As the rain and snow

“While there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, Abner was making himself strong in the house of Saul… Ish-bosheth [Saul’s son] said to Abner, ‘Why have you gone in to my father’s concubine?’ Then Abner was very angry… ‘God do so to Abner and more also, if I do not accomplish for David what the Lord has sworn to him, to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and set up the throne of David over Israel and Judah.’

“Abner sent to David, saying, ‘To whom does the land belong? Make your covenant with me, and behold, my hand shall be with you to bring over all Israel to you… I will arise and go and gather all Israel to my lord the king, that they may make a covenant with you, and that you may reign over all that your heart desires…’

“Then Joab went to the king and said, ‘What have you done? Behold, Abner came to you… You know that [he] came to deceive you and to know your going out and your coming in, and to know all that you are doing.’

“Joab… sent messengers after Abner, and brought him back… But David did not know about it. When Abner returned, Joab took him aside… and struck him in the stomach, so that he died… When David heard of it, he said, ‘I and my kingdom are forever guiltless before the Lord for the blood of Abner’… So Joab and Abishai killed Abner, because he had put their brother Asahel to death in the battle at Gibeon.” 2 Samuel 3:6-10a,12,21,24-28,30

Abner was driven by inner integrity, a reasonableness and loyalty based on God’s promise. He’d been faithful to Saul, and now vowed to support God’s next anointed regent. His transfer of commitment from one king’s family to the next was understood and welcomed by David, who shared his sense of fidelity before God. In contrast, Joab was driven by competition, anger, jealousy. As General, he appeared to zealously support David, but brooding with suspicion and violence, he acted to protect his own pride. His fiery motivations expressed themselves in impulsive vengeance contrary to David’s way of ruling. (2 Samuel 2:12-28; 3:31-39)

What we foster on the inside manifests itself on our outside. Internal process becomes external action. To behave uprightly we cannot hoard or stoke embers of sin within. Acknowledging flesh tendencies as well as God’s redeeming power gives both wisdom and hope. God demands purity in the innermost place to free us to encourage others and please Him. (Luke 6:45)

Where is hidden sin causing misery? Could depression, restlessness, or stress be exacerbated by long-held angst over circumstances, or coddled resentment? Will we bring these habits to the light of Christ’s forgiveness? (Psalm 32:1-5,10-11)

What outward expressions are fueled by inner selfishness, bitterness, or anger? Where are we given to impulse over self-control, and what will we do about it? What tone of voice needs changing, rants assuaging, impatience softening? In loved ones, would we pray for inner purity before outward conformity? God’s grace applied transforms the worst of us, enabling tendencies and expressions to reflect Christ in us, our hope of glory. (2 Corinthians 3:18; Colossians 1:27; 1 John 1:9)

Lord, keep clean my innermost so I reflect You with my outermost and exalt You to the uttermost. (Psalm 51:2-4,6-10)

“After this David inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?’ And the Lord said, “Go up… [t]o Hebron.^’ So David went up there, and his two wives also… And David brought up his men.., everyone with his household, and they lived in the towns of Hebron. And the men of Judah came, and there they anointed David king over the house of Judah.

“When they told David, ‘It was the men of Jabesh-gilead who buried Saul,’ David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh-gilead and said to them, ‘May you be blessed by the Lord, because you showed this loyalty to Saul your lord and buried him. Now may the Lord show steadfast love and faithfulness to you. And I will do good to you because you have done this thing. Now therefore let your hands be strong, and be valiant, for Saul your lord is dead, and the house of Judah has anointed me king over them.’” 2 Samuel 2:1-7

Samuel had prophesied that David would be king, but David was content and intent on serving king Saul until God’s appointed time. His lament over the the deaths of Saul and Jonathan displayed genuine grief, and then he humbly sought the Lord for next steps. Continual communion with the Lord and reliance on His word kept David in tune with His will. From this heavenly vantage point he handled the particulars of his reign, winning the favor of men by seeking God’s. The Holy Spirit directed and infused his dealing with all parties and situations. (1 Samuel 15:17-19,26; 16:1-3,11-13; 2 Samuel 1:11-27)

The human heart is fickle, often wavering between loyalties, interests, and intentions. We have high aspirations, desire to be right with God and humble, yet are easily swayed by the enticements of power and notoriety. We care about others until we have to put them first. We champion rights until they infringe on ours. We can’t help but want to seize and exert control, and in doing so can squelch all grace and kindness that would adorn relationships. (1 Kings 12:1-15; Philippians 2:3-4)

Daily surrender to the Lord fits us into our place in His plans. It aligns us with His ways and tempo, directs our thinking and doing. It enables us to have His mind and be strong in what is right but contrary to current culture. It supplies graciousness, selflessness, and generosity in our impulses toward others. It steps us in godly motivation and eternal perspective. And because of these, it blesses those around us.

