heard my supplication. The Lord will receive my prayer.”
No matter the struggle we are faced with there is still a God who hears. No matter how we perceive His silence, He has not abandoned us. He is no stranger to human suffering for He came and became like one of us.
And there at the cross we come to find out that His suffering was really meant for us.
Have a blessed day! (Written: 19JULY2016)