Lessons in the Wilderness - Part 9
Psalm 63:1-8
Perhaps the most beautiful thing about this Psalm is the simple fact that David had written it while he was in the wilderness of Judah. You see, sometimes we retire to the wilderness on purpose, like we are during this season, to spend more time with God and less time with our own distractions. Other times we find oursleves in the wilderness of our lives, wandering, searching, aching, longing, seeking. Like David describes, we find our souls parched in a weary land where there is no water.
I was just talking to someone yesterday about an awful incident that happened to one of their family members. A deaf man, while minding his own business trying to find a parking spot, had apparently taken the spot that someone else wanted, and was verbally threatened, had his car beat, and his tires slashed. This took place where he works, and his fellow employee was not fired and there were no consequences for what he had done. The family member of this person was venting about the stress of having to help the family member fix his car and was upset that there were no consequences. I could tell he was weary, overwhelmed and overall struggling with the way the world works at times.
We can all understand this, can't we? We hear about awful things that happen to people, innocent people loose their lives to violence and crime, and sometimes these awful things happen to us. We, like David, find ourselves searching for water in a dry, weary land. We continue to thirst for something greater and long for something more. There are times when the burdens of the world are simply too much to bear.
But...we can have hope in the Lord. Our God sees our pain--our God knows our struggles--our God mourns when we mourn--our God is a safe refuge--our God is our helper--and our God is making all things new. And for that we can praise God with songs of joy in the waiting, in the wilderness. This person and I were able to shift the conversation to thinking about the day that is coming when we will no longer deal with hurt in the world much like he had dealt with. For eternity, we will know only love, joy, peace, praise and true contenment. Do you know this truth today? Do you cling to it? Take a moment and search for God. Let Him find you and comfort you while you wait or wander in the wilderness. Praise Him for all He has done and is doing.
Perhaps the most beautiful thing about this Psalm is the simple fact that David had written it while he was in the wilderness of Judah. You see, sometimes we retire to the wilderness on purpose, like we are during this season, to spend more time with God and less time with our own distractions. Other times we find oursleves in the wilderness of our lives, wandering, searching, aching, longing, seeking. Like David describes, we find our souls parched in a weary land where there is no water.
I was just talking to someone yesterday about an awful incident that happened to one of their family members. A deaf man, while minding his own business trying to find a parking spot, had apparently taken the spot that someone else wanted, and was verbally threatened, had his car beat, and his tires slashed. This took place where he works, and his fellow employee was not fired and there were no consequences for what he had done. The family member of this person was venting about the stress of having to help the family member fix his car and was upset that there were no consequences. I could tell he was weary, overwhelmed and overall struggling with the way the world works at times.
We can all understand this, can't we? We hear about awful things that happen to people, innocent people loose their lives to violence and crime, and sometimes these awful things happen to us. We, like David, find ourselves searching for water in a dry, weary land. We continue to thirst for something greater and long for something more. There are times when the burdens of the world are simply too much to bear.
But...we can have hope in the Lord. Our God sees our pain--our God knows our struggles--our God mourns when we mourn--our God is a safe refuge--our God is our helper--and our God is making all things new. And for that we can praise God with songs of joy in the waiting, in the wilderness. This person and I were able to shift the conversation to thinking about the day that is coming when we will no longer deal with hurt in the world much like he had dealt with. For eternity, we will know only love, joy, peace, praise and true contenment. Do you know this truth today? Do you cling to it? Take a moment and search for God. Let Him find you and comfort you while you wait or wander in the wilderness. Praise Him for all He has done and is doing.
Comments
Post a Comment