In what area of influence has the Lord set us? How uprightly are we handling our responsibilities? Do we exercise assigned authority with thankfulness, grace, appreciation, and dependence on God’s leading? How surrendered are we? It’s important to remember where we came from and that every stewardship is from and for the true King. He will not fail to give wisdom and inspiration for required decisions and divine diplomacy. He will establish us when we seek, trust, and obey Him. (Proverbs 3:3-6; Romans 3:23; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; James 1:17)

My King, keep me aware of and dependent on You in every facet of life, that I may exercise Your graciousness and wisdom for the blessing of others.

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Romans 3:23-26

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” 1 John 1:9; 4:8

One aspect of the perfection of God is that He infinitely is every one of His attributes, and does according to who He is. He can do nothing apart from the very nature that imagines, designs, plans, fuels, and performs. He who creates is Creator, who lives in us is life, who justifies is just and justice, who loves is love. He is Wisdom embodied and imparted, the Way who guides, the Bread who feeds and sustains. He is Light who reveals, burns, and illumines, the God of all comfort who comforts, the Truth who enlightens. (John 6:35,48; 8:12; 14:6; 2 Corinthians 1:3-4; 1 John 4:8)

And this God is ours! He owns us, adores us, and invites our pleas. He is near and intimately involved in all our ways, concerned with all that concerns us. Do we avail ourselves of His grace and bounty? (Psalm 139:3; Jeremiah 33:3; Zephaniah 3:17)

What attribute of God are we lacking this day? Wisdom, grace, physical or mental might? Creativity from the Creator in a work situation or a complex problem? Hope or faith from its Author? From what doubt or anxiety do we need deliverance from the Deliverer, from what nagging sins victory from the Victor? Where are we wanting for the discipline or directing of the Father? (Psalm 103:13; Jeremiah 32:17-21,27,38-41; 2 Corinthians 12:9; Hebrews 12:2,7-11; James 1:5)

The One in whom is the fullness of all things can fill us with His Spirit. The Savior in whom are all things graciously endows us with the same. Jehovah Shalom, God of Peace, guards our hearts and minds with salvation. (Ephesians 5:18; 6:13,17; Philippians 4:7; Colossians 2:9; Romans 8:32; Hebrews 1:2-3 )

How are we endeavoring to know Christ? As we come to understand His attributes in their fullness, which ones will we claim? Which ones will we praise?

“O worship the King all-glorious above,
O gratefully sing his power and his love:
our shield and defender, the Ancient of Days,
pavilioned in splendor and girded with praise.

Frail children of dust, and feeble as frail,
in you do we trust, nor find you to fail.
Your mercies, how tender, how firm to the end,
our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend!

O measureless Might, unchangeable Love,
whom angels delight to worship above!
Your ransomed creation, with glory ablaze,
in true adoration shall sing to your praise!” ~Robert Grant (1833)

Lord on High, lift my sights, trust, and praise to all You are and do, unto Your great glory.

“And when they had crucified him, they divided his garments among them by casting lots. Then they sat down and kept watch over him there. And over his head they put the charge against him, which read, ‘This is Jesus, the King of the Jews…’ And those who passed by derided him… So also the chief priests, with the scribes and elders, mocked him… And the robbers who were crucified with him also reviled him in the same way.

“Now from the sixth hour  there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour.  And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?..’ And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.

“And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.  The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised,  and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, ‘Truly this was the Son of God!'” Matthew 27:35-37,39,41,44-46,50-54

The morning had likely been ordinary for the soldiers enlisted to crucify the criminals that fair day. But there was something different about this one. His look, His demeanor. His peaceful countenance. His calm was such a contrast to the vitriolic, cruel crowd. Watching Him changed them forever.

Watching over Jesus changes us too. We cannot help but see His serene and absolutely powerful authority. His perfect yieldedness to His Father’s will. His determination to finish what He’d left the glory of heaven to do for us. His wordless suffering as He suffocated, bearing the full weight of our sins. And His love! What wondrous love!

Do I squirm from keeping watch over Jesus, lingering at the cross, the bleeding nail wounds and excruciating vileness of my sin and its fallout? Am I angry that He did not resist, nor stop loving and administering grace? Do I pridefully look on only at a distance, unwilling to face the horror He endured for me? (Matthew 27:55; Luke 23:32-34)

Do I chafe at watching with Jesus, eager to get on with my day, or task, impatient to wait for His direction, or filling? Would I take time to watch how He would enter and execute my day, then go forth in His countenance and strength?

“O teach me what it meaneth,
That cross uplifted high,
With One, the Man of Sorrows,
Condemned to bleed and die!
O teach me what it cost Thee
To make a sinner whole;
And teach me, Savior, teach me
The value of a soul!

O infinite Redeemer!
I bring no other plea;
Because Thou dost invite me
I cast myself on Thee.
Because Thou dost accept me
I love and I adore;
Because Thy love constraineth,
I’ll praise Thee evermore!” ~ Lucy Bennett (1850-1927)

My Lord Jesus, may I watch over You throughout my days, that they be filled with awe and praise.

“Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.” Psalm 1:1-4

“For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery… Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh… If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” Galatians 5:1,16,25

“Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:7-10

A man’s blessedness has everything to do with his position in regard to God’s word. The blessing of God comes to the one who walks, stands, and sits with Him, yet is withheld when he does not. A pattern of good living, a bold confidence, and a firm foundation grounded and soaked in the living Word ensure His gracious benediction. Those decisions put into motion a lifestyle that pleases Him, bears much fruit, and stands apart from the world’s ways. The choice and call to delight in the Lord and not be deceived are clear.

The carrying out of that call is a long journey in the same direction. Step by step, intention by intention, day by day, when God’s children immerse themselves in His law they will grow roots and flourish with spiritual fruit wherever God leads. The workplace, the home, neighborhood, relationships, and ministries, everywhere he walks will bear the footprint of the Almighty. It will permeate with the fragrance of His presence, the touch of His wisdom and grace. (2 Corinthians 2:15)

The warning for us is to check our positions and keep them in balance. Are we frenzied in busy activity that has escaped the quiet conferring of His insight, the setting of His compass? Would we walk instead at His tempo, in His direction? Have we grown complacent to stand with and parrot complainers? Are we spiritually slouching, weary of doing good, unconcerned about His world, and closed to fresh instruction from His Word? Do we meditate on what is lofty, or worldly? Do we instead fixate? When are we silent and undistracted, jealously and intentionally taking time to worship and listen to God’s voice? Life established in Christ is indeed blessed.

Lord, keep me faithful in my sitting, standing, and walking, that I might bear fruit for the benefit of those around me and to Your glory.

“And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And Jesus stopped and said, ‘Call him.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.^’ And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. And Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ And the blind man said to him, ‘Rabbi, let me recover my sight.^’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Go your way; your faith has made you well.’ And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” Mark 10:46-52

The noisy buzz became clamor, the gentle distant rhythm a thundering on the ground as a crowd approached where the blind man sat. But this day was different. He’d heard the Teacher was among them. Rather than beg for a donation as he’d always done, he cried out for Jesus, distinct among men and name above all names, and asked that He’d have mercy on him. Jesus called back.

A great concert of faith wells up when our deepest cries meet the Lord’s awakening of our spirit. Our very recognition of who He is comes by His prompting, and when that swells to specific asking for Him to do according to specific power, there breaks forth a lovely crescendo of will. The cry and the call blend in unison to heal and sanctify and magnify glory.

Is my begging among men and for temporal insignificances, or do I daily assess deeper soul needs and beseech my God? Do frenzied internet searching or satisfaction with cursory conversations reveal the emptiness of a pauper? What would change in my temperament, my outlook, my vitality, if I sought for meaning in the One who created it, and me for it?

Once He realigns soul direction, where is God uniquely calling us to respond in faith according to a particular gift or offering? Do we listen keenly enough in the cacaphony of worldliness to recognize His voice, and quickly spring up in answer to His offered mercy?

“If thou but suffer God to guide thee, 
and hope in God through all thy ways, 
God will give strength, whate’er betide thee, 
and bear thee through the evil days.  
Who trusts in God’s unchanging love 
builds on the rock that naught can move. 

Only be still, and wait God’s leisure 
in cheerful hope, with heart content 
to take whate’er thy Maker’s pleasure 
and all-discerning love hath sent; 
we know our inmost wants are known, 
for we are called to be God’s own. 

Sing, pray, and keep God’s ways unswerving; 
so do thine own part faithfully, 
and trust God’s word; though undeserving, 
thou yet shalt find it true for thee.  
God never yet forsook at need 
the soul that trusted God indeed.” ~Georg Neumark (1641) 

Father, so blend our voices that the world hears and sees only You.

“There are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit… All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.

“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-8,11-13

“By the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.  Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.” Romans 12:3-8

God not only makes, but assigns and arranges His people with certain gifts for His purposes. He orders families, churches, communities at specific seasons and places to achieve a number of coincidental plans for individual and communal benefit. And He designs variations of personality traits to accompany the expression of each measure of grace. Variety is His sacred spice of robust life in Christ. (1 Corinthians 12:14-27)

As He wills. Why do we have such problems with His choices? Given through the Spirit. Though all one in Spirit, and all part of the same organic supernatural body, we tend to like variety until we don’t. In one Spirit. We’re fond of those with winsome demeanor, but can chafe at those who are contrary. God has assigned. We confer with the agreeable and supportive, but can resist or avoid those who would challenge or refine. According to grace given. We prefer to pick our place and people and dismiss what and whom we disagree with, or don’t like. One body in Christ.

Change in attitude can happen when we believe these words. If our minds are set on what we think and want, what feels good and causes no friction, we’ll go through life as limp spiritual appendages. But if we take to heart what God says is true, that members of all varieties make vital contribution to us and to His Body at work in the world, we’ll enjoy harmony and fruitfulness.

Which will it be? How can I welcome and foster variety in my relationships and work, both secular and sacred? How can I more practically seek the Body’s good over my own?

Lord, enable me to serve fully as You designed and intend, for common good and Your uncommon glory.

“Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

‘For who has known the mind of the Lord,
    or who has been his counselor?’
‘Or who has given a gift to him
    that he might be repaid?’

“For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” Romans 11:33-36

“Behold, God is exalted in his power;
    who is a teacher like him?
Who has prescribed for him his way?..

“Remember to extol his work,
    of which men have sung.
All mankind has looked on it;
    man beholds it from afar.
Behold, God is great, and we know him not;
    the number of his years is unsearchable.” Job 36:22-26

“Who has measured the Spirit of the Lord,
    or what man shows him his counsel?” Isaiah 40:13

“Who is like me? Who will summon me? What shepherd can stand before me?” Jeremiah 50:44

“For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.” Colossians 1:16

There is nothing like considering the Almighty to put man in his place, nor His ways to correct a man’s intentions or redirect a man’s plans. The mighty David knew from his young days as a shepherd that his Lord held glory above the heavens. His son Solomon knew in his vast wisdom that the highest heavens could not contain Him. The scriptures reveal over and over the inscrutable, indescribable, immeasurable ways of the One who was, is, and always will be. (Psalm 8:1-6; 1 Kings 4:29-34; 8:27; 10:1-9; Revelation 1:8)

If we know God’s ways are perfect, we can embrace His every providence. We can receive what flows to us through His sovereign hands, whether by allowance or orchestration, as redemptive and sanctifying. We can accept the order He implements in our days and years as good. We can trust His interruptions as purposeful. We can expectantly seek His directions and trust His eternal purposes. As His ways are without fault, so are His timing, gifting, providing, and withholding. His righteousness, justice, and holiness are infinite and unchanging. His love exceeds the heavens, His faithfulness the skies. (2 Samuel 22:31; Psalm 18:30; 36:5; 108:4)

Do we want to be fortified by these certainties? Are we plumbing the riches, wisdom, and knowledge of God? How? When? It doesn’t just happen at the snap of desire. What plan are we implementing? What specific time do we guard, what niggling distractions set aside, to dive deep in discovery and wonder of all He is and does? How consistently, systematically, and thoroughly do we read the Word? (Proverbs 2:1-11; Jeremiah 29:12-13)

Is there a friend with whom we could be accountable in study and memorization? In what regular community are we participating that lifts our sights and elevates conversation? Whom are we encouraging to know and marvel at God’s inscrutable deeds? How are we communicating, in word or action, what we learn and love about Him? (Psalm 34:1-3)

Lord, cause me daily to stop and consider Your wondrous works, and respond with vitality in praise, gratitude, selflessness, and joy, to Your highest honor. (Job 37:14; Romans 12:11)

“The Amalekites had made a raid… They had overcome Ziklag and burned it with fire  and taken captive the women and all who were in it, both small and great… And when David and his men came to the city, they found it burned with fire, and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. Then David and the people raised their voices and wept until they had no more strength to weep. David’s two wives also had been taken captive… And David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God…

“And David inquired of the Lord, ‘Shall I pursue after this band?’ He answered him, ‘Pursue, for you shall surely overtake and shall surely rescue.’ So David set out… 

“[The Amalekites] were spread abroad over all the land, eating and drinking and dancing, because of all the great spoil they had taken from the land of the Philistines and of Judah. And David struck them down… David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken, and David rescued his two wives. Nothing was missing, whether small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything that had been taken. David brought back all. David also captured all the flocks and herds…

“David said, ‘[T]he Lord has given us [spoil and] preserved us and given into our hand the band that came against us.'” 1 Samuel 30:1-2a,3-6,8-9a,16-19a,23

David the warrior was fueled by passion: love for his people and a gripping sense of justice. He would not forsake those whom and what belonged to him, and gave his all to rescue them from captivity. He went at God’s direction and triumphed in His strength, and restored everyone and everything to right relationships. His righteous motive and inspired skill are palpable and powerful.

And so it is with our Lord Jesus. Fully understanding the wiles of the enemy and helplessness of man’s captivity, He set out to earth to rescue His own. Driven by single intent, He gave His all that we might be restored to a right relationship with Him and be supplied with all we need to live for Him. (Luke 9:51; Philippians 2:5-8; Hebrews 12:2; 1 John 3:16)

Do we recognize and give thanks for this passion of the Lover of our souls? If so, do we share it for the lost? Are we even informed enough to grasp the magnitude of those suffering in physical, spiritual, and national captivity? Does it distress us, or are we too narrow in our sympathies to care? Do we genuinely mourn and pray, or are we too prejudiced to value those different or distant from us?

If we confess the sins of indifference, self-righteousness, and wayward passions, the Lord is faithful and just to forgive us and give us a new heart. How will we determine to develop a mindset and heart-set to be more like His? (Ezekiel 36:25-26; 1 John 1:9)

Lord, give me holy passion. Teach me to love what and whom You love, and to expend myself for You and Your eternal, redemptive purposes and glory.

“As a deer pants for flowing streams,
    so pants my soul for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God,
    for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?
My tears have been my food
    day and night,
while they say to me all the day long,
    ‘Where is your God?’
These things I remember,
    as I pour out my soul:
how I would go with the throng
    and lead them in procession to the house of God
with glad shouts and songs of praise,
    a multitude keeping festival.

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.

My soul is cast down within me;
    therefore I remember you…
Deep calls to deep
    at the roar of your waterfalls;
all your breakers and your waves
    have gone over me.
By day the Lord commands his steadfast love,
    and at night his song is with me,
    a prayer to the God of my life.
I say to God, my rock:
    ‘Why have you forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning
    because of the oppression of the enemy?’
As with a deadly wound in my bones,
    my adversaries taunt me,
while they say to me all the day long,
    ‘Where is your God?’

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.”

“Send out your light and your truth;
    let them lead me;
let them bring me to your holy hill
    and to your dwelling!
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.

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.” Psalm 42:1-11; 43:3-5

The openness of raw emotion pours out like the streams described, flowing with agony and honesty over rocks of disappointment, betrayal, pain. Desperate longing desperately seeks relief, comfort, resolution in the presence of God. And that turmoil meets rest, and hope, in His salvation.

God never promised only upcast life. The world thinks differently, claiming rights and assigning wrongs to ‘a God who would cause suffering.’ It was the beautiful downcast Savior, the Man of Sorrows forsaken and crucified, who won the very salvation that gives hope to the troubled. The way of suffering is the way of rejoicing, and the process that fuses them is honest pouring out that opens the way for heavenly pouring in. (Isaiah 53:3-5)

Have tears been our recent food? Where are we thirsting for relief or comfort? Are we panting for an explanation of circumstances, a clear way forward, or out? Would we pour out our hearts to the living God, whose steadfast love and song surround us night and day? Would we voice our dirge to attune to His rightful praise? Would we allow the deep waters to bear us up to His light, trusting and praising Him as a very present help and hope? (Psalm 46:1-3)

Lord, may I ever sing to Thee, knowing that as You hear You uphold with love, grace, and certain hope.